A big piece I found missing missing from the original article is the question of engagement: how do companies know that you're going to like the job? The kind

A big piece I found missing missing from the original article is the question of engagement: how do companies know that you're going to like the job? The kind of person who enjoys an academic career may not enjoy a software development career because the activities and values involved are rather different. I moved from academics (freshly graduated computer science PhD) into software development four years ago and when I did I had to answer a lot of questions about why I wanted to make the move. My experience is of course not universal but I think that career trajectory is a big part of senior interviews once it's been established that you can do the job. It's a broader issue than just academics vs industry. No matter what field you're in, you have to sell you your career transitions as 'make sensing' to the jobs you're applying to. Job searching from the company side is more complicated than accumulating experience and rewards (the Porsche in the original article) to end up being granted a job. I wrote up some longer thoughts on this: http://www.davehking.com/2013/09/22/jumping-from-academics-into-industry.html http://www.davehking.com/2013/09/22/jumping-from-academics-i...