A research career has been described as a precarious career pathway as roles can be fixed term and related to funding. Some researchers' cope with this uncertainty and survive on soft money their whole career, while others will go on to seek permanent roles that are not reliant on funding.
Position types at Otago
- Postdoctoral Fellow
- Research Fellow
- Teaching Fellow
- Professional Practice Fellow
- Lecturer
- Senior Lecturer
- Associate Professor
- Professor
Main competencies for this pathway
- Research
- Subject knowledge and expertise
- Analysis
- Project management
- Problem solving
- Communication
- Creative thinking
- Independence and self-management
- Leadership
- Drive and motivation
Possible workplaces
- University of Otago
- Other universities in New Zealand
- New Zealand Crown Research Institutes and Independent Research Institutes
- Overseas Universitities and Research Institutes
University of Otago training courses to support a career in academia
- Higher Education Development Centre (HEDC)
- Academic Leadership Development Programme (ALDP)
- Careers Development Centre
- Health Sciences Early and Mid-Career Researchers Group courses
Early and mid career academic development planning guide (PDF)
Publications
University New Zealand – Te Pōkai Tara has prepared a new resource to help researchers better understand the value of PhDs and other doctorates to the people who get them and to society generally.