Biophysical Society Newsletter - May 2016

10

BIOPHYSICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER

2016

MAY

Career Center The World Outside the Lab: Many Ways to Use Your PhD in Industry At the Biophysical Society 60th Annual Meet- ing in Los Angeles, California, the Early Careers Committee hosted the panel discussion, The World Outside the Lab: Many Ways to Use Your PhD Skills in Industry. The panel consisted of Anna Amcheslavsky , Sales Representative, Illumina; Ragan Robertson , Technology Transfer Principal, University of California, Los Angeles; Jeanne Small , Chief Information Officer, Quantum Northwest; and moderator Prithwish Pal , Senior Market Development Manager, Oncology, Illumi- na. Much of the discussion is summarized below. Q: What would I need to do to get started in each of the panelists’ careers? What are those doing the hiring looking for? People hiring for careers away from the bench are looking for more education than just bench science training. You will not have had a job like this in the past, but you must show that you can apply your existing skills to the challenges of the job you are applying for. You have learned much more in graduate school than just your science. Do not forget what else you are capable of: critical thinking, problem solving, perseverance, multi-tasking, quick learning. Reflect about what you are good at, and it may guide you to different career options: Good "lab hands?" Consider de- velopment; Writing? Consider technical writing; Collaborating and communicating? Think about becoming a field representative or going into sales; etc. Also, think about how much money

you have managed in the past, because this is a valuable skill for many career paths. When you go on interviews, listen for feedback and take it constructively and be flexible to meet the needs of the hiring team. Consider options to broaden your scientific training in new directions, through classes on market analysis, business development, or intellectual property. Q: In a tech transfer office, how do you go about taking things to market? There are many options and pathways to bring your innovations and inventions to market. The first step is always talking to the scientists about what they are working on, and researching the market potential. In many cases the business is launched through a start-up although many uni- versities have options for incubators and accelera- tors as well. Tech transfer offices at universities play a critical role in negotiating the agreements between the campus, researchers, and business interests. Start-ups often have little or no money starting out, so universities often have the option of taking equity, and becoming part owner in the company and/or in sharing in the technology’s profits. Q: In a non-academic job, are you under contract? If not, are you worried about being unemployed? In sales, you are not under contract. New posi- tions are posted all the time, but most positions in sales are stable, as long as the company is doing well. And, it's easier to get a new position once you have experience. The benefits to not having lifelong employment, as you do in tenured positions, is that you have the flexibility to leave. You have no contract,

Numbers By the The number of Science and Engineering graduate students increased by 3% between 2013

and 2014. Source: Number of science and engineering graduate students up in 2014. (March 30, 2016). Retrieved from https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=138155&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51&WT.mc_ev=click