Job Values and Career Choices of STEM PhD Graduates: Evidence from the 2023 Survey of Doctorate Recipients

Contemporary doctoral education is situated within a changing labor market shaped by gender inequity, disciplinary difference, and regional opportunity structure, yet little is known about how students’ job values predict career choices. Guided by the Theory of Work Adjustment and Warr’s Vitamin Model, we examined associations betwenn job values and employment sector choices among 11161 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) PhDs from the 2023 Survey of Doctorate Recipient, with particular attention to gender differences. We found that valuing independence and job security was positively associated with academic employment, whereas the importance placed on salary exhibited a non-linear effect: individuals who rated salary as moderately important were most likely to work in academia, while those at either end of the scale were less likely to do so. Importantly, these patterns differed significantly by gender, reflecting the persistent gender gap in the academic labor market and how women may strategically pursue non-academic roles to overcome structural constraints and inequities prevalent in academic career paths. These findings complicate our understanding of how job values shape career choices and offer recommendations to improve graduate education and STEM workforce.