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Industry Transition Spotlight: Karineh Petrossian, PhD

Industry Transition: An interview with Karineh Petrossian, PhD, Director of Development in Philanthropy Communications

What is your name, your full job title, and the name of the company you work for?   

Karineh Petrossian, Director of Development in Philanthropy Communications, City of Hope Medical Center.

What is your favorite part about working in industry? 

It’s a great feeling to contribute to teams who seek scientific knowledge from an expert. Also, having the extra time to read books, enjoy the weekends, and plan vacations feels great.

What does a typical day at work look like for you?   

I work in a team that interacts with all the teams in the office of philanthropy. I sit in team meetings, gather scientific breakthroughs from physicians/researchers, and write donor impact reports.

How is your current industry position different than your academic postdoc or experience as a graduate student?   

In an academic laboratory, a scientific hypothesis that doesn’t work might destroy a week’s, month’s, or a year’s work. However, in my current position, I achieve goals in a timely manner and move projects forward with hard work, and yet with ease.

If you could go back in time (to before you received your job offer) and give yourself one piece of industry transition advice, what would it be?   

Be patient – all will fall into place. The job search is filled with many different stressors, but all can be conquered with persistence and hope.

During your job search, what was the most important thing you did that made your industry transition a success?   

I networked with my LinkedIn contacts and other professional associations, and I performed informational interviews.

What is the most memorable moment for you (so far) as a Cheeky Scientist Associate?

CSA’s meetups and the Facebook group have been a great source of encouragement.

What do you see as the next step in your career?   

I see myself growing into a better scientific writer in a more senior role.

How can the Association and the Association’s members help you continue to achieve your career goals?   

Sharing our experiences––both good and bad––in the Facebook group helps us grow personally and professionally.

Now that you’ve spent some time working in industry, what is the biggest piece of advice you’d like to share with those Associates who are still looking to make their own industry transition?

Having a strong resume, adding value, and building rapport with your connections are keys to a successful job search.  

Ready to make your own industry transition? The Cheeky Scientist Association is the world’s premier PhD-only industry job search training platform and PhD-only industry job referral network. When you become an Associate, you get access to our proven job search blueprint, which includes 200+ training videos, interviews with industry PhDs working in the most popular 100+ careers for PhDs, lifetime access to a private job referral network of 8,000+ PhDs, and much more.

You get instant feedback from our trainers 24/7 on any job search-related question so you can be 100% confident in your decisions about your job search and your overall career. To learn more about how to make your own industry transition, including instant access to our exclusive training videos, case studies, industry insider documents, transition plan, and private online network, get on the waitlist for the Cheeky Scientist Association.

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ABOUT ISAIAH HANKEL, PHD

CEO, CHEEKY SCIENTIST & CAREER SUCCESS MENTOR

Dr. Isaiah Hankel is the Founder and CEO of Cheeky Scientist. His articles, podcasts and trainings are consumed annually by millions of PhDs and other professionals in hundreds of different countries. He has helped professionals transition into top companies like Pfizer, Tesla, Amazon, Pearson, Google, Apple, Intel, Dow Chemical, BASF, Merck, Genentech, Home Depot, Nestle, Hilton, SpaceX, Syngenta, the CDC, UN and Ford Foundation.

Dr. Hankel has published 3X bestselling books and his latest book, The Power of a PhD, debuted on the Barnes & Noble bestseller list. His methods for getting PhDs hired have been featured in the Harvard Business Review, Nature, Forbes, The Guardian, Fast Company, Entrepreneur Magazine and Success Magazine.

Isaiah Hankel, PhD

Here's What Others Are Saying

"I’m happy to share that I started a new position as Medical Science Liaison at Ashfield this January, part of UDG Healthcare (now Inizio) supporting Avita Medical. Thank you to all my mentors, colleagues, and friends who have been incremental in making this dream possible for me.....It is an exciting space/time and I can’t wait for the future."

Mimi Borrelli

Mimi Borrelli

Medical Science Liaison

at Inizio

"After being unexpectedly laid off in October, the journey to this moment was not straightforward. It was a period filled with uncertainty, but also growth, resilience, and a renewed sense of purpose. I dedicated myself to learning and exploring new opportunities, which has led me to this incredible new role I just got hired into."

