Personality Psychology Podcast #56 Leaving academia with Kate Rogers, Amy Summerville, and Tal Yarkoni
Aug 10, 2025
Join Tal Yarkoni, a former academic now diving into secret tech projects, Amy Summerville, a social psychologist turned small business owner, and Kate Rogers, a leader in behavioral science at Zillow, as they share their journeys leaving academia. They discuss the emotional and practical challenges of transitioning careers, the impact of significant global events, and the importance of networking. With personal anecdotes, they highlight how former academics can apply their skills in industry and the intersection of behavioral science and technology.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Episode Focus On Leaving Academia
- Lisanne de Moor frames the episode as a live discussion about the choice to leave academia.
- She invites audience questions and foregrounds practical career decisions.
Diverse Career Paths After Academia
- Tal Yarkoni, Amy Summerville, and Kate Rogers each left academia for different roles in tech, government, and industry.
- They continued doing research in new contexts or shifted to applied behavioral science.
Ask Why Stay, Not Only Why Leave
- Tal Yarkoni reframes leaving by asking why one would stay in academia rather than why to leave.
- He realized the main reasons to stay were social and lifestyle, not intellectual fit.