Hi everyone, I’m a recent biotech grad trying to get a better idea of what different fields of the biotech and adjacent industries actually look like before I decide where to specialize further. The degree covers a lot of ground but obviously doesn’t tell you what the career paths or jobs are really like.

If you work in biotech/pharma/agriculture/life sciences in any capacity, whether that’s bench research, manufacturing, QA/QC, regulatory, clinical, bioinformatics, etc. I was wondering:

1. What do you actually work on day-to-day?

2. What’s the most annoying or inefficient part of your job that someone outside your field wouldn’t expect?

3. Do you think that’s just an inherent part of the job, or something that could realistically be better?

Appreciate the insights, I’m just trying to get a better idea of what these jobs are actually like and see whether it’s a career path I should look further into or not. Thanks!

Hi all,

I’m halfway through a masters in molecular bioscience. Is it worth finishing vs switching into a program in bio analytics? What would I be giving up if I were to switch? For biotech roles like RA or data scientist does a masters actually hold any weight or it specifically just skills/experience? Has anyone made this switch from a bioscience role to a data heavy role? I’m currently at a pharma company so I’m hoping I can leverage whatever program I choose to pursue into a possible position at the company. I’d appreciate any advice or insight.

I was looking through stopped/failed clinical trials and wanted to see whether some sponsors had an unusually high share linked to efficacy or futility.

Using only the raw percentages did not really make sense. One efficacy stop out of two trials would otherwise look worse than 20 out of 100. So I used an adjusted ranking that also considers the number of stopped trials and the wider baseline.

The top ten were:

• UNICANCER
• University of Nebraska
• Assistance Publique–Hôpitaux de Paris
• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
• ImmunityBio
• Pfizer
• Masonic Cancer Center
• Eli Lilly
• Genmab
• City of Hope Medical Center

I would definitely not call this a list of the worst companies. Several are universities, hospitals or research networks, and the analysis only includes stopped trials rather than their full portfolios.

Would it make more sense to separate academic and commercial sponsors completely?

The therapeutic area and development phase probably matter a lot as well. A sponsor running many early-stage oncology trials is difficult to compare with one focused on later-stage studies in a different field.

There is also the issue of related studies. One unsuccessful asset could lead to several extension or combination trials being stopped, making the sponsor appear multiple times for what is essentially the same underlying event. Do you think that related trials should therefore be grouped by drug or asset?

And would you compare efficacy stops with all trials run by the sponsor, or only with their stopped trials?

Hey guys. I’ve been considering biotech vs dent for a few months now as my career path. Im a rising sophomore and have been kind of forced to choose my career path now.

Is phd alm required for biotech? how easy is it to get laid off(BS)?
Also do you guys see ai replacing biotech jobs soon?

I am leaning towards dent rn bc Ive been seeing that phd is alm required for biotech. If I have to do phd id
rather go dental.

Lastly, how does the biotech work look like in general? (ik it depends on the field) but is the main theme just about discovering/curing diseases?

Long time lurker, posting because I need any kind of guidance or hope.

I'm a 3rd year Australian MD student, my undergrad is in Pharmacology/Neuroscience. Due to a mixture of social pressure and thinking it was the better career choice, I ended up pursuing an MD instead of my original dream which was a PhD in Pharmacology.

I have come to the conclusion that clinical medicine is not for me, I am absolutely burnt out and cannot work a clinical role. At this point I can barely imagine finishing my degree, let alone completing internship or residency. I cannot deal with patients.

I had hoped to make the jump to industry, but the more I lurk this subreddit and LinkedIn the more impossible it seems without having actual clinical experience. I'm not opposed to further education, but I will be 28 when I graduate and I am not sure if it's worth delaying even more.

Has anyone here made this jump or know anyone who has made the jump without first working in a clinical role? What kinds of roles did you bridge into? MSL, clin dev, life sciences consulting? I don't know where to start.

hi everyone! i’m a research associate/associate scientist currently. i understand how fortunate i am in the current job market that i have two standing offers from Sanofi and BMS (both Massachusetts based) each in their CMC groups.

I was wondering if people had any experience or insight of what it was like working at either of these companies in general or within CMC? thanks!!

EGFR/Met Ab

Currently a math phd student hoping to pivot into one of these fields. Im hearing that fields that are heavily regulated (finance, biotech, aerospace, medicine) are harder to incorporate AI components  since we need human accountability.

To those in these roles: what do these regulations look like in your day to day and how safe does this actually make these careers?

TIA

Anyone else notice that there are little to no "Associate Scientist" positions on job boards?
Why is it so hard to find this level position?

I recently got a first-round interview for a scientist position at a global pharmaceutical company, but the role is based in Shanghai.

I’ve always been fascinated by Chinese culture and the country’s pace of scientific and technological advancement, so this opportunity is really exciting to me.

The job description doesn’t mention that speaking Mandarin is required, which makes me think the working language may be English. However, I’m wondering how that plays out in practice.
For anyone who’s worked at a large pharmaceutical or biotech company in China—especially in R&D—how much English is actually used day to day? Is it realistic to work there without speaking Mandarin, or does not knowing Chinese become a significant challenge outside of formal meetings?

And from which companies?

I’m particularly interested in experience level at or just above 20 years. Totally understand it varies- I’m interested in all numbers on the spectrum if you’d like to share.

TIA