PhDs are rising worldwide, but academic futures are shrinking
The number of doctoral graduates around the world is rising rapidly, particularly in countries like China and India. However, the academic job market has long struggled to keep pace. Increasingly, PhD holders are finding themselves outside academia, Kazinform News Agency correspondent reports, citing Nature.
A surge in PhDs
According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the number of new PhD graduates in member countries nearly doubled between 1998 and 2017. This trend has continued, despite a recent dip in enrolment in countries like Australia and Brazil, where high living costs and low stipends have deterred prospective students.
China has seen the most dramatic increase. In 2013, around 300,000 students were enrolled in doctoral programmes; by 2023, that number had surpassed 600,000. The surge has been driven by mass access to higher education, strong social expectations, and a widespread belief that a PhD will unlock better economic and social opportunities. But the job market, particularly the academic sector, has not kept up with this boom.
Expectations vs. reality
In countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, careers outside academia have become the new norm for PhD holders. A 2023 study in the UK found that more than two-thirds of doctoral graduates are employed beyond the university sector.
However, this shift doesn’t always translate into fulfilling careers. Many PhD holders end up in roles unrelated to their area of expertise. In South Africa, for instance, 18% of respondents to a similar survey of 2022 said they struggled to find jobs aligned with their field.
Still, the majority of PhD graduates (over 90%) reported being satisfied with their careers overall. This satisfaction is especially common among those working in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), where research-related positions are more readily available compared to disciplines like the social sciences or humanities.
Kazakhstan, unlike countries facing an oversupply of PhDs, is grappling with different challenges. According to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, as of 2024, only 38% of more than 1,500 doctoral candidates successfully defended their dissertations last year, and fewer than half of them continued in research.
Rethinking the role of the PhD
This global landscape is prompting a fundamental reassessment of the value and purpose of the doctoral degree. In many countries, efforts are underway to reform PhD training. The UK, Germany, and Japan, for example, are introducing paid internships, business partnerships, and so-called “industrial PhD” programmes, which allow candidates to conduct research within companies.
Kazakhstan is beginning to explore similar models. President Tokayev has called for a shift toward more practical, industry-oriented doctoral training. He has instructed the government to revise its approach and to develop industrial PhD programmes in cooperation with major production companies, aimed at aligning academic research more closely with the needs of the real economy.
Earlier, Kazinform News Agency reported that Tokayev suggested declaring 2026 the year of education and scientific research.
