Biotech, Pharmaceutical Hiring: A Bright Spot On Bleak Horizon

While the job market for scientists is generally dismal these days, you'd never know it from listening to Jonathan Meulbroek. A microbiologist and mucosal immunologist, Meulbroek is finishing a two-year postdoctoral position in infectious disease research at Eli Lilly and Co. in Indianapolis. Recently, he has had more invitations for job interviews than he has had time to accept. After receiving three job offers, he opted for a position with a major pharmaceutical firm. “I'm very pleased with how my job search has gone,“ he says. “I've come to the conclusion that contributing in an industrial setting is the best choice for me.” lt seems as if a growing number of life scientists are coming to that same conclusion. While staff positions in academia and federal research centers are fairly scarce, jobs for researchers remain relatively plentiful in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. Several statistical projections bear this out. The ...