Here are some principles that underpinned our approach around terminology and use of language during our pilots, and in the creation of the resources here on the portal: 

Avoid binaries like ‘academia or industry’ – this binary is too reductive of the options postdocs have. There are many non-academic career pathways available to postdocs that don’t neatly fall under the label of ‘industry’ (for example, many NGOs, third sector, Government roles, academia-adjacent roles, and more). It also shows a bias towards certain predominant pathways (such as Life Sciences à the Pharmaceutical Industry). We generally use the phraseology of ‘within or beyond academia’ or just ‘beyond academia’. This aligns with the term used in the Researcher Development Concordat

Prosper is for all postdocs of any discipline – we have resources for postdocs whose field of study falls within the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, just as we have materials of relevance for postdocs in STEM fields. 

Prosper is not about pushing postdocs out of academia – rather, it is about furnishing postdocs with the information, skills and resources they need to take control of their careers, and thrive wherever their career may take them. Many of our resources are about non-academic career pathways, as we’ve found this to be a common gap in career development provision – but the point is for postdocs to make more informed and proactive choices and plans about their career. Furthermore, it is increasingly common for individuals to chart career pathways that take them in and out of traditional academia at any given point, and the lines between the two are increasingly blurry given the importance of collaboration and partnership in the modern world. At its heart Prosper is about research culture change, encouraging postdocs to not narrowly define their career success as securing an academic position but value the breadth of career possibilities available to them. 

Prosper is not a ‘project’ or a ‘programme’ – it is a model for postdoc career development, and set of interrelated resources for enhancing postdoc career development (which is not to say, of course, that you cannot use Prosper as part of one of your own programmes or projects!).