IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/jknowl/v5y2014i3p538-561.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

From Academia to Industry: Are Doctorate Holders Ready?

Author

Listed:
  • Hannelore Grande
  • Katrien Boyser
  • Karen Vandevelde
  • Ronan Rossem

Abstract

In policy debates related to innovation potential, the limited mobility from academia to industry is often explained by the supposed mismatch of skills needed in these different settings. We contribute to this debate by (1) examining the attitudes of Flemish doctoral candidates towards careers in industry, and (2) by analysing the extent to which doctoral candidates and employers in industry in Flanders differ in their views on the skills needed to perform well in this sector. We combined survey data with qualitative research. The Survey of Junior Researchers (SJR) provides information on the doctoral candidates’ perspective on these matters, whereas the Research & Development survey of Flemish companies reflects the employers’ views. Additional data obtained through interviews with both doctorate holders and employers provide a more in-depth understanding of the transition from academia to industry. A mismatch between what doctoral candidates consider important skills for a job in industry and what employers expect from researchers is observed. The importance of technical skills and more transferable competencies such as project management and business skills are underestimated by doctoral candidates. The findings raise questions on the awareness among doctoral candidates of the skills needed for a career outside academia. Addressing possible negative attitudes and providing adequate training and career planning could improve their preparation for work in non-academic settings. This is the first study in Flanders comparing researchers' and employers' views on skills, confirming findings in other countries that institutional programmes have a role to play in bridging the gap between employers' expectations and those of doctoral candidates. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Suggested Citation

