Recently I was talking to one of our candidates - who is currently working as an MSL - about the time we first spoke on the phone. The first time we spoke, was about her interest in our “from SCIENCE to PHARMA” MSL training course, as she desperately wanted to become an MSL (and leave academia).

In our...

The changing landscape of pharma: a new route for PhDs?

The pharmaceutical industry is changing – challenging for some, but an open road to opportunity for others. And the latest opportunity in the world of pharma comes from a rapidly growing demand for Medical Science Liaisons (MSLs), says the founder of...

Last week I spoke to an aspiring MSL, who had recently stared working as a technical sales representative, selling research compounds to researchers and pharma companies.

He asked me if being a technical sales rep is a good job to then move into an MSL role later on?

He had finished his PhD recently. First thing I...

We hear this every day speaking for the first time to aspiring MSLs on the phone who have been trying to break into the MSL role for months!

"I have submitted 40 CVs/resumes and never heard back. It is true, they only want experienced MSLs!"

Sorry, but I have to be blunt and direct with you. Your CV is just not...

When “from SCIENCE to PHARMA” asked me if I’d write a piece on how my first 2 years as MSL have been, I immediately thought about what a life-changing decision it has been to transition from Academia to Pharma as an MSL. And how much more rewarding and fulfilling the MSL role is than I’d...

Those of you who have read my blog posts might have wondered where Dr.J went. Wasn’t he on a mission to transition..? Did he lock himself in in the cold room, for a colleague to find him frozen to the floorboards on Monday morning? Go on and do yet another postdoc? Succumb to the challenge..?

No. None of that....

My brief ‘radio silence’ on the blog has had a cause. After completing multiple interview rounds successfully, I finally had an MSL contract in hand! Yes, indeed a contract! However, I didn’t sign it.

Let me describe how my final interview round unfolded, how great of an experience it was and how...

Interview Round 2+

To pick up the thread from my last post: After my initial contact with a recruiter some time ago, I was invited to a next interview round for an MSL role in oncology that  I find tremendously exciting. I was extremely happy, nonetheless, a ‘healthy nervousness’ now descended upon...

How much can happen in one week, regarding mood swings and career possibilities..? Quite a few things to be honest, but I’ll get to the career options later.

First I want to share something typical with you that I experienced this week, actually a discussion I got into with a colleague. It wasn’t the...

Does everyone who wants to exit academia and go into pharma, come to this point?

For roughly a year I have been working on finding a personal path to transition out of academia, two years if you count the “early days” of bold exploration and idea-sculpting.

So, for about a year I’ve been working...