One giant, emotionally loaded cloud (plus sports!)

Dear Reader, Somehow it’s already the middle of June. Rude, I know. (Classic summer behaviour.) A couple weeks ago, I wrote about a question I think is worth asking at this time of year: What do you want figured out by September? It can be easy to th...

Read More
Jun 16, 2026
What do you want figured out by September?

Dear Reader, There’s nothing like the start of a new season—it now feels like summer where I live—to inspire action. One thing that’s meant for me is making sure all the resources available to my program members are easy to find and use. Not because...

Read More
Jun 04, 2026
This isn’t a boring online course

Dear Reader, When folks first learn about the PhD Career Clarity Program, I think some imagine it's a course they’ll log into, work through alone, and it will be boring and maybe useful. That's hardly a ringing endorsement, eh! Well, good thing that'...

Read More
Jun 01, 2026
Are you still in the same place as last June?

Dear Reader, Earlier this week, I wrote about people who don’t hate academia but still want something else. That distinction matters. Because if you’re not in crisis, it can be easy to tell yourself you should wait. Wait until you feel more certain....

Read More
May 28, 2026
You don’t have to hate academia to want something else

Dear Reader, “I turned 40 last year and I feel very satisfied with my academic career. I just really have nothing else I want to do.” One of my program members said this during a group discussion. She’s tenured. She likes her colleagues. She genuinel...

Read More
May 26, 2026
Astronaut advice for career exploration

Dear Reader, Did you watch any of the NASA livestream on Monday, when the Artemis II astronauts were on their lunar flyby? I had it on for a lot of the day. So exciting. (And, yes, I'll be checking on things as they splashdown today at 8:07pm EDT!) T...

Read More
Apr 10, 2026
Read this before you rewrite your resume again

Dear Reader, I spoke with a PhD researcher this week who's applying for roles in and out of academia. You might think I'm going to say that's too scattered, but I didn't get that impression about her job search. She seemed quite focused on her area o...

Read More
Apr 02, 2026
You’re job searching. But it’s not working.

Dear Reader, You're doing things. Reading job ads. Tweaking your materials. Applying. But it’s not really working. What would it be like if you were applying and interviewing for roles you were excited about, in places you wanted to live, with employ...

Read More
Mar 26, 2026
Why what you’re putting out there isn’t landing

Dear Reader, Can writing on LinkedIn actually help your job search? It’s a question that's on the minds of many of the PhDs I work with. Recently, I attended a workshop led by Julia Gray, PhD, who teaches academics how to write like humans. And I was...

Read More
Mar 18, 2026