One of the largest, yet least often talked-about hurdles in pursuing a graduate degree is deciding what comes next. However, in my opinion, the largest hurdle is figuring out how to get there.
As a biomedical science graduate student, when I inquired about the career paths that were available to me, I was told about two major career pathways: Academia and industry. At academic institutions, students can generally learn about a clear path to academia: publish as many first-author papers as you can, apply and be selected for predoctoral/transitionary (post-doctoral associate to private investigator) grants, and network at conferences for future opportunities and collaborations. This approach is highly appreciable and ideal for a graduate student with clear intentions of pursuing a career in academia. However, for graduate students who interested in other careers, figuring out a career path can be much more self-exploratory.
