In 1999, when I was completing my dissertation in rhetoric and composition at Ohio State University, I knew that I genuinely preferred a nonacademic career, but there wasn’t much information available to me about what my options were. So I created the resource I wanted: an online community focused entirely on nonacademic careers for humanists and social scientists. Originally called WRK4US, it now thrives on the Web as The Versatile PhD. Even during my own post-academic career as a grant writer, I continued to manage the community.
Imagine my delight, then, when in 2006 I was given the happy task of hiring my own assistant. The title was development associate and it was a wonderful entry-level position for a humanities or social-science Ph.D.: lots of research and knowledge management, plus an uber-supportive boss (me). Finally, after seven years of watching other people post job announcements, I could post my own announcement and personally hire a fellow Ph.D.! I was so excited!
But alas. It was not to be. I got a number of applications from Ph.D.'s and A.B.D.'s, but to my utter shock, only one of them managed to follow the instructions correctly. Ironically, the job involved preparing grant proposals for submission, a task wherein following instructions is critical. I did interview that one Ph.D. applicant, then ended up hiring someone else for a variety of reasons.
I was and remain astounded by the failure of so many smart, educated people to follow instructions. It wasn’t complicated. I asked for a résumé, cover letter, and writing sample, submitted by e-mail. Every Ph.D. applicant except for one managed to screw this up in some way: no cover letter, CV instead of résumé, no writing sample, or sent by paper mail rather than e-mail. I could not believe it.
So, to all the Ph.D.'s out there applying for nonacademic jobs: follow the instructions! Even if you know the organization values Ph.D.'s or the hiring manager is a Ph.D., do not think that makes it OK to submit your vita instead of a résumé, or to skip the writing sample because obviously the person knows you can write because you’re a Ph.D. They don’t know. Following instructions correctly shows competence and respect--and may be an important part of the job.
Paula Chambers is the founder of The Versatile PhD.