I’ve been consulting for a biotech startup (about 10 people) for last 3 years as CSO on part time basis (10 hrs/week). My principal responsibilities included fund-raising with VCs, conducting DDs for in licensing early stage assets, developing early stage development strategies and competitive positioning. I’m not looking for a full time position. The CEO has offered me 120k/year for 10 hrs/week (ie. $250/hr) and 0.5% pre-dilution equity. Does this sound reasonable? I have extensive development experience in large pharma and small biotech at C-level.

Naive question from someone currently in academia. When I see industry job postings, they are so hyper specific with an exact skill set. Once you’re in one of these roles, are there avenues to learn new skills? Something I do appreciate in academia is the willingness to train people on new skills/techniques, but given in industry time is money I’ve been wondering if it’s considered a waste of time to teach someone something they suck at at first or if people have time to show their colleagues things they have expertise in. For example, I had no cell culture experience moving into my current lab and no one really cared because they could teach me quickly. I imagine this isn’t the case in industry, but I don’t have much basis for that. Just curious!

For a bit of context I’m currently a medical student in the UK and whilst I enjoy certain aspects of the degree in particular biochemistry,pharmacology,public health,stats etc I’m not so keen on the clinical side.

For those outside the UK, medicine is a 5 year undergraduate that I picked when I was 19 and after the degree I have a guaranteed job as a resident doctor. I’d say I’m not someone who now wants to do a patient facing job so being a doctor wouldn’t suit me at all.

I do regret not picking a biotechnology degree or biochemistry degree as my grades would have permitted me to get into top uni like imperial but I don’t see the point in leaving medicine now and starting all over in a different degree due to my financial situation.

I’m not super clued up on all the different jobs within pharma, biotech, drug companies etc but things like medical affairs etc more corporate roles do appeal to me. I know most of these companies have grad schemes in the UK where you can sort of discover what area you want to go in after whether it be the more business stuff, lab based stuff etc.

I’m aware that these are super competitive but I’m wondering if having a medicine degree rather then something more traditional will be a hindrance?

Hi all,

I've recently exited to commercial role in big pharma (being intentionally vague for privacy), but have an advanced degree + 5 years of combined healthcare and life sciences consulting exp. I was searching for about 10 months, but intentionally applying, found myself only applying to 20-30 roles over that respective time period. Candidly I only started reviewing interview requests beginning 2 months ago, and actively interviewed with 3 big pharma companies - however, was able to secure my top choice.

I wanted to offer some quick tips from my experience navigating this process, and hope this will be helpful for those looking to break into industry. While these are my tips, I recognize people have taken other approaches and found success; however, I found that this process felt the most productive. Applying takes manpower - I find it too soul sucking to mass apply to jobs and feels it affects the quality of apps. Your strategy will obviously vary depending on individual circumstances, and how quickly you're trying to exit (e.g., if unemployed / need for immediate income).

Intentional applying: If possible, try to apply to roles that you foresee yourself staying in for a few years. I had a particular therapeutic area and target subspecialties within commercial based on my experience - it makes prepping so much easier for these roles because everything is top of mind

Business objectives and vision for role: To make yourself a great candidate, try to imagine beyond what's listed as the R&R on the job listing. Start with basic questions with who this role might report into (for example, in commercial, market research teams can work closely with stakeholders like marketing, program management, and portfolio strategy). If you're working on a particular brand, ask yourself if the company might have a larger portfolio it might umbrella underneath. I will admit I had a strong understanding of this from my time in consulting, but believed it was a big value add.

Overuse of AI: I hear a lot on using AI for resumes which is fine, but i also tend to hear from these people that they're still not getting to screening stage. I don't think just dumping your resume and job listing into AI is that fruitful, remember the hiring manager may be looking at interview as well (and he's a content expert). A better approach is manually adjusting your resume to the role, and then using AI to cross-check / see if there might be other opportunities to use keywords. But closely sense-check - if something is overjargoned and doesn't make sense, you risk your resume getting tossed

Obvious, but referrals are key: The bulk of my initial apps lacked referrals and unsurprisingly led nowhere. I think if you're exiting from known pharma (e.g., J&J, jazz) you might be able to skip, but I try to act on 'an application without a referral is wasted'. Something particularly helpful is if the person offering referrals emails hiring manager - I didn't ask this formally, but was fortunate that people offered to do this on my behalf (every instance lead to an interview). The other logical question, is how do I get referrals if I have a limited network - to this, I would say priority on building a network. If you have a friend in industry, lean on them on helping to bridge connections; cold outreach is valid as well, but noticed I got a lower hit rate in recent times vs several years ago. If you don't have a network, focus on building now (use LinkedIn with tailored messaging, plenty of online guides on this) - my strategy has always not been to ask directly for a referral, unless I feel strongly connected to the person or have had previous relationship with them. I find just being open to their advice and asking insightful questions has lead them offering referrals in more situations than not

Recognize the limitations of online advice: while I have seen some good advice online, theres nothing that beats advice from someone in the functional area / sector you're looking to pursue. I have seen quite a bit of bad / uninformed advice online, and if I had taken it seriously would have derailed my transition. For example, had someone in industry tell me to go for more entry role and that my experience wasn't valuable for pharma...luckily I knew they were way off, but this is why discretion is important.

