Postdocs fresh from academia looking to biotechnology this spring are in for a big letdown. While postdocs once were the bread and butter of a fledgling industry, the years of their being snapped up out of school have given way to their becoming an afterthought as the field shifts its focus from innovation to commercialization of existing products under development. The recruitment focus of these companies now centers on experienced bachelor's and master's degree holders and specialized Ph.D.'s with heavy industrial management or academic experience.

So say leaders of prominent biotech companies, their personnel directors, head hunters, and industry analysts of an employment phenomenon that is the result of the companies' emphasis on bringing the products such Ph.D.'s once discovered to market.

"The largest growth area for biotechnology companies in 1991 and in the next few years will be manufacturing and commercialization," says David Jensen, of Search Masters International, an...

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