BGS Career Development

Making It Count!

Rebecca Lopez

Certificate in Law Information Session

by

You are invited to attend a Certificate in Law information session for BGS students on January 10, 2019, 12-1 PM, in Blockley Hall Seminar Room 1311. The certificate provides an introduction to law and legal principles and is structured to provide a flexibility adaptable to different pursuits. It may be especially attractive to those interested in entrepreneurship, patent law, regulatory affairs, and certain pharmaceutical settings. The session will discuss the various options in taking one or more classes.

Lunch will be provided! 

As a reminder, students who wish to pursue a certificate program must obtain permission from their graduate groups and BGS as described here.

Kindly RSVP here.

For more information, contact master@law.upenn.edu.

Medical Affairs – Job Description

by

BioCareers, a career service for life scientists with advanced degrees, provides an informative description of medical affairs. The author explains:

“While there is some variation in segmentation and structure, most pharmaceutical companies have two kinds of scientific teams: research / development and medical affairs.  While R & D defines the scientific direction and early stage development, medical affairs provides scientific support for late stage development and post market support for drugs and devices. In small companies, the same team may be responsible for both kinds of activities.” 

They go on to explain that medical affairs can encompass a wide variety of activities, many of them scientific, informational, communications, and interpersonal in nature. Personal characteristics particularly useful to the field include joy in building relationships and a mind for entrepreneurism.

Read more here.

Science: “When it comes to having a family and an academic career, find what works for you”

by

This article in Science features insights from various scientist parents about beginning a family, with a focus on academic careers. They discuss planning a successful parental leave and return, as well as the challenges of maintaining work-life balance after settling back in at work.

The work-life balance of any given career path warrants consideration, and doctoral students considering a career in academia may find the insights shared in this article helpful as they navigate career choices. 

Read more here.

SfN: Career Skills Toolkit: From PhD to Postdoc

by

For doctoral students considering a postdoc position, SfN has created a toolkit for exploring career options. Its contents include advice on how to:

  • Explore career options and decide on your next steps.
  • Build the skills and network you need for career advancement.
  • Highlight your value on a CV or resume.
  • Identify and secure a postdoc position.
  • Plan your postdoc to help you achieve future career advancement. (Via SfN Neuronline).

Read more and download the toolkit presentation here.

Post-Interview Steps for Success

by

An oft-heard piece of career advice is the importance of following-up on an interview with a thank-you note. This Inside Higher Ed article provides a slight alteration to that advice – sit down and write everything you can remember about the interview. A few questions to consider include:

  • What did they ask?
  • How did you answer?
  • What seemed to matter to them?

Completing this task before details of the interview begin to fade can help you to reference specific details in your thank-you note. If offered an additional interview, these notes may help you predict future questions. If not, the notes on your own performance may help to improve your interview skills down the line, for other positions.

The author details other questions to consider in your notes – read them here.

New NIH Peer Review Videos for Applicants

by

The NIH Center for Scientific Review (CSR) has released two new peer review videos for applicants. The first, “What Happens to Your NIH Grant Application,” gives viewers insight into the review process. The second video, “Top 10 Peer Review Q&As for NIH Applicants,” features 10 experts from CSR as they address frequently asked questions.

Read more here.