PhD and business: understanding barriers to strengthen the connection

What the roundtable highlighted

Barriers now clearly identified

Action pathways already underway… and to be consolidated

Conclusion: turning momentum into collective action

In recent years, doctoral education has received renewed attention in public policies and innovation strategies. The colloquium organized by ANRT and the work carried out as part of the national plan for doctoral education, notably resulting in the report led by Sylvie Pommier and Xavier Lazarus, have driven a collective reflection on its recognition and its place in society.

In this context, a key conviction is gradually emerging: doctoral training represents a strategic asset for organizations, provided that the conditions for its recognition and integration are effectively in place.

It is precisely within this perspective that the roundtable held during the ABG 2026 General Assembly was organized. By bringing together academic, economic and institutional stakeholders, the objective was to:

• confront perspectives;
• share concrete feedback and experiences;
• identify levers to strengthen connections between doctoral training and the socio-economic world.

Because a paradox remains: doctoral training has never been so visible… and yet it remains insufficiently integrated into companies. Why does this gap persist between growing recognition and still limited integration? And above all, how can we move from numerous (but often fragmented) initiatives to a more coordinated dynamic, organized and sustained over time?

Roundtable speakers

• Valérie Patrin-Leclère // Associate Professor at CELSA (Sorbonne University), PhD ambassador, engaged in doctoral professionalization and entrepreneurship.
• Rafik Benrabbah // PhD in Process Engineering, senior expert consultant, manager and strategic advisor on industrial and climate-related issues, also a PhD ambassador.
• Pascal Giat // Head of the CIFRE department at ANRT, a key actor in fostering collaboration between research and industry.
• Patrick Schmitt // Director of Research & Innovation at MEDEF, actively engaged in integrating PhD graduates into companies.

What the roundtable highlighted

A first key takeaway emerges: the recognition of doctoral training is progressing, but remains incomplete.

As highlighted by Patrick Schmitt, this evolution is the result of long-term efforts combining communication campaigns, collective initiatives, and visibility-enhancing formats such as “My Thesis in 180 Seconds”. These initiatives have helped shift perceptions and make doctoral competencies more visible.

However, this recognition remains fragile. It does not consistently translate into recruitment practices or corporate strategies. The anecdote shared at the beginning — that of a MEDEF leader discovering the level of remuneration of a PhD candidate and exclaiming, “is it that low?” — illustrates this persistent gap between the real value of doctoral skills and their economic recognition.

A second major point, emphasized by Valérie Patrin and widely shared, concerns the nature of the issue itself. Contrary to a common misconception, this is not a matter of lacking skills. PhD graduates are recognized for the strength of their training, their analytical abilities and their adaptability. The real challenge lies elsewhere: in their ability to project themselves and translate their competencies into other environments.

As she also pointed out, “as long as PhD candidates do not feel legitimate, they do not project themselves.” This issue of posture, self-perception, and understanding of socio-economic expectations appears to be a decisive factor.

Finally, discussions broadened the scope beyond companies alone. The recognition of doctoral training is also a broader cultural issue, linked to the general lack of awareness about this degree and persistent misconceptions about what a “doctor” is. International comparisons show that this situation is not inevitable.

Barriers now clearly identified

As the diagnosis becomes clearer, several barriers now stand out more distinctly.

1. The first concerns the visibility of competencies. Despite recent progress, including the integration of the PhD into the RNCP, the skills developed during doctoral training remain insufficiently understood and valued in recruitment frameworks. This formal recognition is an important step, but not sufficient on its own to transform practices.
2. The second barrier relates to self-censorship among PhD candidates. In some fields, especially in the humanities and social sciences, projection into the private sector remains limited due to a lack of benchmarks, role models, or sufficiently visible support mechanisms.
3. The third barrier concerns corporate practices. PhD profiles are still too often absent from recruitment frameworks or perceived as atypical. This situation partly stems from a lack of mutual understanding between academia and industry.
   A particularly relevant point was raised: the importance of early engagement. As Patrick Schmitt noted, the most successful integrations are those built from the earliest stages of the pathway, notably through Master’s internships or early collaborations. The earlier this mutual acculturation occurs, the smoother the later integration of PhD graduates into companies.
4. Finally, a major barrier remains: the lack of consolidated economic data. Many stakeholders highlighted the lack of studies measuring precisely the impact of PhD graduates on company performance. For decision-makers who remain hesitant, this lack of visibility is a real obstacle. Hence the idea, notably supported by MEDEF, of developing analytical work on the economic benefits of doctoral training in order to objectify its value.

Action pathways already underway… and to be consolidated

Beyond the observations, the roundtable highlighted concrete action levers, some already underway, others still being consolidated.

1. A first lever concerns the evolution of recruitment practices. Some companies are beginning to explicitly include PhD profiles in job descriptions, making these profiles more visible and diversifying applicant pools. This seemingly simple shift sends a strong signal.
2. A second lever involves developing concrete exposure opportunities. Several formats were discussed, ranging from short-term missions to more established schemes, allowing PhD graduates to engage in a variety of professional environments. The idea of a “PhD advisors club” supporting startups through short advisory missions illustrates this willingness to demonstrate, in practice, the value of doctoral competencies.
3. Along the same lines, intermediate schemes are emerging to facilitate the transition into employment. The example presented by Anne DUHIN — career guidance and professional integration officer at the SCUIO-IP of Paris 8 University — around the creation of a junior cooperative enabling various types of project-based missions, including in companies, illustrates this dynamic. This type of tool complements existing schemes such as CIFRE, potentially opening up new settings and new ways of connecting.
   In addition, long-standing schemes remain central. As Pascal Giat recalled, CIFRE is a major lever for bringing research and companies closer together, with one notable feature: the strong representation of humanities and social sciences — around 30% — making it the leading disciplinary group in terms of volume.
4. Finally, a cross-cutting issue emerges: the federation of networks. Several initiatives are moving in this direction, whether through awards recognizing CIFRE pathways in companies — with examples such as INSA Lyon, IFPEN, or the Académie des Technologies — or through platform projects designed to bring together the tens of thousands of PhD graduates and doctoral candidates who have gone through these schemes. The objective is clear: to create collective dynamics, strengthen communities, and amplify the impact of existing actions.

Conclusion: turning momentum into collective action

At the end of the discussions, one observation stands out: ideas, initiatives and best practices already exist in abundance.

The real challenge is no longer so much to identify new solutions, but to connect them, coordinate them, scale them up, help them spread, and ensure their sustainability over time.

This requires stronger ties between stakeholders, better sharing of feedback and experience, and the development of shared tools to enable scaling. It also calls for continued efforts to promote the value of doctoral training, relying more strongly on objective data and concrete examples.

In this context, ABG is taking the initiative to extend these exchanges by launching a dedicated working group, in collaboration with its partners and the PhD ambassadors.