During my consultation last week with a 4th-year Doctoral candidate about his research and career plans, I cautiously asked if he was “on the job market.”<\/p>\n
His university, which Times Higher Education<\/em> ranks among the Top 30 Universities Worldwide, had awarded him a 12-month Visiting Fellowship to a U.S. “Public Ivy” research university to work on his doctoral research.<\/p>\n By doctoral standards, he\u2019s doing very well: two articles at top-tier academic journals; interdisciplinary research on topics that are timely and practical, theoretical and applied; and a \u201chot\u201d academic job market in his home country, eager to welcome him back as professor and consultant.<\/p>\n At 25, he\u2019s about the age of a 5th- or 6th-year undergraduate still struggling to complete his or her first degree.<\/p>\n With his international experience and near-native English, he had many options.<\/p>\n (I assumed he planned to graduate within 6 to 9 months, which is an achievement, compared to many of his peers.)<\/p>\n But\u2026<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not ready to graduate,\u201d he demurred. \u201cI\u2019m planning on a second doctorate, in a different field.<\/p>\n But, why?<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIf I push to graduate this year, my \u2018value\u2019 in the academic world will \u2018drop,\u2019 as I\u2019d be entering the job market with the same credentials as other PhDs,\u201d he said, matter-of-factly.<\/p>\n \u201cMy goal is to have 4 or 5 journal articles published in top-ranked U.S. academic journals before I graduate.<\/p>\n \u201cWriting a 300-page dissertation and getting it approved by my academic committee, isn\u2019t the problem.<\/p>\n \u201cFinding a tenure-track academic position isn\u2019t an issue, either.<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest challenge is establishing myself as an expert in my field<\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m looking at a second doctorate, in an unrelated field, that will enable me to understand, integrate and apply what I learn from both fields and find possible solutions to current issues.\u201d<\/p>\n