Industry scientists are often misunderstood. Here’s why I chose this path
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"I don’t think industry would be a good fit for me,” the student said, “I’m not money-motivated.” As an industry scientist myself, I struggled to hide my surprise. I was participating in a conference event to help graduate students and postdocs explore career options by connecting with professionals across industry, academia, government, and nonprofits. I love my work, and I was excited to share it with the attendees. Overall, they were enthusiastic to learn about their options, and some were seriously considering industry. I was glad to help them figure out whether it was right for them and, if so, how they could get there. So that student’s dismissive comment caught me off-guard—though I suspect others felt the same way. After pausing to regain my composure, I shared my own journey.
When I was in graduate school, a relative I considered a surrogate grandmother and confidant, whom I spent holidays with and who even did a reading at my wedding, was diagnosed with late-stage ovarian cancer. She was hospitalized about an hour and a half away from her home and family—but near where I was living for graduate school. I visited her regularly and attended doctor’s appointments with her. I put together a comfort purse for her chemotherapy treatment, complete with ginger chews, a blanket I had crocheted, and other items to help with side effects and pass the time. I was there to see the bruises on her arms from constant needles, to helplessly watch her become less and less herself as the chemotherapy ravaged her body and eventually stopped working. When she was transferred to an assisted living facility, I stopped by on my drive home to see her and read to her.
During one visit, she said it was too bad my Ph.D. research wasn’t about cancer. Instead, my doctorate was in toxicology: analyzing dust for allergens, bacteria, and fungi. Her comment struck me, but changing course didn’t seem a viable option. My expertise felt too far from cancer. Plus, I had chosen to study toxicology because it is broadly important, marketable, and intellectually stimulating. Those reasons still seemed compelling, and the thought of abandoning my carefully laid plans because of an emotional personal experience felt unprofessional.
Eventually, she was transferred to hospice closer to her hometown, where she passed peacefully. And I went on to do my postdoc in a pharmacology and toxicology laboratory, assessing the impact of ozone exposure and dietary omega-3 fatty acids on pulmonary inflammation in mice.
It was during my postdoc that I first began to explore nonacademic career options, thanks in large part to my amazing, supportive adviser, who encouraged me to attend career development symposiums and helped me make connections and network. That’s when pursuing drug development came on my radar. But I still hesitated to make the transition—until a graduate student asked me to proofread her award application. The essay explained that she wanted to get into drug development because of a loved one’s illness. Her essay moved me and showed me a new way my career could have meaning.
In the 3.5 years I have been working in industry, I have found that meaning. The transition from academia has been an adjustment and a learning journey, but industry is a great fit for me. I now work for a company developing cancer treatments, and I am proud of the contributions I am making to help patients. I think of the dear relative I lost often and for me, that is motivating.
Contrary to what the student at the conference assumed, working in industry isn’t all about the money for me. Of course making a living is important, and there’s nothing wrong with financial considerations playing a role in career decisions. But the majority of industry scientists I know aren’t doing it only for the money; they enjoy their jobs and value the contributions they make. And many of them, like me, have come to this work with a deeply personal motivation. And there’s nothing wrong with that either.