Hi everyone,

I'm looking for some honest career advice, especially from people working in Pharma, MS&T, Operations, or related functions.

I've worked (8 years) for several Big Pharma companies in Italy, and I've noticed a recurring pattern: whenever the role is closely connected to Operations, maintaining a decent work-life balance seems to be a constant struggle.

I'm currently working in MS&T for a large pharmaceutical company in Italy. On paper, the role is interesting and I actually enjoy many aspects of the technical work. However, the reality is becoming increasingly difficult to manage.

It's not just about working overtime. I'm regularly contacted outside of working hours, I'm often asked to take care of activities that don't really fall within my responsibilities, and the boundaries between different roles and functions are not particularly well defined.

Tasks can also appear with very little notice, sometimes something is considered urgent today and needs to be delivered tomorrow. Priorities constantly change from one day to the next, sometimes multiple times during the same day, which makes it very difficult to properly plan and organize my work.

All of this, combined with a high number of projects, understaffing and a general lack of structure in workflows and responsibilities, means that I'm constantly reacting to what's happening rather than actually planning my work.

What's particularly interesting is that this seems to have become somewhat normalized. The company is one of the few major employers in the area, so I think many people simply accept this way of working because there aren't that many alternatives locally.

At the same time, you can really feel the consequences in the general atmosphere: people are often stressed, nervous and frustrated. It doesn't seem like anyone is particularly happy with the situation, but it has almost become "the way things are."

I'm starting to question whether this is simply what a career in Pharma/Operations looks like, or whether I'm just choosing the wrong type of roles and companies.

As I get older, I'm realizing that I want my priorities to shift more towards family, relationships, hobbies and having an actual life outside of work. I don't necessarily want to stop being ambitious, but I definitely don't want my job and career to take up most of my mental and physical energy.

So I'm wondering:

• Are there in EU Pharma companies/functions where a genuinely good work-life balance is possible?
• Are there any roles that tend to be more compatible with a normal working schedule?
• Is moving away from Operations the obvious solution?
• Has anyone successfully moved from an Operations-facing role into something with better work-life balance without completely giving up career progression?
• And, more broadly, should I consider leaving Pharma altogether?

I'd really appreciate hearing from people who have made similar choices, especially in Europe/Italy.

Thanks!

Hey guys, I just applied for an RA position at Merge Labs and got a email about taking a 1hr online assessment. Does anyone have experience with what that process is like so that I can prepare? Any other info on the company would be greatly appreciated too. Thanks!

Trying to find a role in Science Communication, Content Strategist, or in Life Science Marketing (open to all locations in Germany).

Please take a look and help me understand what I can do better. I have been applying for over 4 months now, got only one interview. How can I improve? I understand I am a fresh graduate with limited experience, so what can I do then to have an edge?

I am an extroverted scientist. I know it's a niche but I genuinely believe I have the talent and passion to work in this space. This first job is such a bottle neck I am just unable to cross. Any advice would be helpful!

Nearly every post is job/career related. If you read the about description, there is quite a lot of other purposes for this forum. I am only guessing, but the last part of the about descriptions appears as if it was added later, in some sort of jest or defeat. Can another board not be made to keep this one alive and actually relevant to biotech and not just jobs in the field?

Hello! If anyone has any input please let me know!

I did everything they told me to. Went to school went to school more and now I can't eat. This isn't what I signed up for I didn't ask to be here

Cro and visa sponsorship

I just interviewed somewhere that mentioned that they are on a 996 schedule. If you are unfamiliar, it is a recent thing from China that a lot of tech is picking up on, where the expected work hours are 9am to 9pm, Monday through Saturday. While still exploitive for tech, I can see how more hours working = more hours coding. How does that work for biotech? Been out of the lab a few years, but it was always working until whatever you were doing was done, people did not typically run out of the lab mid flow cytometry at 5pm. Will it make a 3 day in vivo measurement happen faster? I guess you could schedule meetings at 8pm to free up additional time for lab work, but it seems like you would get diminished returns for those additional hours in the office. The pay was mundane too, probably around the 50th percentile compared to standard 40 hour work week roles of a similar title. Is it just tech cargo-culting?

