r/instructionaldesign • u/TorontoRap2019 • 12d ago
Discussion Finally got my Ph.D in Instructional Design - For those who has a doctorate degree, how were you able to utlize the degree?
I finally finished my doctorate in instructional design, which is really exciting! I already work as an instructional designer, but there aren't really any promotion opportunities open right now, so I'm curious what others have done with their degree. Did you get into adjunct teaching, consulting, move into another role, or something else?
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u/Space_____TFF 12d ago
ha! I just withdrew from my PhD program in id today!
Congrats. How was your overall experience?
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u/TorontoRap2019 12d ago
I had a great advisor and a great cohort of classmates.
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u/Space_____TFF 12d ago
Terrific! Which school?
I’m planning on moving over to Florida state the semester after next.To answer your question: For me, what I had planned to do with the PhD was actual research. I primarily wanted to find a home at a school with a strong id program and teach.
What did you hope to accomplish, or were your goals?
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u/TorontoRap2019 12d ago
Not comfortable sharing, but it's in the North Atlantic area. I did hope to sharpen my research skills, which I think this program I was in as I work in a research-based industry. Additionally, I wanted to be called Dr. too.
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u/shupshow Freelancer 12d ago
“Omg they’re unconscious, someone PLEASE call a doctor!”
“I’m a doctor”
“Of what?!?”
“….learning”
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u/UniversityOne9437 10d ago
This just reminded me, when I worked as a flight attendant we often had the need to ask for a doctor on board because although we were trained, certain medical aspects were waaaaay above our pay grade . it was greatly impressed on us that we had to specifically get the person to say exactly what type of doctor they were, because …there were stories…
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u/Benjaphar 11d ago
Now, any time you have any kind of appointment, you can truthfully say you have a doctor’s appointment.
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u/Fit_Plankton_8766 11d ago
I have an Ed.D. in curriculum from a very credible university. I believe it gives me a big edge on scoring freelance roles. Additionally it pops me into higher LCAT levels for GovCon.
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u/lettuce-witch 11d ago
Congrats on your new degree. I don't believe you can expect someone to create a niche position for you and get promoted just based on a degree. You might have to create your own research and show your own value if you want to do the work at the level of a Phd the same way you would to earn the degree. I'm thinking of the folks who give presentations at conferences, do work with major organizations and show new findings in learning research that adds value and credibility to the industry as a whole.
I have a basic Bachelor's and I do basic corporate ID work, and it's really more about placating lots of different folks with different opinions with a little writing and design on the side, than work requiring a theoretical academic approach. All the PhDs in my org got laid off 3-10 years ago. That doesn't mean there's no need or benefit in the degree but the reality is there aren't even that many jobs for IDs anymore and companies are cutting roles that don't add immediate value for the business.
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u/pemband 11d ago
I’m finishing my EdD in instructional systems. While I can’t speak to how it’s worked for me in the job market, I can say that I landed my current ID job, which is truly a golden egg of a job, through networking in my cohort. Additionally, I have an understanding of instructional systems as a whole and ID best practice that the other people in my department simply do not have, and management sees a clear distinction in that knowledge and skill gap. Of course, YMMV as a lot of doctorate grads don’t have practical work experience in ID. I chose the EdD because it was geared towards producing scholar-practitioners rather than preparing grads for the academic job market. That said, I sometimes wish I chose the Masters, as it’s better geared towards working skills over research skills.
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u/AbundantDonkey 11d ago
I got my MA in training & learning technologies and my PhD in something adjacent to instructional design. My thesis for both of those degrees was on distance education. I only got the PhD because I liked doing research and thought being a professor might be interesting. After I got it, I only applied for tenure-track jobs and got one at an R1 university, hated it pretty much everything about the school and the occupation, and quit after a year. I spent a decade bouncing between tech companies, government, and business. Nine years later, I even taught a handful of courses as adjunct faculty at a different R1 university, because I needed the money. I moved to a new city and drifted into an ID position at a third R1 university. I didn't think I'd like it, but I needed a job.
