Essays on careers of junior academics: empirical analyses on career goals, working time, and job satisfaction

Abstract

This dissertation intends to gain insights into the careers of junior academics. In more detail, the work addresses the following general research questions: (i) What career goals do doctoral candidates from the STEM disciplines pursue and what factors are associated with the academic career goal of becoming a professor and with non-academic career goals of becoming a manager or an entrepreneur? (ii) What are the antecedents of overtime hours for junior academics? (iii) How are discrepancies between actual and desired working hours related to the job satisfaction of doctoral students and postdoctoral scientists working in academia? All of the articles have in common that their empirical analyses are based on a data set which has been generated from an online survey on career decisions and paths of doctoral students and doctorate holders from different STEM fields.