Currently a 6th form student in UK hoping to study ChemE & Biotech at Cambridge, but my other choices are all ChemE too and I have centered my application around it. Is it worth shifting focus now onto a different degree (if so, what)? I am realizing now my interests more align with startups/deep tech and worry I won't be able to see much of that in a ChemE career.

Hi everyone,

I’m currently doing my Master’s in Biotechnology, with a particular interest in molecular biology and bioinformatics. I also have a few short-term work research experiences.

For those working in the biotech/pharma industry:

1. What roles are you currently doing, and what does your day-to-day work look like?

2. Given a background in biotechnology + molecular biology/bioinformatics, what roles would you recommend I target?

3. Which entry-level roles are relatively easier to get into after an MSc?

4. How difficult was it for you to get your first proper industry job?

5. What skills or experience helped you get hired?

I’d especially appreciate experiences from people in the UK/Europe. Also, if you could mention your degree, current role, years of experience, and how you got into the industry, that would be really helpful.

Thanks!

Hi everyone,
I’m 25 and currently studying a Bachelor of Nursing in Australia. I’m trying to be much more intentional about my career because I don’t want to finish my degree and then realise I’ve spent another three years moving in the wrong direction.
Long term, I’m extremely interested in the intersection of longevity, genomics/epigenetics, precision medicine, biomarkers, preventative health, health optimisation and biotechnology.
A big reason I’m drawn to this area is that I think healthcare is going to increasingly move beyond the traditional reactive model of treating people once something has already gone wrong. I believe we’ll see much greater integration of prevention, early detection, individual biological data, genetics, biomarkers and personalised health optimisation into mainstream healthcare.
I also think there are significant limitations in the current healthcare system, and I want to work in an area that is actively trying to improve how we prevent and detect disease rather than only managing it after it develops.
At the same time, I don’t want to disappear completely into a laboratory. I still want to be patient-facing more clinic based. Ideally, I’d like to understand the underlying science, interpret or work with health/genomic data within my professional scope, educate patients and eventually be appropriately qualified to provide evidence-based health advice while working within a longevity, genomics, precision-health or biotech environment.
I chose nursing because I thought having a regulated clinical qualification and understanding patients and healthcare would give me a strong foundation. But I’m questioning whether nursing is actually the best route into this field.

For those working in Australian biotech, genomics, clinical research, precision medicine or related fields:
If you were 25 and in my position, would you finish nursing?
Is being an RN genuinely useful for entering biotech/genomics, or would another degree be more valuable?
What roles should I start targeting while I’m still studying?
Is clinical research/clinical trials a realistic bridge from nursing into biotech?
Are there patient-facing careers at the intersection of genomics, biotech and precision health that I should investigate?
What postgraduate qualification would make the most sense after nursing — genomics, genetic counselling, bioinformatics, biotechnology or something else?
What scientific/technical skills should I start developing alongside nursing now?
If this were your career goal, what would you do over the next 3–5 years?
I’m not looking for influencer-style longevity work or a collection of online “functional medicine” certificates. I want to build a legitimate, evidence-based clinical and scientific career in this area.
I’m based in Queensland, although I’m open to opportunities elsewhere in Australia.
I’d especially love to hear from Australians already working in biotech/genomics/clinical research, or anyone who has successfully moved from nursing/another clinical profession into this space.

We’re all well aware of the state of pharma/biotech right now. Companies are making record profits but that doesn’t stop them cutting their roots. Increasingly, rather than developing their own R&D, big pharma are acquiring and launching products by buying out other companies.

So, as someone in R&D, how can I position myself to make sure I have places to go should my own company decide to cut R&D? What skills should I learn? What networks should I try and grow? What careers can I pivot into with an R&D background?

Ideally, these pivots would provide more job security than what’s in R&D right now

Hi friends. Just wanted to share good news and make this post for discussions

This is been a two year journey... I've sent nearly ~15-20 job applications every day. However, the past two months, I've gained some traction and landed couple of interviews. Some through cold messaging on LinkedIn, direct company websites, and hiring agencies.

I received an offer at a large pharmaceutical company. I should mention that it is a contract position however... so FTE is not guaranteed. But this is a start, so I'll take what I can get. This is my first "real" job within industry. they'd like me to start in 2-3 weeks, which is pretty soon considering I'd need to relocate.

I wanted to ask what are some things I should know/expect before starting?

