Your First Pharma Job

Science has a new article on their careers site about developing skills during your education that can transfer into a career outside of academia.  Communication, leadership, and management skills are highly valued in industry and public sector jobs but tend to get minimal attention during the average graduate or post-doctoral program.

“The quality that is hardest to find in the science policy world is the ability to write clearly and quickly,” says John Marburger, Washington, D.C.-based science adviser to President George W. Bush. “Communicating technical material in technical journals does not give you the skills to communicate to nontechnical audiences,” he says.

The article suggests some resources, such as the National Postdoctoral Association, that students and postdocs can turn to for help in understanding and developing these skillsets.  Some of the suggestions in the article will be familiar to readers of this blog — joining Toastmasters or relevant campus clubs, for example.  The suggestion to take charge of a lab responsibility, like radiation safety, as a way of demonstrating leadership is also a good one.

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You may have noticed that there’s been a bit of a gap in posting lately.  I’ve actually just started a new job myself, so things might be a little uneven until I get settled.  Thanks for your patience!

Uncategorized career, communication, leadership, management, skills, transferable skills

About 250,000 scientists are employed by biotech firms in the United States today, and a career in commercial biotech is a goal for many PhDs, post-docs, and undergraduate science students.

Recently Fiona Murray, an associate professor from MIT’s Sloan School of Management, carried out a study of knowledge work in this sector that provides enlightening reading for those interested in a biotech career.

Her report is available for download from the National Academies’ Center for Education.  Many of the report’s findings are summarized in an accompanying presentation.

Scientific jobs in biotech can be separated into three streams:

• Technicians normally require a university degree and 0-2 years of experience. They typically receive more guidance, and have little influence over the direction of the work they do. At this level, university education is increasingly being substituted for practical technical diplomas. On average, a level one technician earns just over $40K annually in base salary. Career trajectories are often limited, as it is often not possible to move up to a scientist position without a PhD.
• Scientist positions require a PhD, and frequently a post-doc as well. Even at the entry level, scientists earn considerably more than technicians — about $80K on average. Scientists have more independence and control over the direction of their research.
• Managers have often moved from a pure science role into their position, which involves the strategic direction of scientific groups, project management, and operational and financial decision-making. Often, a switch to the management track is required in order for biotech knowledge workers to shift into a higher-paid salary trajectory.  Although level 1 managers earn about the same as level 1 scientists, they command a premium at higher levels.  At level 5 (12+ years of experience), a manager earns on average $40K more than a scientist.

Why don’t scientists earn more? At a base salary of $80K+, scientists are well-paid, but when you take into account the opportunity costs of spending many extra years in graduate school and low-paid post-doctoral positions, maybe they’re not paid as much as you’d think. As with many economic questions, the reasons why come down to supply and demand:

• Large numbers of scientists are trained every year;
• The other job options for scientists outside of biotech pay even less (academia) or offer lower job satisfaction (big pharma).

What skills are biotech companies looking for?

Murray identifies some skill gaps that biotech job-seekers should consider carefully. If you can find ways to develop your abilities in these areas, you’ll be well-positioned to set yourself apart from the competition and provide employers with the profile they’re looking for:

• In terms of science, there is beginning to be a shortage of ‘traditional’ understanding of biology at the systems level.  Understanding the bigger picture of how molecular pathways relate to tissues, organs, and general physiology can help you relate your science to the pursuit of medicine and human health. Scientists with a good handle on genomics, bioinformatics and computational biology are also in short supply.
• Business skills. Scientists working for biotech firms always need to remember that there is a commercial goal at the end of their research, and if you can show that you understand these goals you’ll be way ahead of candidates who can’t break away from an academic mindset.
• Collaboration and communication skills. Commercial biotech scientists can’t hide away in the lab — being able to work with a team and communicate both with other scientists, and non-scientists is incredibly important. You can show that you have this to offer if your resume includes extracurricular teamwork activities, and by joining Toastmasters to develop your skills.

Finally, Murray’s paper takes a look at some future trends that may impact biotech jobs in the years to come, including the “deskilling” of biotech work and outsourcing.

Overall, it’s an eye-opening look at careers for scientists in biotech.  Well worth your time.

Preclinical R&D biotech, career, management, salary, scientist, skills, technician