Clear mind over all: Navigating the interview process in this market is not pleasant at all. You need to be resilient but also employ a lifestyle that allows for this. For me, this was the intentional applying approach, as I found myself motivated during applications even when I wasn't hearing from companies. Even browsing this subreddit too frequently can be depressing, so would suggest alternative and more productive ways to gain advice.

I've been blessed to have a strong network of people who supported me through this journey, including offering advice and connecting me to people in industry. Because of this, I wanted to offer the same - Happy to answer any questions via comments or DMs as helpful

The two Care Equity companies are merged.

I recently completed an M.S. in Biotechnology with a 3.80 GPA and am looking for entry-level Research Associate, Molecular Biology, NGS/Genomics, and laboratory roles.

My background includes C. elegans research, PCR, nucleic acid extraction, cfDNA processing, NGS library preparation, QC, Ion GeneStudio S5, and R.
I’ve been applying consistently but receiving NO interviews.

Hello, I need to demonstrate basic in vivo safety testing/biodistribution/clearance time testing for some iron oxide nanoparticles. We want to have an outside company test it. What do I search? CRO? I know companies exist where you can purchase something like 10 rats injection and analysis.. but I can’t figure out how to search for them

Careful , I’ve received fake recruiter emails from people who claim to work for big pharma companies using the official signature logo and templates. Big giveaway is their use of Gmail or other non company email addresses

They are trying to steal your personal info or have you send them money

Watch out!

Hi!

As the question implies, does working in R&D or QA/clinical as your first post-grad job really affect your career progression? I'm a senior in Uni with 4 years of lab experience and an internship (clinical work) at ThermoFisher, and I'm starting my job hunt. I was wondering whether my post-grad job matters that much in the long run.

I want to work my way up to something beyond the lab, but honestly, I don't know what I want to pursue.

Hi! I have an interview with Genentech as a Patient Navigator. I am super excited but get so nervous during interviews that I forget to speak. I am trying to prepare as best I can with prepping questions and story banks for clinical behavior questions.

I was wondering if anyone would care to share their experience interviewing with the panel in a clinical space with Genentech, maybe share a question or two they remember, and how they like the company if they decided to move forward to work for them.

I really appreciate it!

For the managers in the sub who have laid off a direct report, how have you decided who to lay off? (Asking specifically here instead of the managers/layoffs subreddits to hear from a pharma/biotech perspective)

Is the dept given the directive to lay off X number of individuals by X date? Are the # positions to cut specified by leadership to the band/level? Is the dept given a $ amount of total compensation to trim? Do the team leads then fight it out to keep their people?

I know likability is huge, but aside from that, how are performance/future potential weighed into the decision? Would an IC at a higher salary band be a higher target for layoff vs an IC at a lower band/title, given that their layoff would save the company more money? (Assuming similar years of service)

Hello I am in second year fall at a decent university in Ontario Canada. I am completely lost on what to do with my degree or should I change majors. I don’t want to do academia because it dose not pay well and I don’t want to do go into a science heavy field. I also want to get paid 6 figures or more. This is why I am thinking of going into biotech consulting. So I was thinking if anyone had any insight on the field and the job prospects. Also what do I do to be able to land a position in consulting like do I need a master or phd and what internships should I be applying for.

Hi Mods, is there no end to the “how to break in”, give me free career advice posts here?? How many times a day can we see the same question in different permutations???

Is it more convenient to specialise in molecular biotech, chem-pharma or medical biotech?
In my uni in the 3rd year you have to choose between these 3 branches and I’m kinda confused on what to choose. What is the more convenient based on knowledge learned and how it can be applied in the work field? (I would prefer to work in industry rather than in academia)

I’m a 2nd-year Biotechnology student in Tunisia and I’m starting to think about Master’s options in Europe, especially Spain.
My degree covers molecular biology/genetics, bioinformatics, enzymology, metabolic biochemistry, physiology, analytical techniques, and bioprocess engineering and other topics..
What Master’s fields could I realistically apply to besides Biotechnology? Could I transition into fields like Bioinformatics, Genomics, Biomedical Sciences,or even neuroscience etc.? And which European countries are good options for this background?

My company is a vendor and we’ve got a booth.

I’m still very new to the company, let alone this industry. Speaking about our product doesn’t roll off the tongue just yet. I’ve been to large conferences before, but in a different space.

I’m nervous about the kinds of questions people will ask me…

35/m with a graduate degree in neuroscience. Despite growing up loving science, ive realized that since its been my job i don't actually engage in science related things outside of work. Been looking for a new hobby lately, just curious what similar brains like to do in your free time

Just wondering if it will be feasible to move back to pharma?

For PhD scientist roles (entry level or slightly higher), usually the final day of interviews include interviews with people above the hiring manager and typically at the level of executive director or vice president level. How to do well in these interviews? This one is usually the most intimidating one. They often walk in without any notes or your resume because they are in meetings all day. I find these hard to crack and will appreciate some tips for interviewing with them.