STEM PhD in industry

Question

With respect to civil engineering, is it difficult to get into the industry after getting a PhD, due to the perception of being overqualified for most jobs?

Answer

It is actually two different scenarios you are talking about: many PhD degree holder are over-qualified for entry-level positions (jobs that a fresh bachelor degree holder could easily do), but they are under-qualified for jobs that are looking for experienced hires, unless the job is related to their research field, and/or the industry has a long history of hiring fresh PhDs without relevant experiences.

I have advised graduate students from my programs to seek industry internships during their PhD program for that very reason. For one thing, the internships gives them a flavor what industry jobs actually looks like; secondly, if they decide that's what they want to pursue, the internship will gives them a leg-up when it comes to relevant experiences.

Keep in mind that industry jobs comes in many flavors. It would help others to answer your question if you provide more context (what PhD programs are you thinking about, and what industries you are interested in getting a job.)

(Originally answered on quora: With respect to civil engineering, is it difficult to get into the industry after getting a PhD, due to the perception of being overqualified for most jobs?)