Should You Leave Academia? Eight Questions to Help You Decide
Since I’ve started working as a developmental editor, I’ve been surprised by how many of my clients are at least considering leaving academia. Many talk about the pressure; the difficulty of balancing between research, teaching, and service; and their general feelings of burnout. I shared similar concerns when I was making the decision to leave myself (you can read more about my journey here).
These is nothing about this decision that is easy. And, of course, it’s shaped by each person’s individual situation. But I have quit over ten jobs in my life (and worked in many different sectors: the service industry, journalism, secondary education, nonprofits, higher education, and now, happily, in editing) so I have quite a bit of experience in thinking about when to leave a job. In this post, I’ve compiled some questions that I found helpful to think through while I was considering leaving my faculty position. I hope that some of them are helpful to you as you make your decision. While these are intended for faculty, I think they can be helpful for university staff, as well as people in other professions.
1
What is bringing you joy in your job? What isn’t? When you’re embedded in a job, it can be difficult to figure out how you really feel about it (especially when, as with academia, you’ve been told you should like it since you entered your PhD program). So take some time and think through what things about academia truly make you happy. I’d suggest working on this over a few weeks and keeping a list. Simultaneously, think through the things that you dislike (despise?) about your job. Write them down too. When you have a fairly substantial list that captures most aspects of your job, compare the two. Does the balance clearly tip in one direction? What percent of your job brings you some joy? Consider ranking each item to help you get a clearer sense of how you feel about them. For example, on the joy list, rate each item on a scale of one to ten, with ten being things you truly love and one being things that you like ok. Looking at these two lists together may help you get a better sense of how you really feel about your job. If there are major aspects that you absolutely despise, it might be time to make a change.
2
What can you do about this? Once you have a sense of what you really like and dislike about your job, it’s helpful to consider whether you can shape it to further nurture the joy side (I share some ideas about how to do this here). For example, if you really aren’t enjoying teaching, but have found that you like service, might there be a way to take on a greater service role that comes with a course release? Or if you love research, can you think of ways to minimize some other responsibilities to make this a bigger part of your workload? Or maybe you are really stressed about writing and can hire a developmental editor to help with this process? Brainstorming with other colleagues you trust about these things can help; they might think of ideas that you wouldn’t. But if you feel pretty stuck with your list as it is (or maybe even see the negative aspects increasing in the future), think about whether this reality is something that you can bear long term.
3
Are there places you want to go from here in your institution and/or the field? One thing I always did when deciding whether I wanted to leave a job was to think about whether I wanted anyone else’s job at my institution. So think through whether you want what’s ahead of you. That might be more powerful positions on committees or a department chairship. Maybe it’s teaching a different kind of class or working on a different sort of research project. Are these things appealing to you? Are there places you want to go in your institution? Also consider whether such positioning is possible. Before I left academia, I had hoped that I would be able to secure some more institutional support for a program I was running in order to grow it (and myself!). But when I pursued this further, I quickly learned that there wasn’t institutional support behind it. Though this didn’t push me over the edge, it did help me realize that possibilities for growth in that area were limited. That kind of information is really helpful to have as you think about your future. If you don’t feel excited about the direction in which you can move at your institution, consider if there might be places where you might be able to flourish (in or outside of academia).
4
Do you really, really want this? Or do you maybe just really, really think you should want it? I’m asking because so many of us PhDs are taught that being a professor is the only way to be fulfilled and happy. It’s hard to shake that belief. So try to disentangle whether this is really what you want or whether you have just been conditioned to have a terribly difficult time envisioning other things that you want. When I was reflecting on this question myself, I found it helpful to start reading about other PhDs who had left academia. You can find many examples online (a summary of some of these and a discussion of ‘quit lit’ can be found here. I also talked to PhD friends who had taken other paths. These conversations helped me start realizing what else was out there and reminded me that many people are very happy outside of the academy.
5
What’s your financial situation? This is an obvious point, but of course think through your finances and if you’re ready to make a change. If you aren’t, but think you might want to, are there ways you can start saving (or making) some extra money? Maybe teach a summer class? Do some consulting? Also, if you are feeling like your finances are holding you back, use this as a chance to reflect on what your institution is paying you. Is it a living wage? Is it fair? Is it worth it? Many PhDs I know who are working outside of academia are making more than they made within it, so be sure you are being realistic if financial considerations of a career change are holding you back.
6
Ideally, what would your life look like? Is there a way to get closer to that, while keeping this job? My very smart cousin, who’s a life coach, once told me (when I complained about academia, but also couldn’t envision what other work I would do) to start with what I wanted my life to look like. For me, this meant a flexible work schedule, more time with my child, increased ability to pursue things that I enjoy outside of work (reading, yoga, running, gardening, etc.), and diminished anxiety. When I was really honest with myself, I couldn’t really envision a way to make what I wanted work within academia. But your vision could very well be compatible with your current job. Try and honestly map this out and see how much overlap there is. Then reflect about whether you think there is enough overlap for you. If not, can you rework things to ensure that there is more? Of course, it will never be perfect, but you do want a job that at least isn’t completely at odds with your goals for your life. I found this podcast about transformation really helpful in thinking through these issues (it’s aimed at freelancers, but I think it can be helpful for anyone).
7
What are you doing (or not)? Sometimes when I can’t figure out what I want, I find it useful to pay attention to what I am actually doing. When my husband and I both realized we were likely going to be laid off in our institution’s dramatic reduction of faculty, he spent hours and hours reworking his academic job materials and applying to a wide range of positions. I didn’t even crack open my old academic cover letter. I just couldn’t. I now believe my inability to apply for jobs in higher education was my way of telling myself that I really did want to leave academia. Of course, sometimes we don’t do things out of fear, so consider that possibility too. But if you really aren’t working to land another academic job or to improve where you are, maybe it’s time to listen to yourself and make some different choices.
8
What other information do you need to help you make your decision? There’s so much we don’t know. What do you need to learn to help you feel better about making a decision to leave? When I started exploring other careers, I read a lot online about what other academics had transitioned too (The Professor is Out is a really helpful Facebook group). Once I started honing in to what I wanted to do, I did several informational interviews with others who did this work to help me figure out what it looks like and whether that was appealing to me. I’ve found that people are generally very generous with their time and advice. So try and devote some time each week to learning about what you might want to do if you left. This can also help you determine what you might need to do to get there (training, etc.). Similarly, you can research what you might need to do to shift your position in your institution. This will help you determine whether it’s worth trying to work for that change or whether it’s time to move on.
Again, I don’t want to minimize the difficulty of this choice or make it look like a simple list of questions contains the answer. I struggled for years over whether I wanted to leave academia. And everyone’s situations are unique and thus involve varying issues and challenges. But I hope that these questions give you some more to think about and perhaps provide some clarity about what you might really be feeling about your next steps.
Do know that you aren’t alone. A lot of people are thinking of making a change or already have. Seek them out to help you through this process. And trust yourself and your gut; you’re the expert on what is best for you. Finally, if you have other tips that have helped you make this transition (or that are helping you think through it!), please share them below!
*****
Like this post? Consider subscribing to my blog below to receive updates on new posts!
