Doctoral studies are preparation for becoming top-level professionals or managers

On 11 February, the University of Tartu Library hosts the Estonian Doctoral School’s career conference “The value of a doctoral degree on the job market” where top professionals with a doctoral degree and current doctoral students discuss the added value of doctoral studies.

Slightly more than 200 people earn a doctoral degree in Estonia each year. After graduating, 86% of them start work in Estonia as managers or top-level specialists.

Doctoral studies are too often seen only as preparation for a researcher’s or lecturer’s career. However, the research-based and individualised form of learning is designed to develop independent thinkers who can formulate crucial problems, solve them smartly, and manage teams and projects. These skills enable creating new knowledge and using it more wisely. Thus, the share of researchers and engineers with a doctoral degree in the total working-age population is closely linked to the country’s overall innovation capacity.

Estonia’s doctoral reform of 2022 introduced a number of important changes to address previous shortcomings in doctoral education. As a result of the reform, doctoral students can complete their studies faster and enter the labour market without major delays. One of the most significant changes was the recognition of doctoral students as early-career researchers, with a state-funded position and salary of a junior research fellow. Similar examples are few in Europe. Now, it is also possible to choose the industrial doctorate if the doctoral students’ non-university work can be combined with their studies.

“From the example of the University of Tartu, I can confirm that companies and public-sector institutions are interested in raising the qualifications of their staff in this way. The university’s partners in the industrial doctorate include representatives of the IT sector and major hospitals. It is an encouraging initiative, but we see that explaining the value of the doctoral degree outside the universities and research institutions still needs more work,” said Mari Moora, Vice Rector for Research at the University of Tartu.

Inspiration for current and future doctoral students

Estonian universities have increasingly focused on developing doctoral students’ future skills during their studies and research, and career planning for doctoral students. This is also the aim of the second career conference for doctoral students.

This year’s conference will discuss what doctoral studies offer and how they influence future career choices. In their opening presentations, Kristina Kallas, Estonia’s Minister of Education and Research, and Kristiina Rull, Head of the Women’s Clinic at Tartu University Hospital, reflect on their pursuit of the degree and career development.

Two panel discussions follow the presentations. In the first one, current doctoral students discuss the challenges of doctoral studies and speak about their future. In the second panel, managers, entrepreneurs and top specialists with a doctoral degree reflect on how the knowledge acquired during doctoral studies has supported their careers and influenced their choices.

The moderator of the event is Joonas Hellerma, a culture journalist at Estonian Public Broadcasting.