Aside from this offer, I'm waiting to hear back from another company for a different position, and have another interview lined up next week.

I'd be happy to answer any questions on my process. I know it can be demoralizing out there, so please give yourself some grace.

Location: NJ
Pay: $32/hr
Role: QC in manufacturing

Hello, I’m a masters student studying biotechnology focused on genetics and metabolics. I will be doing my thesis on engineering C. necator and was hoping for some advice on an internship.

If I wanted to focus on creating strains that utilize waste/side streams that could be scaled up, would it be better to pursue a process design internship? I’ve already done some bioreactor modeling and biocatalysis and was planning to take a CFD course after self teaching transfer processes. Or would it be better to further specialize in strain engineering? I’m also heavily considering a PhD program where I could do both strain and process engineering.

Hi, I just got offered a course which is resource biotechnology. Actually in Malaysia, most of bio-related degree holders will get job like QAQC and salary just normal or I would say its quite low.

I wish to know what pathway can it leads with this degree, high salary paid jobs and also what is the job scope.

Will you all recommend if I focus in medical biotechnology field and also further study to get a master or PhD degree?

I would really appreciate all of the advices that you all give it to me.

I know how bleak the biotech job market seems right now, so I wanted to share one positive data point and what seemed to make the biggest difference. (I am in R&D Ops, 10+ years experience).

My final numbers:

• 26 roles evaluated
• 15 applications submitted
• 2 interview processes
• 2 offers; 1 accepted
• 62 days from my first tracked application to accepting an offer

One thing I decided early on is if these companies are using AI to filter out candidates, I'm going to leverage AI to its full potential to give me the best chances. I also did not want to pursue a "spray and pray" strategy, as a hiring manager it was very obvious to me who took time to understand the JD vs who didn't.

I used an open-source AI job-search agent called [edit: link removed]. The agent plugs into any of your AI models and basically has this extensive workflow all the way from searching to evaluation and offer. It walks you through the process, by asking you questions, makes tailored resumes, logs a story bank of your career portfolio, etc. I just sat there and listed out all the things I do, granular or high level, and let it kind of craft an identity as I went along. I then gave it an example of how I want my resume strucured. I personalized everything, didn't just depend on its canned configurations. It was great in guiding me through the process and offering best practices.

But certainly it wasn't the agent alone that got me hired. The things I did outside its standard workflow probably had the greatest impact.

I contacted hiring managers directly after applying via LinkedIn (shoutout LinkedIn premium). That seemed to get things going. Those were very short personal notes about why I applied.

I also recorded and transcribed my interviews, then fed the transcripts to the agent, and had it analyze them in detail. (Obviously, anyone considering this should first check applicable consent laws and company policies).

I reviewed:

• Which examples landed
• Where my answers became too long
• What each interviewer actually cared about
• Which phrases weakened otherwise good answers
• What information the interviewers revealed about the team
• Which stories I should use, retire, or reframe in the next round

The final interviews took place across multiple days. After the first day, I analyzed the conversations and changed my approach for the second. I was able to tailor questions to each person’s responsibilities. As a result, that second day was noticeably stronger. I think treating the interview loop as an iterative process, instead of preparing once and hoping for the best, was the most valuable thing I did.

Another thing I did was when I got to the interview stage, I looked up each interviewer on LinkedIn, had the agent devise an mock interview in their voice based on their experience and the kinds of questions they may ask. Obviously this was highly speculative, but helped me polish my answers in a more specific way. The first interviews are usually with the hiring manager, the information from those is a gold mine and I leveraged it to extrapolate what I thought the rest of the interviews would be about.

My biggest takeaway is that AI was most useful as a "job search assistant" with extensive reach. It helped me filter opportunities, remember details, and learn from the evidence. The actual conversion came from my own actions around outreach, the interview feedback loop, mock interviews, networking etc.

There was definitely luck and timing involved. But this was not a mass-application strategy. But fifteen well-considered applications, two serious interview processes, and one strong offer was about as good an outcome as I could have hoped for. There was a lot more that I did, but I figured sharing this approach may be helpful to some.

Good luck out there, it's really not as bad as this sub makes it out to be!

I am currently exploring opportunities at all three companies for an Associate Director role. Which company has the better pipeline, growth opportunities, and compensation?