In this episode, we discuss pharmaceutical industry career paths with Dr. Anastasiya Koshkina, a graduate of the RFUMS College of Pharmacy and Associate Director and Clinical Scientist at The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson.
Key Concepts
- When preparing for the fellowship application process, do your homework on the sector(s) you plan to apply for. It is crucial that you have a cohesive and logical story for why you are applying and what makes you a good fit for the position.
- Strong clinical knowledge is important in the pharmaceutical industry even though there are no traditional direct patient care interactions.
- Postgraduate pharmaceutical fellowship programs are looking for applicants with strong academics (high GPA), leadership experience in extracurricular, and research experiences.
- Pharmacy fellowship programs are specific to a sector of a pharmaceutical company (e.g. medical affairs, regulatory affairs, research and development, etc.).. Unlike with pharmacy residencies, fellowships may or may not have rotations; if rotations exist, they are usually many months in length.
- The team (the people you will be working with) are an essential component of a position. It is much better to work with a team that is supportive and committed to your professional development than to have a seemingly perfect job but be part of a team that is not supportive. The people are everything!