Science recruiters and job applicants can do the same thing
Post-bacs: A New Path to Master’s Degrees in Astrophysics and Astronomy for Undergraduates, says Gwen Robbins
Robbins and Brande had to chart their own courses in ways that were not predictable in fields such as physics and astronomy. The American Astronomical Society’s extensive job portal does not include post-bacs as a category, although a specific search can return a small number of opportunities. MacGregor says this is why she turned to social media for help after she was approached by a few students. I don’t think that post-bacs are advertised or discussed very much. And I think that’s tied to graduate admissions becoming kind of a nightmare,” she says. Her own astronomy department at Johns Hopkins received more than 400 applications for 10 PhD student slots for the 2024–25 academic year.
The post was a plea to connect recent university graduates with principal investigators (PIs) who could provide research experience in their labs for a year or more. Post-bacs can be a path to a masters degree in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. STEM graduates who did not get enough lab- or field-based research experience at university might consider a post-bac position to make their applications to PhD programmes more competitive — even though it adds a few more rungs to an already long career ladder.
A post-bac constitutes one or more ‘gap’ years that are dedicated to gaining research experience and scientific skills before graduate school. Some people will take a long time to figure out what they are interested in after graduating from college. It seems that post-bacs are a US phenomenon.
The added time is just that for some. Gwen Robbins, who completed an undergraduate degree in astronomy at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, says: “I was planning on going straight to grad school out of college. That ended up not working.” With a CV devoid of research projects, her undergraduate adviser connected her with researchers at the Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) at Johns Hopkins. They offered her a position to assist with various projects associated with NASA’s Europa Clipper and Dragonfly missions to the moons of Jupiter and Saturn, “essentially as a paid intern” for a year, says Robbins.
Over two and a half years, Brande developed a keen interest in the burgeoning field of transiting exoplanets — the study of planets beyond the Solar System that are caught passing in front of their host star. The experience provided clarity on his research goals, new computational skills, practice for his academic writing and connections in the field of exoplanet astronomy. He entered the astronomy PhD programme at the University of Kansas in Lawrence in 2020.
Source: Do you need extra training before graduate school? Consider a post-baccalaureate position
Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program in the Biomedical Sciences: The Challenges and Opportunities for Scientific Research in the United States during COVID-19
Robbins acquired hands-on laboratory research experience that she could not attain from her smaller, less research-intensive university, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Robbins is still looking for graduate positions three years later.
Graduates who are trying to boost their practical research experience between university and graduate school aren’t unique to the United States. In Europe, it is common for students to apply for a master’s degree in order to get a PhD, but the proportion of practical research in graduate courses varies. Students in India can transfer from an applied sciences bachelor’s degree to graduate study in basic sciences. They spend a year in a post-bac position to make the switch easier.
Post-bac experiences do not formally structured or advertised. Abhang worked for six months without pay, and Brande and Robbins received stipends that were enough to cover living costs, but not benefits, such as health insurance. Some students, such as Brande and Abhang, say they had good mentors who provided clear career guidance.
The field of biomedical sciences has one of the oldest continuously running post-bac programmes. The Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program is funded by the US National Institute of Health and is currently active in 58 institutions. Between 73–95% of PREP graduates have successfully transitioned into a PhD programme in the past decade, delivering on the programme’s goal to develop a diverse pool of early-career researchers. PREP scholars receive a base salary and benefits from the NIH PREP grant, which typically amounts to around US$40,000 per year, although institutions might supplement this to make up for cost-of-living differences. Compared with a post-bac in an independent lab, PREP delivers a more structured programme with built-in opportunities for development.
Training bodies must work harder to understand the challenges of science workers in the job market and make sure that they have the skills to succeed. The stakes here aren’t just about individual careers. Not preparing researchers for their professional success makes them less likely to be successful in their careers, and society’s investment in scientific training as well.
Robinson outlines a typical PREP year at UNC starting in June with a boot camp in which students are taught how to interpret and discuss scientific papers, alongside meetings with faculty members to choose a lab for the next 11 months. Students can take a graduate course in the lab to improve core concepts, or they can take a low mark course to boost their skills. “Oftentimes, poor grades have little to do with somebody’s aptitude, but rather, with life circumstances,” says Robinson. When students meet with faculty mentors weekly to discuss their research progress, they are encouraged to attend a conference in December or January where they can hone their presentation skills and get access to networking opportunities. Around the same time, the PREP programme supports students in their graduate-school applications, such as providing them with help to prepare for the Graduate Record Examination (a standardized test required for graduate admissions in many universities in the United States), writing research statements, selecting universities and labs and sourcing recommendation letters.
Why scientists should not submit their research applications to the big online platforms? A survey of early-career researchers on the importance of structured learning and shifting priorities
The large online platforms that connect researchers to potential employers need to become less robotic. Candidates will submit a job application in reply to an advertisement and never hear from the employer again. Many recruiters state that they will not provide feedback to unsuccessful applicants. It’s understandable that there will be a large number of applicants. But it is also demoralizing for jobseekers, and gives the impression of an uncaring employer — not somewhere where the most talented people would want to go and work.
Some recruiters told Nature that they prefer to hire through their professional networks, rather than rely on the big online platforms. This is partly to weed out cut-and-paste applications, or those that seem to have been generated using artificial-intelligence tools. The continued importance of networks for career development means that people entering the job market should receive training in how to build networks.
When it comes to boosting critical thinking and analytical skills, there are benefits to structured training for early career researchers. Training schemes used by pharmaceutical, technology, consulting and finance firms can be reproduced. They often include rotations so that new hires can experience working in different departments for short periods. These schemes do not need to cause harm to the Earth. The other models include short-term internships.
Nature’s survey found that employers think that candidates lack creativity, problem-solving and communication skills, and that they don’t have the skills of persistence, passion and tenacity. However, there’s little by way of structured training for jobseekers on how they can learn or show evidence for these characteristics.
Shifting priorities are a part of the process. For example, most current early-career scientists are millennials, born between the early 1980s and mid-1990s. They are often digitally savvy and bring with them strong collaborative instincts and a desire to see their work have societal impact. They value balance in life and career, but they don’t always fit in with the priorities of scientists interviewing them for jobs.
The perception that someone with science qualifications is fully qualified for research work is a key cause of the mismatch. It is often assumed that a PhD is an entry-level qualification, with the holder having to receive further guidance, mentoring and experience before they can work on their own.