![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNQfFIF8xyeMjFKxxxeTLBYhmjrXrblK5Ckp69pCmBatxcWvX3vGYVR8ynKdX-8kWIXR_Vvvb9RM5XsKFbRH6Y4fcYayhMiQ_ro6vUiTUui0scuyOFo6n83973YBW1Ny9xWWfmHzL4IETP/s400/rs.16.jpg)
The above figure comes from a recent report of The Royal Society --
The Scientific Century: Securing Our Future Prosperity. It shows career trajectories for academic PhDs in Great Britain. I would not be surprised to see a similar pattern in the United States. The fact that only a small fraction of PhDs go on to positions as professors, I was struck by how small that number actually is.