Alternative Science Careers

The premier biotech career fair will be held on Monday, June 27, in conjunction with the
2011 BIO International Conventions (June 27-30) in Washington D.C.

BIO Career Fair
Grand Hyatt Washington
Monday, June 27th 2pm – 7pm

The BIO Career Fair is intended for professionals in the bioscience industry. Job seekers can spend the afternoon with regional, national, and international HR Representatives and hiring managers from top biotech, pharmaceutical and medical device companies who are looking to hire talent in various fields and levels.

All information taken directly from www.biocareerfair.org/

Technorati Tags: biotech, career fair, Job Openings, medical devices, pharma

BioSpace is proud to present the Pharm Country Career Fair, an opportunity for leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies to meet face-to-face with experienced job seekers.

Pharm Country Career Fair
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
11am to 4pm
Radisson Valley Forge
King of Prussia, PA

Spend the day speaking with representatives from top biopharmaceutical and medical device companies in the area to find job openings. Positions are available in various areas including QA/QC, clinical research, engineering, manufacturing, biostatistics, clinical data management, chemistry, regulatory affairs, and research. Face time is hard to get in today’s world of technology, so take advantage of this great opportunity to speak with HR reps and hiring managers in person!

This Career Fair is intended for professionals with experience in the bioscience industry. All candidates must have at least a four-year college degree AND two years of industry-related work experience to attend. (PhD and Postdoc candidates are welcome to attend. Equivalent work experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.)

Technorati Tags: biotech, career fair, Job Openings, jobseeker, medical device, pharma

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As some scientists are finding it difficult to land a job in R&D, they are branching out into alternative careers where they can still use their long science training. As such, it is vital to gain specific skill sets that will help land a career outside of R&D. A certificate in a field that keeps you in science may be a great option to get such training whether you are a college or graduate school grad looking to get your first job, are looking to transition your career, or simply want to enhance your current job performance.

Of specific interest to life scientists may be certificates that offer a marketable skill set in jobs related to regulatory approval of drugs and medical devices. As you already know, biomedical products must gain regulatory approval from the FDA for product development, testing, and marketing permission. One of the most critical workforce needs in the life sciences industry today is for human clinical trials managers, clinical research associates, clinical data coordinators, and regulatory affairs managers.

Several universities offer programs addressing this need through certificate programs in clinical trials management and regulatory affairs that are designed to provide college graduates with the necessary knowledge and skills they need to succeed in entry-level positions or to advance their professional development. For example, the California State University offers a Regulatory Affairs Certificate Program and a Clinical Trials Project Management Certificate online. They also offer a Clinical Trials Design and Management Certificate at the university. Other examples include the certificate program in Drug Development and Clinical Research offered by Mercer County Community College in NJ and the Pharmaceutical Regulatory Affairs Certification offered by the BioPharma Institute.

The certificate programs can enhance your job performance, help you gain recognition, and increase your marketability in the career field of your choice. Additionally, they usually takes less time to complete than another degree (some are only 12 months) and are often designed for working professionals so courses are typically given in the evenings and weekends at local community colleges or are offered online. What better way to increase your chances of landing a job.

Technorati Tags: certificate, clinical management, clinical trials, regulatory affairs

Pharmacist jobs continue to be in great demand. As most already know, pharmacists are professionals who provide oversight and expertise in the distribution of prescription and nonprescription drug products. There are several job positions in the pharmacy arena depending on the amount of schooling you would like to complete and compensation based on the position. Job opportunities in the pharmacy field include pharmacy aides, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacists.

Pharmacy aides or assistants are the lowest-ranked job. These individuals are not allowed to dispense medications. Their primary purpose is to support staff in the pharmacy. They may deal with customers and computer systems to help keep the system working properly. The education to become a pharmacy aide is either on the job only, or a certificate program, usually from a 2-year college. Some 2-year degrees are available as well, but generally it is a certificate program. These programs can help people find jobs, but are not always required.

