Survey finds PhD students pursue postdoc positions by default

New York Times : Generally a postdoctoral position is a stepping stone to a full-time position in academia, but academic positions are hard to come by because of low turnover and high competition. So why do so many doctoral students in the sciences pursue postdocs? In 2010 and again in 2013, Henry Sauermann of Georgia Tech and colleagues surveyed PhD students studying biological and life sciences, physics, chemistry, engineering, or computer science at 39 universities across the US. They found that more than three-quarters of the biological and life sciences students believed at least one year of postdoctoral research was necessary to apply for a faculty position, and by 2013, 74% had taken a postdoc position. In the other fields, 42% thought a postdoc was necessary for a faculty position, and 46% took a postdoc by 2013. The most common reason cited by students for taking a postdoc was to increase their chances of getting a desired job.