overview of career opportunities in the life sciences...

Making Connections that Fuel Innovation!

Overview of Career Opportunities in the Life Sciences Sector

1 Confidential; Not for Distribution. June 16, 2017

Lauren Celano CEO, Propel Careers

[email protected]

MGH Graduate Student Division October 25, 2016

Educational Seminar: Career Advancement Series


Careers Paths

Career Options

How to highlight and build relevant transferable skills

How to identify roles and titles

Outline



Various Organizations / Career Paths

Companies Developing

Technologies

Private Research

Institutions

Technical/ Science Writing / Communications

Consulting

Non Profits / Foundations

Investment Banking

/Venture Capital / Finance

Academic Research or

Administration

Ecosystem Government / Policy

Confidential; Not for Distribution. June 16, 2017


Skills for Academic Success can also apply to Industry

Publications and Presentations Thought Leadership (e.g.)

Peer Reviewing Chairing conferences Advisory Roles

Grants Navigation / external funding Involvement in the University

IRB, IACUC, etc Admissions committees Departmental initiatives

Collaborations Teaching Mentoring

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Building Skills is Valuable no matter that career path you choose


A few questions to ask yourself: What do you like? What are you passionate about? What are you good at? What do your peers/teachers think you are good at? What motivates you? What culture do you want to be in? What location do you want to be in?

Identifying a Career Path - Where to Start?


Answers to these questions will narrow down your focus areas as you think about your career


Develop your Job Search Checklist Outline what you want in a job Location Requirements Responsibilities Size of organization Culture Management style Etc…

Item Must Have

Nice to Have Definitely No


Making Connections that Fuel Innovation! 7 Confidential; Not for Distribution. June 16, 2017

Job Searching: The Funnel Effect I want/ can do everything…

or I have no idea what I want

to do

Actually, maybe there are some Jobs that I am better suited for

than others

I know exactly what I want

to do

When you are here, you should apply


A Few Academic Career Paths


Postdoc Professor

Grant Administration

Director, Core Facility

Manager, Industry / Academic

Collaborations

Research Focus

Research and Teaching

Teaching Focus • College • High School • Community College • STEM outreach • etc

Postdoctoral Office Head

Technology Transfer

Clinical Research


Career Paths in Research Institutions


Research Roles Alliance / Project / Program Management Roles Grant Administration / Evaluation Patient Advocacy Roles Licensing / Partnership Roles


A Few Industry Career Paths


Bench Research Lab Head VP / CSO

Bench Research Project Manager Commercial Development

Consulting Business Development CEO

Bench Research Business Development CEO

Bench Research Clinical / Medical Affairs

Clinical Development


Many organizations have different career tracks: Management track

• Do research in an org 3-5 years later Manage people, projects, teams, etc

Research track • Strong bench researchers are invaluable. If you like research,

you can have a fulfilling career at the bench

Research Career Paths



Variety of Career Paths - Postdocs

Industry

Research Postdoctoral fellowships

Non Research Postdoctoral Fellowships Regulatory Medical affairs Quality

Academic

Research fellowship Medical Institution Research Institution Non-profit NIH

AAAS

Policy Fellowship i.e. AAAS

Mass Media Fellowships i.e. AAAS


Choose a post-doc at: a highly respected Institution a highly respected lab, “pedigree” will get you interviews!

Change your research focus (i.e. Ph.D. in Drosophila genetics sleep research), Post-doc: Same behavior, new organism (human sleep research) Same organism, new behavior (ie. Drosophila memory) Same organism/behavior, new approach (Drosophila sleep electrophysiology)

To move to industry, choose a post-doc lab that will: Expose you to a disease-relevant field Train you in industry-relevant techniques Allow you to initiate collaborations with industry partners

Choosing an Academic Track Post-Doc



Find a company that has a successful research program Be open to doing research that may not be your “expertise” Choose a lab doing research that you are passionate about Prepare ahead of time in graduate school by learning

industry relevant techniques You often will need to propose a research plan to be

considered for a postdoc in industry

Choosing a Post-Doc Within Industry



Postdocs can open up many doors for your career If you plan to be an academic lab head, or head of

a research group in industry or a non-profit, a productive postdoc is necessary

Post-Doc’s



Additional Roles


Consulting

Scientific Evaluation Strategic Analysis Competitive Landscape M&A Analysis Financial Valuation Partnership Strategy Intellectual Property Sales Strategy Marketing Strategy Grant Writing