  • Hannelore Grande & Katrien Boyser & Karen Vandevelde & Ronan Rossem, 2014. "From Academia to Industry: Are Doctorate Holders Ready?," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 5(3), pages 538-561, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:jknowl:v:5:y:2014:i:3:p:538-561
    DOI: 10.1007/s13132-014-0192-9
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s13132-014-0192-9
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s13132-014-0192-9?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stén, Susanna, 2008. "Mapping of the PhDs in the Private Sector. A Literature Review," Discussion Papers 1155, The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy.
    2. Laudeline Auriol, 2010. "Careers of Doctorate Holders: Employment and Mobility Patterns," OECD Science, Technology and Industry Working Papers 2010/4, OECD Publishing.
    3. Pierre Béret & Jean-François Giret & Isabelle Recotillet, 2003. "Trajectories from public sector of research to private sector : an analysis using french data on young PhD graduates," Post-Print halshs-00006142, HAL.
    4. Etzkowitz, Henry & Webster, Andrew & Gebhardt, Christiane & Terra, Branca Regina Cantisano, 2000. "The future of the university and the university of the future: evolution of ivory tower to entrepreneurial paradigm," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 313-330, February.
    5. Wolfgang Proissl, 2010. "Why Germany fell out of love with Europe," Essays and Lectures 417, Bruegel.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Dirk Meissner & Natalia Shmatko, 2019. "Integrating professional and academic knowledge: the link between researchers skills and innovation culture," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 44(4), pages 1273-1289, August.
    2. Hayter, Christopher S. & Parker, Marla A., 2019. "Factors that influence the transition of university postdocs to non-academic scientific careers: An exploratory study," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(3), pages 556-570.
    3. Jeongeun Kim & Molly Ott & Lindsey Dippold, 2020. "University and Department Influences on Scientists’ Occupational Outcomes," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 61(2), pages 197-228, March.
    4. Santos, João M. & Horta, Hugo & Heitor, Manuel, 2016. "Too many PhDs? An invalid argument for countries developing their scientific and academic systems: The case of Portugal," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 113(PB), pages 352-362.
    5. Uwe Cantner & Philip Doerr & Maximilian Goethner & Matthias Huegel & Martin Kalthaus, 2024. "A procedural perspective on academic spin-off creation: the changing relative importance of the academic and the commercial sphere," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(4), pages 1555-1590, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lander, Bryn & Atkinson-Grosjean, Janet, 2011. "Translational science and the hidden research system in universities and academic hospitals: A case study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 72(4), pages 537-544, February.
    2. David Grosse Kathoefer & Jens Leker, 2012. "Knowledge transfer in academia: an exploratory study on the Not-Invented-Here Syndrome," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 37(5), pages 658-675, October.
    3. Gruševaja, Marina & Pusch, Toralf, 2011. "How does Institutional Setting Affect the Impact of EU Structural Funds on Economic Cohesion? New Evidence from Central and Eastern Europe," IWH Discussion Papers 17/2011, Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH).
    4. Marc van der Steeg & Karen van der Wiel & Bram Wouterse, 2014. "Individual Returns to a PhD Education in the Netherlands: Income Differences between Masters and PhDs," CPB Discussion Paper 276, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
    5. van Rijnsoever, Frank J. & Hessels, Laurens K., 2011. "Factors associated with disciplinary and interdisciplinary research collaboration," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 463-472, April.
    6. Gál, Zoltán & Ptáček, Pavel, 2010. "The role of mid-range universities in knowledge transfer: the case of non-metropolitan regions in Central and Eastern Europe (examples from Hungary and the Czech Republic)," MPRA Paper 28358, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 18 Jan 2011.
    7. Kim, Younghwan & Kim, Wonjoon & Yang, Taeyong, 2012. "The effect of the triple helix system and habitat on regional entrepreneurship: Empirical evidence from the U.S," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 154-166.
    8. Zoltan Gal, 2012. "The Role of Mid-Ranged Universities in Knowledge Transfer in Central and Eastern Europe - Sustainable University Strategies in the Era of Post-Mass Education, UDK 378. 4 : 001. 92," Journal of Economic Development, Environment and People, Alliance of Central-Eastern European Universities, vol. 1(1), pages 50-70, June.
    9. Devrim Goktepe, 2003. "The Triple Helix as a model to analyze Israeli Magnet Program and lessons for late-developing countries like Turkey," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 58(2), pages 219-239, October.
    10. Francesco Campanella & Maria Rosaria Della Peruta & Stefano Bresciani & Luca Dezi, 2017. "Quadruple Helix and firms’ performance: an empirical verification in Europe," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 42(2), pages 267-284, April.
    11. Adrian D. Tanţău & Nicolae Al. Pop & Daniela Hîncu & Laurenţiu Frăţilă, 2011. "The Positioning of Universities in Collaborative Models as Clusters in a Knowledge Based Economy," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 13(30), pages 555-564, June.
    12. Shu Yu & Takaya Yuizono, 2021. "A Proximity Approach to Understanding University-Industry Collaborations for Innovation in Non-Local Context: Exploring the Catch-Up Role of Regional Absorptive Capacity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-19, March.
    13. Subhan Tahrima & Don Jaegal, 2013. "Applicability of Knowledge-Based Innovation System in Bangladesh," International Review of Public Administration, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(3), pages 185-208, December.
    14. Williams, Christopher & Lee, Soo Hee, 2011. "Entrepreneurial contexts and knowledge coordination within the multinational corporation," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 253-264, April.
    15. Michaela Trippl & Franz Tödtling, 2006. "From the ivory tower to the market place? The changing role of knowledge organisations in spurring the development of biotechnology clusters in Austria," SRE-Disc sre-disc-2006_07, Institute for Multilevel Governance and Development, Department of Socioeconomics, Vienna University of Economics and Business.
    16. M.A. Yurevich, 2021. "Global Transformation of Higher Education: From Traditional to Entrepreneurial University," Journal of Applied Economic Research, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, vol. 20(3), pages 560-581.
    17. Lorenzo Compagnucci & Francesca Spigarelli, 2018. "Fostering Cross-Sector Collaboration to Promote Innovation in the Water Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-24, November.
    18. Tian-Jy Chen & Shin-Horng Chen & Meng-chun Liu, 2001. "Implications, Challenges, and Prospects for Taiwan in the Knowledge-based Economy," Economics Study Area Working Papers 35, East-West Center, Economics Study Area.
    19. Sara Calligaris & Massimo Del Gatto & Fadi Hassan & Gianmarco I P Ottaviano & Fabiano Schivardi & Tommaso MonacelliManaging Editor, 2018. "The productivity puzzle and misallocation: an Italian perspective," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 33(96), pages 635-684.
    20. Larsson, Johan P. & Wennberg, Karl & Wiklund, Johan & Wright, Mike, 2017. "Location choices of graduate entrepreneurs," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(8), pages 1490-1504.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:jknowl:v:5:y:2014:i:3:p:538-561. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.