I’ve worked with a lot of postdocs over the years. Some of them are exactly where they want to be—energized by their research, supported by a PI who consistently shows up for them, and on a clear trajectory toward a career they’ve thought carefully about. They chose their postdoc intentionally, and it shows.

And then there are the others.

The ones who landed in a postdoc because it was the most convenient next step—or because everyone assumed it was the plan, or because dissertation burnout left them with no bandwidth to think strategically. They ended up somewhere that, if they’re honest, they never really chose. And now they’re navigating a training experience that doesn’t quite fit, in a lab environment that may be hindering more than it’s helping, and wondering how they got here.

I’m not sharing this to alarm you. I’m sharing it because if you’re a graduate student thinking about a postdoc—or being nudged toward one—you deserve to make that decision with your eyes open.

And that starts with one honest question: Do you actually need a postdoc

The Postdoc Isn’t What It Used to Be

For a long time, the postdoc was just… what you did after a PhD (especially in the sciences). It was the obligatory next rung on the ladder to a tenure-track faculty position, full stop.

That’s no longer the full picture. Today, postdocs can be found across a range of sectors—traditional academic research, yes, but also industry, government agencies, science policy, nonprofits, and beyond. And the career paths that require a postdoc are narrower than many graduate students assume.

Which means the first thing you need to do—before you start updating your CV or drafting cold emails to PIs—is get clear on where you’re trying to go.

Start with Your Destination: Does Your Career Goal Require a Postdoc?

Here’s the question I always start with when working with graduate students: What is the next professional milestone you’re aiming for—and does getting there require a postdoc?

This sounds deceptively simple, but you’d be surprised how many people have never explicitly asked it. The answer matters enormously because if the career you want doesn’t require additional research training at the postdoctoral level, then the postdoc isn’t a stepping stone. It’s a detour.

Some general guideposts to help you think it through:

• Tenure-track faculty positions at research-intensive universities: A postdoc is typically expected, and in many fields, more than one.
• Teaching-focused faculty positions: Not always required—and sometimes a postdoc can actually work against you if it gives the impression you’re a research-track candidate in waiting.
• Industry research and development: Field-dependent. In some areas (biotech, pharma), a postdoc is increasingly common. In others, employers prefer candidates who move directly from a PhD into industry roles.
• Science policy, communications, administration, and adjacent fields: A postdoc is rarely required, though it can be beneficial in certain specialized research contexts — science policy being one example, where a dedicated policy fellowship or a short-term postdoc with a policy focus can help you build credibility at the intersection of research and policy. That said, if you do pursue a postdoc in this space, keep it targeted and time-limited. A lengthy postdoc can send the wrong signal — suggesting you’re a research-track candidate who hasn’t quite found a lane, rather than someone intentionally building toward a policy or communications career.

Of course, the honest answer is that “it depends” often applies. Career norms vary by discipline, institution, and geography. This is exactly why informational interviews with people working in your target field—not just your advisor’s interpretation of your options—are so valuable.

A Tool to Help You Explore: myIDP and Imagine PhD

If you’re still in exploration mode and not quite sure what career direction you’re heading, let alone whether it requires a postdoc, there are two free resources that can help you get some clarity before making any decisions.

myIDP (from Science Careers) is a web-based planning tool designed for graduate students and postdocs in the sciences. One of its most useful features is a career exploration component that maps your interests, values, and skills to 20 of the most common career paths for PhDs—giving you a data-informed starting point for figuring out where you might want to land before you decide how to get there.

Imagine PhD is the humanities and social sciences equivalent. If your field isn’t STEM, this is the tool built for you—offering the same kind of values and skills-based career exploration with discipline-specific context.

Neither of these tools will make the decision for you, but they can help you ask better questions of yourself, which is where this whole process starts.

The Default Trap: Why So Many Graduate Students Skip This Step

In my experience, the graduate students who end up in the wrong postdoc usually didn’t make a bad decision. They just… didn’t really make a decision at all.

The dissertation consumed everything. Burnout was real. The postdoc in a familiar lab with a familiar advisor was right there, and the idea of starting a full career search from scratch felt impossible. Or maybe the calculus was geographic — a partner’s career, a life already rooted somewhere, and a postdoc nearby that made the logistics work. Either way, they said yes to the convenient option, told themselves they’d sort out the rest later, and found themselves a year or two into a postdoc that didn’t quite fit.

I get it. Finishing a PhD is exhausting. But here’s what I want you to know: the postdoc is not an obligation. It is a choice.

And even if a postdoc is the right choice for you, which postdoc you choose matters enormously. Not all postdocs are created equal—and the quality of your training, your mentorship, your lab environment, and the opportunities you’re given will shape what doors open (and close) for you next.

Three Questions to Ask Yourself Before Pursuing a Postdoc

Before you start reaching out to PIs or scrolling through job boards, sit with these:

1. What career destination am I working toward, and does getting there require a postdoc?

Be honest with yourself here. “I think I might want to go into academia” is a different answer than “I am pursuing a tenure-track position at an R1 university in my field.” The first might not require a postdoc at all—or might benefit more from targeted exploration than another year in the lab. The second almost certainly does.

2. What specific skills or experiences do I still need to develop, and will this postdoc provide them?

A good postdoc should move your career forward in concrete, identifiable ways. Can you articulate what you’ll gain? If your honest answer is “more publications,” push deeper. Publications in service of what? A postdoc should be building something specific—a skill set, a research portfolio, a professional network that you can’t get any other way.

3. What are my non-negotiables, and am I willing to honor them?

Geography, mentorship style, lab culture, work-life balance, compensation—these aren’t frivolous preferences. They are legitimate professional and personal needs. Ignoring them in the name of prestige or convenience is one of the most common ways smart people end up miserable. Know what you need, and take it seriously.

The Goal: Intentional Decision-Making

There is no universally correct answer to whether you need a postdoc. But there is a process for arriving at your answer—and that process starts with clarity about where you’re headed, honesty about what you still need to develop, and respect for what matters to you personally.

If you’ve worked through these questions and landed on “yes, a postdoc is the right next step for me,” that’s great. But that’s only half the decision.

The other half? Choosing the right postdoc.

In Part II of this series, we’ll get into exactly that: the criteria to consider before you apply, the questions to ask during the vetting process—including questions you probably won’t think to ask unless someone who’s seen the other side tells you to—and the red flags to watch for before you say yes.

If this resonated, you might also find helpful:

• How Do You Plan for a Future That Feels So Uncertain?
• Standing at the Crossroads: When PhDs Abandon the Tenure Track Career Path — for readers who may be considering a non-academic pivot altogether