Technicians are allowed to dispense medication. Their job consists of helping both the pharmacy aides and the pharmacists make sure the pharmacy runs smoothly. Along with the clerical work that the assistants do, technicians count out pills and measure liquids, then bottle and label the drugs according to the instructions of the pharmacists or the doctors who called them in.

There is currently no education requirement for pharmacy technicians in the US, but to become a certified technician, there is an exam called the National Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam that must be taken. Some jobs will require a technician to be certified, and if this is the case, the person may opt to enroll in a program through a 2-year college that will train them for the job and prepare them for the exam. After a technician is certified, he or she must pass a given number of continuing education courses in the field each year to remain certified.

The pharmacist is responsible for making sure that medications are dispensed and taken in a safe manner. Some of the responsibilities of a pharmacist include advising doctors on the dosage and side effects of medication, answering patient’s questions, and helping patients choose over the counter drugs. Pharmacists must be have social skills to communicate with customers about their concerns and advise them about their current prescriptions.
Additionally, pharmacists must be detail-oriented to ensure no mistakes are made.

To become competent to serve in these jobs, a pharmacist receives extensive education. A PharmD degree is a 4-year degree in the field of pharmacology, and is generally undertaken after 2-4 years of college level coursework in the pre-pharmacy field. An exam may also be required to enter a PharmD program. Once a student completes the program, there is a national licensing exam that must be taken before they have become licensed pharmacists. According to payscale.com, the starting salary for pharmacists is at least $80,000/year and can be as high as $120,000/year or more.

As the population starts to skew more towards the elderly, pharmacy professionals will become more and more desirable. Because of this expected growth in the field, now is potentially a great time to get a pharmaceutical education.

If you like the idea of a pharmaceutical education, but wearing a white lab coat and working behind a counter filling medication orders doesn’t sound that exciting to you, you’re not alone. There is a diverse set of career paths available to those with a pharmaceutical education. Alternative careers in the field include careers in medication therapy management, pharmaceutical care, drug-use review, drug-use management, disease management, and pharmacy benefit management. There are also many job settings that pharmacists work in, including industry, research, drug stores, and academia.

If a career in the pharmacy field is of interest to you, there is an excellent Career Pathway Evaluation Program for Pharmacy Professionals offered by the American Pharmacists Association (APhA). The evaluation program gives detailed and useful information about many areas of pharmacy practice. Additionally, it is geared to help you choose a career path in pharmacy that is appropriate for you. To learn more about the program, click here.

Technorati Tags: alternative careers, pharmacy aide, pharmacy jobs, pharmacy technician

Dendreon Corporation is a Seattle-based biotechnology company, focused on targeting cancer to transform lives through the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics to fight cancer.

Committed to developing innovative cancer therapies, Dendreon is evaluating a variety of therapeutic approaches. While each approach employs a distinct mechanism of action to destroy cancer cells, they all share a common attribute–- a targeted therapy platform that addresses an unmet medical need, improves the lives of patients, and provides a favorable safety and tolerability profile.

Dendreon’’s research and development program is exploring the application of active cellular immunotherapies (ACIs) and small molecules to the potential treatment of a variety of cancers. To learn more about ACIs, get the free PDF article below.

Use the following links to find out more about job opportunities within Dendreon:

Biotech Research Jobs (http://dendreonjobs.com/)
R&D jobs (http://dendreonjobs.com/careers/research-%EF%B9%A0-development-jobs)
Biotech Sales Jobs (http://dendreonjobs.com/careers/sales-jobs)

For more details or to apply for these openings or any of the many other job openings at the Dendreon Corporation please visit their career page,
http://dendreonjobs.com/.