Chris Ewing, Ph.D.

Chris Ewing, Ph.D.

"I am happy to share I am starting a new position as Principal Fatigue Specialist at Qantas!"

Gemma Paech

Gemma Paech

Principal Fatigue specialist

at Qantas

"I just wanted to say that I officially accepted a job! I want to thank everyone at Cheeky Scientist for all the help and support. Overall, my job search went pretty smoothly and I have CS to thank for that. I am now convinced that making connections and networking is how you find jobs, and once I began implementing what CS teaches, I started to see more results. I hope this helps others who are in the job search process!"

Jack Schultz

Jack Schultz

Research Computer Scientist

at Southwest Research Institute

"A new chapter begins! I'm thrilled to launch Wenwirth Scientific, where sincere meets creativity with a mission to make medical communication more engaging, impactful, and effective. I am ready to bring game-changing ideas to help you unleash the power of words and medicine. Many thanks to those who have supported me in this journey, I can't wait to work with you and start serving the healthcare community and patients."

Huey Wen Lee

Huey Wen Lee

Creative Medical Communications

at Wenworth Scientific

"I ended up getting three offers and took one with an incredible company in a management position. I had to turn down 2 interviews because too many replies coming in at once. So thrilled! Doing great and thanks again for your help and awesome program!"

Lori Keeling, Ph.D.

Lori Keeling, Ph.D.

at Emerson

"I'm happy to share that I’m starting a new position as an associate computational scientist at md anderson cancer center!"

James Jennings

James Jennings

Associate Computation Scientist

at MD Anderson Cancer Center

"I am delighted to announce that I have accepted the role of Research Scientist with a base salary of 90k. The cheeky scientist resources have helped me immensely and I am really grateful."

Amninder Singh Sekhon

Amninder Singh Sekhon

Research Scientist

"I am happy to share that I'm starting a new position as a European Portfolio Manager at Scientific Instruments!"

 Shikha Acharya

Shikha Acharya

European Portfolio Manager

at Scientific Instruments

"I'm happy to share that I'm starting a new position as Device and Date Scientist at Intel Corporation!"

Darpan Verma

Darpan Verma

Device & Data Scientist

at Intel Corporation

"One thing I feel I did great was joining the association as a Diamond member. Modules and Classes helped me to prepare ahead of the search- to do and to go right. The other useful thing was the accountability forum....your classes and modules really helped me to believe in myself and have confidence in myself. I value myself as a PhD. I gave a shot for a senior scientist position, and got one!"

Nabina Paudyal

Nabina Paudyal

Senior Computational Scientist

at Colossal Biosciences

"I got a job offer from a pharma company, which I am going to accept..thank you for your amazing support!"

Gonzalo Rosso

Gonzalo Rosso

Formulation Scientist

at Coriolis Scientist

"I just accepted an offer to be a Clinical Researcher Coordinator for a pain clinic near me. I'll be helping them run their clinical trial that uses a device to stimulate nerves to relieve patients pain. I start next Wednesday. So excited! I wanted to say thanks to Isaiah and all the members of the Cheeky team for your help! I really appreciate it!"

Natasha Fowler

Natasha Fowler

Clinical Research Coordinator

at Columbia Pain Management, P.C

"I just want to inform everyone that I've accepted a job offer for a leadership role. I want to say a special thank you to the dedicated staff at Cheeky Scientist for all their help and support throughout the job search stage."

Odeniel Sertil, Ph.D.

Odeniel Sertil, Ph.D.

"Thanks to Cheeky Scientist, I now have an offer letter in my hand and a new career in the industry, which makes me incredibly happy and excited for the future. The training Cheeky Scientist provided was successful since it helped me to carefully consider my skills and improve how I approached my job search. I gained more confidence talking to recruiters and engaging in on-site interviews thanks to the many training modules and live sessions Cheeky Scientist offered. I had a lot of back-and-forth interactions with prospective employers as offers came in, and Cheeky Scientist helped me be a good negotiator. Through Cheeky Scientist, I could ultimately search for, negotiate, and select my best career route."

Vishnu Modur

Vishnu Modur

Clinical Trial Associate/Manager

at Medspace

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