This November, Rutgers’ iJOBS program hosted three representatives hailing from Celgene, Merck and Enzo Life Sciences, to speak at a career panel on research positions in pharma and industry. Since R&D is one of the largest sectors outside of academia that will take PhD-trained scientists, this panel was both informative and encouraging to all of us who will be starting a job hunt soon. The representatives gave us brief introductions on their backgrounds and some tips on what positions to look for when we start sending out resumes. The panelists had differing views on several topics, which I believe stemmed from their distinct career paths, and these experiences also clearly impacted their approach to hiring talent. Below, I will detail some of the most important points each company representative made on popular topics of the panel. 1) Did you (and will I need to) do a postdoc before transitioning into industry? Celgene: The speaker did a 6-year postdoc before entering Celgene as a consultant (contract worker), after which he was able to transition to fulltime employee status. In general, with or without a postdoc, securing a position at Celgene is likeliest to begin with a timed contract that can then be extended to more permanent employment. Enzo: The representative did not do a postdoc after getting discouraged by plummeting funding rates in labs around him during his PhD. He said a postdoc is not necessary but your luck depends on what the companies you are interested in are currently looking for. Merck: The Merck speaker did not do a postdoc before transitioning to industry, but emphasized that this may not be the most viable option in today’s competitive world. He added that industry postdocs are a good alternative, specifically for Merck, which sees postdocs as an opportunity to recruit and retain talent. All three speakers stressed that not all industry postdocs are equal; for example, to avoid appearances of favoritism, certain companies such as MedImmune, Genentech and even Celgene do NOT hire their postdocs after their time is up. 2) Where would a PhD scientist come in at the company? Celgene: Celgene has a four-tier system of scientists. The lowest tier is generally composed of techs with Bachelor’s degrees. The second tier is where a PhD would come in – anywhere in the Scientist I-III designation, with the likelihood of getting hired depending on what the company needs and who is applying. Enzo: It’s a small company, so while the four-tier system applies, it is much less rigid than the one at Merck or Celgene. The speaker advised us to look at both the Life Science and the Clinical Lab divisions of Enzo for positions. Merck: A PhD with or without a postdoc experience would come in somewhere around the Scientist to Senior Scientist level. Since Merck has a huge R&D division, make sure to look through a variety of departments, as many projects require a large mix of scientific knowledge. 3) Networking vs. applying online? Celgene: More than 50% networking! It’s all about who you know and how you fill the need. About half the open positions at Celgene get filled internally. Talk to recruiters! And remember, you are likeliest to come in as a contract worker first. Enzo: Probably both. Enzo looks for a capacity to learn in their new hires, since in such a small company one will necessarily have to play many roles and “wear many hats”. Look for open positions accepting applications on the Enzo website, and go from there. Merck: You can network as much as you want, but this speaker stated that if you don’t fulfil his requirements (which in his case included an extensive list of publications), he won’t bother bringing you in for an interview, and will instead turn to his pile of online applications. Merck does try to fill positions internally first, but if nobody fits the need, the position will be opened to everyone. Also, keep an eye out for on-campus recruiting events! Other Useful Information:
- All three companies do not care whether you are an international student or not
- The speakers stressed over and over again that you need to be flexible and learn about new research areas all the time
- Be able to talk about your own research!
- Publications are important in the sense that they give you more experience writing, communicating and presenting data; if you have no first-author publications, you need to show you gained the same skills from somewhere else
Useful Links: Merck Careers website Celgene Jobs Website Careers at Enzo website