Technorati Tags: biotech, Business, Cancer, careers, Job Openings, R&D position, sales position

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The typical pathway for someone with a science or engineering degree interested in pursuing a job in industry is often to apply for a research position as a technician or scientist. Jobs in industry can be with various types of companies, including, but not limited to, biotech, pharma, chemical, medical device, and engineering firms. Many people hear of alternative careers and think that they need to pursue a job in a totally new arena. That is not the case. In fact, there is a diverse array of alternative careers for scientists for those interested in staying or pursuing a job in industry, but not particularly in research.

Some alternative careers for scientists in industry include finance, marketing, sales, investor relations, and business development.

With only a science degree, more training or further schooling may be required to land a job in one of these fields. Experience may also be necessary. One easy way to get experience is to do an internship throughout your time at school in the specific field of interest. It may also be an option to start with a job at a company as a research technician/scientist to get your foot in the door and then begin networking and making connections with those outside of research. This often is not an easy task as there may not be a lot of communication between the business and research side. Therefore, it will require intentionality on your part. Try to have an informal interview by saying that you would like to learn more about what the employees do in the rest of the company. Having the initiative to find out more and networking will aid in getting you into the area of interest. Do not be afraid to ask questions and meet new people.

Good luck.

Technorati Tags: alternative careers, biotech, industry jobs, job, medical device, pharma, research

BioSpace has announced that registration is open for their fall career fairs for individuals desiring a science or research job. The career fairs are an opportunity to meet with leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies that are hiring.

Upcoming Career Fairs

• October 18, 2010   BioCapital Bethesda, MD

• October 18, 2010   Biotech Bay Burlingame, CA

• November 1, 2010  Genetown Cambridge, MA

Technorati Tags: BioSpace, Biotechnology, Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals, Clinical research, job fair, Job Openings, job opportunities, job search, pharmaceuticals

Despite the recession supposedly being over, jobs continue to be cut and unemployment continues to rise. Just this week, two major pharmaceutical companies announced job cuts.

Technorati Tags: Abbott Laboratories, Bristol-Myers Squibb, job, Novartis, pharma, Pharmaceutical/Biotech, Solvay

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A great article was released recently from FierceBiotech highlighting several women that have excelled in biotech careers. The article, “Top Ten Women in Biotech” highlights ten women, but notes that there were so many outstanding women in biotechnology that it was hard to choose the top ten, despite the field being thought to be dominated by men.

The top ten women include:

Technorati Tags: biotech job, Biotechnology, Career Advice, FierceBiotech, Women

Image via Wikipedia

Good job prospects and high salaries are an attractive attribute to becoming a pharmacist. Employment of pharmacists is expected to grow faster than other occupations through the year 2014, mostly due to the increasing demand for pharmaceuticals, particularly from the growing elderly population. Based on data from 2009, the median expected salary of a pharmacist in the U.S. is $108,000. Now that this has your attention, how do you become a pharmacist?

In order to become a pharmacist, you need to graduate with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from an accredited college of pharmacy, which usually takes 6 years of post-secondary education. Most of the time, you must also complete an internship by working with a licensed pharmacist during or right after your schooling. You must also pass a state exam called the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX), which allows you to obtain a pharmacist license.

Along with education, you also need to have a ‘compelling’ resume that will bring out your strong points and how they can help the company. The strength of a good resume should never be underestimated. As Mike Johnston, CPhT, chairman and founder of the National Pharmacy Technician Association (NPTA) says, “Many people understand the basic components of a resume. But items that are specific to pharmacy technician should also be included.” Johnston is also the author of Rx for Success: A Career Enhancement Guide for Pharmacy Technicians.

To further enhance your pharmacy job opportunities, you would be wise to network, network, network. Knowing the right people, both within and outside pharmacies (especially experts, authors, and industry leaders) can do wonders for finding a career. If you don’t have a mentor, consider having one. The right mentor can make a significant difference in your career. Finally, become a better leader. The corporate world values leadership skills like no other and leadership skills are always desirable. Be proactive and develop your leadership skills.

Technorati Tags: employment, Pharmacist, Pharmacy, salary