[seanmcdirmid]

> Don't those kinds of industrial research jobs also usually require the kind of publication track record that you have to acquire in academia to survice?

Yes.

> Do industrial research labs really employ freshly minted PhDs - who probably haven't acquired the most important skill in modern research: the politics of attracting funding/backing?

Yes. How do you expect freshly minted PhDs to learn the art of attracting funding and backing?

[arethuza]

The black arts of attracting funding seems to be what junior academics spent considerable amounts of time doing when I worked in academia - mind you that is going back a bit so wouldn't surprise me if things have changed a lot.

[seanmcdirmid]

Keep in mind parent was talking about industrial labs, where funding is obviously a bit different. I don't really know much about academia beyond what I hear from peers.