Nice to see the not-beating-around-the-bush list of what people really mean when they say "experience". Each of those items deserves its own discussion! I have personally found it ambiguous whether to count my graduate school years as experience, because during that time I learned how to
(1) create and adapt project timelines
(2) apply for funding
(3) absorb and synthesize large quantities of information
(4) self-motivate during dry spells
(5) write and run Python/Bash/etc. code in a Linux environment
(6) write, publish, and present scientific findings
Job posts sometimes explicitly do not count any school as experience, although during interviews it's good to mention (5) and (6) as they are considered most directly relevant when starting out in Tech. (1)-(4),(7) are arguably important in many settings, but if the interviewer doesn't ask about them, one has to proactively work those into the conversation at appropriate moments.
Nice to see the not-beating-around-the-bush list of what people really mean when they say "experience". Each of those items deserves its own discussion! I have personally found it ambiguous whether to count my graduate school years as experience, because during that time I learned how to
(1) create and adapt project timelines
(2) apply for funding
(3) absorb and synthesize large quantities of information
(4) self-motivate during dry spells
(5) write and run Python/Bash/etc. code in a Linux environment
(6) write, publish, and present scientific findings
(7) navigate tricky interpersonal situations such as workplace bullying, but only from friends' horror stories. Grad students also feel a need to unionize... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graduate_student_employee_unionization
Job posts sometimes explicitly do not count any school as experience, although during interviews it's good to mention (5) and (6) as they are considered most directly relevant when starting out in Tech. (1)-(4),(7) are arguably important in many settings, but if the interviewer doesn't ask about them, one has to proactively work those into the conversation at appropriate moments.
Sharon, you went to grad school at MIT and Stanford. You studied hard things and did great work. I would 100% count that as experience!