Pharmacoeconomics Pricing Scenarios Reimbursement Market Assess Health economics Operations Commercialization Emerging Markets Supply Chain Communications

Patent Law

Technical Specialist Patent Analyst (licensed

patent agent) (future)

Editor

Venture Capital / Investment

Banking Analyst


Non-Profit Organizations – such as…


Research Roles Alliance / Project / Program Management Roles Grant Administration / Evaluation Patient Advocacy Roles Licensing / Partnership Roles


Government Roles / Science Policy

Research Roles (Full time and Contract) Alliance / Project / Program Management Roles Grant Administration / Evaluation Science Policy Licensing / Partnership Roles Communications



Big Data




http://myidp.sciencecareers.org/


20 Different Career Paths



Compare Skills Match to People in the Role



Read about Careers


What kind of Organization do you want to work in?



Small Organization


Research Training

Scientists Grants

Managing Collaboration

Interact with Vendors Fix machines

Write SOP’s

Prepare presentations for Business

Group

Etc…

Small Organization


Larger Organization


Transferable Skills


Graduate School provides you with many skills, in addition to bench work

Presenter

Presentation Notes


Excellent Scientific Foundation! Data analysis skills Ability to synthesize

information/learn new areas Ability to ask questions Writing ability – abstracts,

papers, grants Work ethic and drive Work independently and be

accountable

What Graduate School Teaches You


Exposure to Clinical Research Disease Knowledge Management of the Lab Training of People Grant Writing Interacting with Collaborators Finding Collaborators Starting new Groups / Initiatives


• Organized • A networker • A negotiator • A leader • A manager • A presenter • An excel guru • Detail oriented • Good at writing • Skilled at programming • Good at keeping track of projects • A communicator (written and verbal) • Good at drawing/other artistic activities

Transferable Skills – “Your Tool Kit”


Lead collaborations with academia, industry, non-profits Initiate collaborations with labs (internal or external) Work on cross functional teams (for your research) Manage relationships with vendors Take leadership role in your Postdoctoral Association Leadership role in groups (internal / external to Univ.) Community Service

32

Developing Teamwork Skills



Developing Leadership Skills Leadership roles in groups internal and external to university Take leadership roles in collaborations Organize / co-organize a panel at a conference (i.e. Keystone,

Gordon conference) Organize / co-organize a conference

33

Manage people to complete a task Manage or a process Improve processes and efficiency (develop solutions) Set up new techniques, write protocols for them Manage a relationship with a vendor Train / Mentor students, interns, lab members



Organizations Value Communication



Why Skills Building is Important


Presenter

Presentation Notes


Research and Development

Strong research skills

Translational research

Manage / Initiate research collaborations

Work cross functionally

Write patents Develop business

plans Write Grants

Building Transferable Skills for Different Roles Entrepreneurial Organizations

Set up a lab (with 1st time PI)

Develop a new research direction for the lab

Comfortable with very innovative research

Wear many hats Initiate

collaborations Write grants, annual

reporting Write Patents Teaching



Solid Technical Foundation





plans Write Grants

Intellectual Property

Building Skills for Different Roles








plans Write Grants


Grant Writer / Reviewer /

Administrator









plans Write Grants



Administrator

Product/Project / Alliance

Management

Highlighting Skills for Different Roles







Write patents Intern with startup Develop business

plans Write Grants



Administrator

Product/Project / Alliance

Management

Technology Transfer



Medical Affairs, Clinical Research

Translational disease research

Collaborate with Clinicians/ Medical Teams

Clinical research Clinical biomarkers IRB experience Regulatory

submissions Regulatory / clinical

courses Present a lot Teaching

Building Skills for Different Roles Regulatory

Develop / improve processes

Develop SOP’s and protocols

Train people on techniques

QC data Contribute data to a

regulatory filing Work with cross

functional teams Teaching

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Mention that sometimes people choose a postdoc in more of a clinical area if their Ph.D. was very basic research or in vitro/in vivo heavy, to develop skills needed to move into clinical/medical affairs in industry


Strategy Consulting

Consulting club Case competitions Business courses Leadership roles in

organizations Tech transfer

internships Working with cross

functional teams Presenting a lot Strong writing skills Teaching

Marketing Communications

Technical & non-technical writing

Lab Public Relations Give Tours / Present

Blog writing Design flyers or

marketing materials Social Media use programs i.e.

