How can I best prepare myself to keep the option for academia open, after leaving for industry? I will be finishing my PhD soon, and I have a just managed to a get job lined up in industry. I previously received an offer for a postdoc position but for various reasons had to turn it down.
Longer term I would love to be able to return to academia, maybe even build a career straddling the two in some way. But I'm concerned that the door will close on academia if I'm out of it for too long.
While I am working in industry in the next few coming years, what can I do to put myself in the best position to make a return to academia? Obviously things like keeping up to speed with my field is a given, but publishing papers is something that would have to happen outside of a full time job, and that could be a struggle.
The job I'm taking has some indirect relevance to my field and obviously some transferable skills. There is also a small (10%) research component.
I'd love to hear from people who have successfully switched between the two
In Germany there are actually quite a lot of such positions at the so-called Fachhochschulen. To be a professor there, it is actually expected to have worked in Industry for at least 3 years (or so, depending on the state) and share your industry experience for a more applied education of students. Of course, an excellent PhD is also necessary. And usually one needs to have some form of achievements while being in industry; e.g. papers, presentations, patents, rise to leadership positions, cooperations with academia, or similar; such that continued applied reseach can be expected.
This is in addition to the comments of @user2768 and @A rural reader.