Don't get a PhD!!! So what are some good alternative careers?

July 24, 2009 4:12 PM

Don't get a PhD!!! So what are some good alternative careers?

I am going to graduate school in the fall to get an MA in Asian Studies (my focus is China). When I applied, it was with the thought of improving my language skills and my general knowledge of China and Asia in order to go into a PhD program, most likely in anthropology or history. I knew when I applied that the job market for PhD's was horrible, but I think the general tanking of the economy finally made me actually pay attention to practical stuff like that, and so currently I've been reading a lot more about the realities of getting a PhD and of then getting a job in academia. It's fairly terrifying. But the thing is, being a professor is the career that I know would fit me best. It combines a lot of my interests with the autonomy and freedom that I really, really need in life in order to not go insane (I cannot be chained to a desk my whole life). Most importantly, however, I am passionate about learning about China and I would be thrilled to be able to do that for a job.

I've read a bunch of posts where people have discouraged others from getting a PhD. So, what I'm wondering is . . . what are some careers I could look into that have many of the same benefits as being a professor but without all of academia's headaches? In an ideal world being a professor would be my number one choice, but I am starting to think that I should explore other options.

A list of what I like/prefer:
--Reading
--Research
--Writing
--Languages
--Travel
--A good deal of freedom/autonomy

Many people think I should go into business because of my interest in China, but that's really not me at all. Other than that (and maybe even including that, what the hell) -- I'm open to any suggestions!

Thanks everyone!

posted by imalaowai to Education (11 answers total)

Looks like government service is your bag.

I don't know thing 1 about that, but mebbe someone will help you out.
posted by @troy at 4:22 PM on July 24, 2009

I understand that the CIA really likes to find people who are fluent in non-Romantic languages and likely if they have significant knowledge about the related country/region. They also pay well for you to keep your language skills relevant.
posted by jgunsch at 4:39 PM on July 24, 2009

Best answer: I'm in kind of the same boat as you. Nothing makes me happier than researching and writing about history. It's what I want to do with my life, and I'm pretty good at it. So I'm going for the PhD. I'd regret it forever if I didn't.

However, government jobs do seem to be the place to be if that doesn't work out. One thing I have experience in that's marketable is working a historical archive. I'm trying to become more literate with the technological advances going on in archive science. Go to USAJobs and look around; there are some solid, well-paying jobs in archives around the country. My passion is Ancient Greece and the Hellenistic expansion, so there's no way I'll be able to be paid for working in that field should I go down the government route, but I know that I enjoy enough aspects of archive work (preservation, research) to be happy enough in that field.

One thing I'm committing myself to that I think all academic-minded people should consider now is being as computer literate as possible. My alma mater's widely-used Perseus Project is one example of how history nerds with programming skills are changing the way history is taught. It might not be lucrative, but there's a need for this stuff.

Or you can join the CIA.
posted by oinopaponton at 5:10 PM on July 24, 2009

There's probably still a lot of money to be made helping Western (esp. US?) businesses get along in China. Someone with your background and interests might be able to grow a big consulting practice, say, with China-dumb businesses that want to expand there. A consulting firm or financial-services company with operations in China could be interested in someone with your skills. I don't have any specific leads though.

Being some kind of Asia-beat writer for the media in your home(?) country might satisfy a lot of your desires, but I don't know what the economics are like. (Plus side: cheap to live / travel in China.)

That said, there's nothing like being a professor.
posted by grobstein at 5:11 PM on July 24, 2009

Look into non-profits and NGOs. Some that come to mind are Asia Society, Open Society Institute and Human Rights Watch.
posted by Pineapplicious at 6:32 PM on July 24, 2009

Based on your interests, foreign service sounds like a slam dunk to me.
posted by willpie at 6:46 PM on July 24, 2009

Best answer: Academic librarian. Many school offer tenure track for librarians -- which means that you have all the perks of being a professor. You'll need a masters degree in library science, but combine it with your MA in Asian Studies, and you're gold.
posted by jujube at 7:08 PM on July 24, 2009 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Have you looked into jobs at junior or community colleges? The same freedom and flexibility, regular engagement with academic topics, and your MA qualifies you (and you can use all that flexible, non-teaching time to do your own research /write/ what-have-you). I think most community colleges let their teachers take a free or cheap class each semester, so you can continue to pursue your academic interests. And if you decide in the future you want to go back for your PhD, your years of teaching at the adult level give you a leg-up getting a job as a professor.

My sister teaches philosophy at a community college, and she loves it.
posted by katopotato at 7:47 PM on July 24, 2009

Go to work for the Chinese-- either the government or some private entity.

I bet you could create your own job and get them to hire you to do it, if you thought about it a bit-- they're loaded with American dollars right now, and probably believe they'd better spend them as much as they can before the value really drops.

For example, if you like Chinese art and cultural artifacts and have a bent for history, I imagine there are many Chinese in government and outside who are highly interested in retrieving Chinese art and artifacts which left the country during the last century, many of them no doubt under questionable circumstances when China was too weak and chaotic to do anything about it. You conceivably could propose to make a survey of such things in public collections (what they are, where they are, who owns them and how they got them) in the area where you're going to school and get someone in China to pay you well to do it.
posted by jamjam at 9:30 PM on July 24, 2009

Best answer: nthing NGOs or government service. It would help to know more about your interests. Are you interested in rule of law/governance/democracy promotion? The NED and affiliated organizations would love you. International development? Check out USAID, Peace Corps, and similar organizations. Human rights? Amnesty International. Security and defense? CIA, DIA would be great. And of course don't forget the Foreign Service.

I think all of these areas have positions available that do not require a PhD. And many think tanks cover some, if not all, of these issues.

Also, just because you're getting a Master's doesn't mean you can't look for opportunities to do research and get published if that's up your alley.

One thing I would absolutely recommend is keeping your languages current and practiced. This will help you immensely in your job hunt as many jobs require fluency and virtually all jobs would consider regions language skills a huge bonus.
posted by kjars at 8:50 AM on July 26, 2009

Response by poster: Thanks for all your help and advice everyone. kjars -- I'm mostly interested in societal issues over political issues (though of course there's overlap). Stuff like internal immigration, class, women's issues, etc. I'm also very interested in how history is dealt with in China -- particularly how people deal with memories of the Cultural Revolution. It seems like I would only be able to explore an interest like that in academia (or simply in my personal life), but I could probably study other issues I'm interested in in other career paths.

There were some great suggestions that I'm going to have to look into a bit more. In some ways government, intelligence or a think tank would be perfect, but I doubt they have the flexible schedule that I'm looking for (maybe you can sometimes work from home? Tho probably not in intelligence). The academic librarian idea is funny -- both my parents are librarians! I would never hear the end of it if I went into that field too, but I think it would offer some good benefits and would fit me in a lot of ways. I know there are special Chinese collections at many universities so that might be cool to work with.

Thanks again for all the ideas -- definitely gave me some stuff to think about.
posted by imalaowai at 8:14 PM on July 27, 2009