Illustrator, photoshop

Teaching

Building Skills for Different Roles Business

Development

Startup formed from your research

Tech Transfer Internship Collaborative Research Develop a business plan Secured funding for

your research Business Course(s) Patents Networking Negotiation Teaching


Policy

Advocate for grad students (i.e. head of grad student association)

Member of a groups advocacy committee like AWIS or your “professional association, i.e. AACR”

Member of national postdoc association

Improve policies within university

Teaching

Technical Sales / Application Specialist

Manage relationship with vendors

Manage the purchasing process

Develop budgets Install equipment Train people on

techniques Develop training

materials Teaching

Data Science Roles

Quantitative Skills i.e. SAS, STATA, R

Data visualization tools

Programming languages

“big data analytics”


How to Identify Roles / Titles



When reading through a job description, look at the qualifications and compare with your background.

Job Qualifications


Details from Job Postings


Item Must Have Nice to Have Do you have

the Skills (Y/N)

If N, how will you Build the

Skill

Specific research experience – i.e. ChIP-seq X

Experience training people X

Experience with Budgeting X

Specific Disease Knowledge – i.e. Immunology X

Clinical Research Experience X


i.e. Research Roles Scientist Sr. Scientist Scientist I Scientist II Research Scientist

When reading through a job descriptions, make a list of job titles relevant to your background

Which Title is Relevant to you?


LinkedIn for Title Searches


Look at Profiles to View Backgrounds



Job Boards Are Useful


About 50% of roles are never posted...



Informational Interviewing

Definition: An informational interview is an interview conducted to collect information about a job, career field, industry or company. It is not a job interview. Rather, it's an interview with an individual working in a career you would like to learn more about.

How to find the right opportunity:


What to ask about

Particular Job Company Career Progression Career Entry

Responsibilities Day to Day Like Dislike Growth potential Skills needed Salary range

Culture Work

Environment Management

Style Growth

Potential Personality Fit Skills needed Skills valued

Growth Opportunities

Career Path Skills to Develop

How to get in a role

Networking Experience

required Skills needed Skills one can

learn Best way to enter

field What titles should

I look for?


Lab mates Former colleagues Friends/ Mentors Alumni Organizations Conferences / Events Organizations that you are a part of LinkedIn connections Biotech professionals who speak at events

Connections Through People



Professional Associations


Regulatory Affairs Professional Society

Association of Clinical Research Professionals

Medical Writers Association

Drug Metabolism Discussion Group

Mass Spectrometry Discussion Group

Boston Area Pharmaceutical Toxicology Group

Boston Chapter of Disease Associations i.e. AACR

Boston Area Systems & Synthetic Biology Association - http://bassbiology.org/

http://www.aiche.org/community/students/chapters/find

http://bassbiology.org/


MassBioEd Job Trends Information



MassBioEd Job Trends Information


https://www.massbioed.org/writable/files/annual_job_trends_report.pdf


Top Employers in MA


https://www.massbioed.org/writable/files/annual_job_trends_report.pdf


International Hiring


http://www.myvisajobs.com/

http://www.myvisajobs.com/


Industry postdocs / academic postdocs: Some with defined dates, others rolling. Start planning at least 6 month before you want a role.

AAAS fellowships: Nov 1 2016 application deadline, start in Sept 2017

Industry Research Roles: Desired start 1-3 months after role is posted

Large Consulting / Investment Banks: apply Fall 2016; start ~ June 2017

Boutique consulting firms / investment banks: Some fall application process, other rolling hiring

Job Search Timelines



Contact Details: Connect with Propel


Full time jobs and

Internships

Coaching: Resume,

LinkedIn, Job Search, etc

Newsletter Networking Events

Lauren Celano

Founder and CEO

Propel Careers

cell: 215-370-2285

email: [email protected]

Twitter: @Propel_Careers Facebook: Propel Careers LinkedIn: Propel Careers Web: www.propelcareers.com

mailto:[email protected]

http://twitter.com/Propel_Careers

overview of career opportunities in the life sciences...

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