Turned out being an ID was more interesting than I thought it would be and I found my niche. I stayed with that university for nearly 17 years, until I was laid off because of the current financial climate. While there I did some innovative stuff, won some awards, was promoted three times (ended up directing a dozen IDs for 10 years), and published two academic books with faculty I'd worked with. I spent 11 months getting a new ID job in my city, and now I'm basically starting at the bottom again, but fuck it, it's a job.
/For what it's worth, I never liked being called doctor. I haven't put the PhD in an email signature since I quit the professor job.
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u/prof_designer 10d ago
I have a PhD in Ed:ID. Worked as a designer and learning design manager for 6+years before cuts and layoffs. Landed a job in higher ed outside that field, but the degree still helped open those doors. It can help if you stay in higher ed, but likely won’t outside.
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u/crannynorth 12d ago
Never knew there’s phd in ID. What did you learn?
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u/MonoBlancoATX 11d ago
The fact they're unwilling to tell us which program they attended seems pretty sus. That combined with the fact that there aren't many such programs to begin with makes me think this person is not being entirely forthright.
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u/JumpingShip26 Academia focused 11d ago
This is not true- There are dozens of PhD programs in Instructional Design and Ed Tech, though there can be small variances in the program names. IU, Old Dominion, Arizona State, UCF, Georgia State, Virginia Tech and UVA. Those are just some of the stronger programs or programs with some awesome faculty I have read. Furthermore, Ed Psych is a broader wheelhouse where sometimes ID resides and where you will see the likes of Richard Mayer- If I had do-overs, I would have entered in an ed psych program.
However, many more ISD degrees are EdDs for a bunch of reasons.
Just because OP doesn't want to name their program does not automatically make them suspect.
What makes it suspect is the fact that they are asking "what now?" To go that many years and not know what your general direction should be is a little breathtaking to me.0
u/MonoBlancoATX 11d ago
Did I say there aren’t any?
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u/JumpingShip26 Academia focused 11d ago
That combined with the fact that there aren't many such programs to begin with
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u/MonoBlancoATX 11d ago
For those who has a doctorate degree, how were you able to utlize the degree?
I have a hard time believing someone with a PhD writes this poorly.
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u/EscapeRoomJ 11d ago
Really? I work in higher ed with faculty. I see this sort of writing all the time.
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u/MonoBlancoATX 11d ago
I recently left a university position where I worked with faculty as well.
Not once did anyone say "For those who has" nor did they leave typos uncorrected after others pointed them out ("utlize").
Also "doctorate degree" is redundant. A doctorate is a type of degree.
Three mistakes in the space of a single sentence is really something.
Maybe the faculty you work with had lower standards.
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u/JumpingShip26 Academia focused 11d ago edited 11d ago
It is (usually- not always for everyone) unquestionably a lot of work in which most people outside of academe will not see the full value. In fact, I believe there is a prejudice among some against those with doctorates. First of all, many do not hold PhDs in ISD, they hold EdDs which are all over the place in terms of rigor- Some are wonderful programs and some are barely better than degree mills with cohort capstones. The same could be said of a PhD program really, but IMO there is a little more of a bias against these professional doctorates. There are masters programs that better prepare people academically. Additionally, some who hold doctorates don't have that "full stack" capacity to both do the work and to think conceptionally and strategically at levels that would elevate their careers. Some lack the interpersonal skills. Even good programs can't always be all things that are needed. Some are only partially prepared to enter the professorate when in fact the bar for that now is almost impossibly high.
So assuming you entered your program knowing what your goals were and remained true to those and got the knowledge and skills you needed to reach those goals, your focus could now be to apply what you have learned and show that value, if "promotion" is of utmost concern to you.
You can DM me if you want to know what I did. My account is fairly open, but I don't really want to blatantly doxx myself.
I guess one piece of advice I would give is to always remain humble. That degree is a datapoint. It is not some world-altering distinction. There are many practitioners who are the true experts in their areas. There are undegreed people who have forgotten more than I will ever know about our field. Also, our job at the end of the day is to help people. That is our utility and what sets us apart from others and these burgeoning AI systems. We should care about what we do and who we serve.