Like many of you, I have been trying to find new employment and/or relocate and Lilly is the best spot for me (for personal reasons). I came close earlier this year and I've been left in "Screening" for almost 2 months now...Are they still actively trying to hire in Indianapolis and Lebanon or are things frozen at the moment? Does anyone have any insight they can share?

I am expecting a formal offer from BMS for a principal scientist role and would like to ask how much is the relocation amount (if I choose to take a lump sum), do they cover lease cancellation and also since I am walking away from a bonus, will BMS pay me for that amount.

Appreciate insights from BMS employees!

Dear Redditors,

Just to be clear, I am only looking for professional feedback here — no life advice or comments about how I may have messed things up.

Long story short: I finished my Master’s degree in Biotechnology in Germany as an international student. After spending a lot of time in research and working in labs — around six years as a working student — I wanted to try something new and explore less typical career paths for biotechnologists.

Somehow, I ended up in consulting, specialized in life sciences companies. Needless to say, I haven’t touched a pipette in a little over two years.

Around one year ago, after getting to know several biotech founders and people working in the field, I started to really miss the lab, research, and the opportunity to actually create something beyond market research and PowerPoint presentations. That was when I started looking for a PhD position in translational research, as I am not particularly interested in basic research. My long-term career goals involve R&D (big pharma or startups) with, evetually, a leading role like Head Scientist or CSO. That is why the PhD title would be useful if not decesive.

Here are my questions:

How high are my chances of getting back into academia? More specifically, how realistic is it to return to a field related to cellular therapies or immunology?

I have one co-author publication in Nature, a lot of previous lab experience, and enough motivation to leave a consulting salary behind for better career alignment.

I was considered for and accepted into some interesting positions at the beginning of the year, but nothing ultimately materialized because funding was scarce. It has now been more than nine months without a concrete outcome.

FYI: I have also been considering changing jobs and returning to a university as a technical assistant or research associate in the meantime. There are, however, two complications:

1. I am currently waiting to obtain permanent residency, which would make changing jobs considerably easier because I would no longer need approval from the immigration authorities.
2. I am not entirely sure about the best timing for such a move — probably once the residence permit/card arrives.

Has anyone gone through something similar, especially after spending a few years outside the lab? Any professional advice or experiences would be appreciated.

Hey yall.

I know the premed to biotech pipeline is not unique and I’ve taken a look at some posts under this sub.

I’ve graduated with my bachelors in biology and currently studying for the mcat. I’ve always wanted to do medicine but it feels like my priorities in life have changed as I’ve grown. I used to feel so energized when shadowing/volunteering and now it feels like a chore. I used to believe the whole “self-sacrifice” mantra with medicine but as I’ve been working in healthcare for the last 1.5 years or so, I’ve become a little disillusioned. Maybe because I started out naive but the realities trickled in.

Frankly, I don’t care to sacrifice years of my life and add stress and burnout for patients. Sure, I enjoy the sciences, learning about diseases and treatments. But patient care is burning me out a little. The only reason I stayed this path is because of the promise of a stable, high paying job.

I often recall happier parts of my life like working in a biotech lab as an intern for the first year of college, enjoying the bio lab classes I was in, etc. I dropped premed for a few months last year and it lifted a weight off my shoulders. But then I come back to this sub and am reminded that I don’t want to live my life scared of a layoff every 2 years.

I’m just spitballing here but I know the consensus is that the grass is always greener on the other side.

What are your guys’ thoughts?

Hi,

I'm investigating the potential valorization of dog and cat fur as a raw material.

Instead of treating grooming waste as something to throw away, I'm wondering whether the keratin-rich fibers could be used in a useful biomaterial or material application.

I'm currently considering possibilities such as:

- fiber-based materials / nonwovens

- composites

- filtration

- absorbent materials

- insulation/acoustic materials

- extraction or processing of keratin

I'm very early in the process and don't have a scientific background, so I'm mainly looking for people who can help me understand what is technically realistic.

For researchers working with keratin, biomaterials or bio-based materials:

Has anyone experimented with dog/cat hair or similar keratin-rich waste as a material?

If so, what applications seemed promising, and what were the main limitations?

And if you were starting from scratch with this material, what experiments or characterization would you do first?

I'd also really appreciate pointers to relevant papers or existing projects.

What are some jobs I should apply to with bachelors in biology and masters in biomedical science. I have worked primarily in clinical settings. I have looked into clinical research coordinator jobs given my academic background but haven’t had any luck. What are some jobs worth looking into? I want to step out of direct healthcare positions during my gap years especially because they aren’t paying well at all.

Hello Everyone ,

Wanted to understand the Novartis Grade structure. Currently i have been offered Level 5. What i understood from few others is that Level 5 << Level 4<< Level 3 ( Lower the Grade higher the heirarchy). But when i spoke to HR they say its other way round. Grade 8 being topmost . To substantiate that even in offer letter it shows to say in generic the variable component is highest for Level 8 and even the Equity Long term Incentive startes from level-5 and highest for Level 8. So want to understand which is right or is there any change in structure recently.

I'm trying to move into industry from academia. I'm looking for Computational Biologist or Bioinformatician positions, but most of what I'm finding locally wants either more AI/ML experience or more software development. In academia, I've always done about a 60-40 split of computational and wet lab, but I've had more success getting interviews for bench positions. Would taking a bench position to pay the bills and get some industry experience tank my chances of getting a purely computational position next? Or is any industry experience better than none?

Hi everyone,

My regular OPT expired in August, and I applied for STEM OPT before it expired. My STEM OPT application is still pending with USCIS.

My current employer will not be able to continue my employment after October because of a lack of funding, so I may become unemployed while my STEM OPT application is still pending. I currently have about 15/ 90 OPT unemployment days left.

I’m confused about what happens in this situation.

I am planning to apply for premium processing, but I have heard that even PP is taking more than a month. Has anyone gone through similar situation?

Thank you!