SPP 014 | Types of Non-Traditional Academic Jobs and What to Expect from Each (Part 2)

In this podcast episode I explain the opportunities available to scholars these days. We’re going to take a look at post-ac careers.

So what is post-ac? It is completely leaving academia altogether, wiping your hands clean of the entire process. If alt-ac is the good daughter of academe, post-ac is the family’s black sheep–ready to air the dirty laundry in the hopes of shaking up the (damaging and corrupt) status quo.

One of the best examples of post-ac is Rebecca Schuman. She is an education writer for Slate.com and was the first guest on this podcast, all the way back in Episode 2.

Who are Post-acs?

  • Those who quit grad school,
  • Adjuncts who quit
  • Those who earned an advanced degree but haven’t pursued academic employment

Some notable examples of post-ac blogs are Jen Polk and Amanda Krauss on From PHD to Life, James Mulvey from selloutyoursoul.com, and PhDs at Work. This blog connects PhDs working across industries and helps you make new professional contacts.

Perhaps the grandaddy of them all for post-acs is The Versatile PhD. This is the oldest, largest online community for non-faculty careers for PhDs in humanities, social sciences, and stem.