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Industry Transition Spotlight: Pooja Dhupkar, PhD

An interview with Pooja Dhupkar, PhD

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

My name is Pooja Dhupkar. I work as a Medical Associate/Writer for Scienomics Group (Healthcare Consultancy Group) in San Francisco.

What is your favorite part about working in industry?

The best part of working in the industry is the fast-paced nature of projects. You can actually be involved in seeing a project goal being accomplished from start to finish. I also like that working in the industry means “working in a team” and that gives you an opportunity to learn how people from different backgrounds think. This also helps to know the big picture of the field!

Can you describe what a typical day at your job looks like?

As a Medical writer, I have been working in the area Medical Communications. I am part of a medical team that is responsible for creating scientific and clinical content and design strategy for pharmaceutical clients. The purpose is education and promotion of their products. On a daily basis, I update myself by reading clinical trial and research literature for varied diseases, creating and editing slide decks primarily involving pharmacology/safety content. We also help clients during the drug pre-launch for regulatory submissions of these educational materials.

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

My current position as a Medical writer in a communications agency is very different than academia and has been a learning experience. I have previously worked in a start-up as well and feel that industry is very fast-paced, and we have to deliver on time. Deadlines are the most crucial part of the job and affect everyone’s work. I also feel that you need to be able to work in a team environment and communicate on a regular basis with your team to deliver better results. In academia, we worked independently most of the time and had long-term projects with open-ended goals.

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

Always be pro-active and positive. It only requires one “hit” to get a job!

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

I think the cheeky meet-ups have been useful for all of us, as we all are in different phases of our career, but yet the same! The Houston meet-up was a memorable one. I would like to continue to attend these, since it really gives you some positive energy!

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

For now, I want to get some experience in the industry and get my feet wet for a few years before thinking of the next steps.

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

I think the cheeky meet-up’s is a good idea as it allows us to meet experienced people in-person. I would like to continue to engage in the meet-ups, so that I can have a forum to discuss the challenges I face and also to perform better in the industry.

Now that you’ve spent some time working in industry, what is the biggest takeaway(s) you’d like to share with those who are still executing their job search?

It is important to start preparing from the beginning. For people transitioning to applied roles, the extra effort to build your resume through internships, volunteering, certificates go a long way and help build your brand!

To learn more about how you can transition into an industry career like Pooja, including instant access to our exclusive training videos, case studies, industry insider documents, transition plan, and private online network, get on the wait list 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 am happy to share I started a new job as a senior research scientist in medicinal chemistry at x-chem Montreal."

Nicolas Wlodarczyk

Nicolas Wlodarczyk

Nicolas Wlodarczyk Senior Research Scientist

at X-Chem

"I am THRILLED to share that I am starting a new position... my sincerest thanks and gratitude to all the inspirational people who've I met along the way in my journey as an aspiring MSL, who helped make this happen."

Leandra Mangieri

Leandra Mangieri

Medical Science Liaison

at Allergan Aesthetics

"I am happy to share I am starting a new position!"

Kamrul Hansen

Kamrul Hansen

Principal Scientist - Analytical Technology

at Servier Pharmaceuticals

"Going with Nyxoah! Thank you for all your help Isaiah!"

Pratik Chhatbar

Pratik Chhatbar

Senior Clinical Research Scientist

at Nxyoah

"I am grateful to Isaiah, Meera, Abha and all the CSA for their constant help and support. This was my transition from academia to the healthcare industry...I accepted this offer as I am in urgent need of a job as my current lab is closing soon. Thank you!"

Divya Amin

Divya Amin

Program Coordinator

at University of Missouri Healthcare

"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 thrilled to be starting my position as a Scientist at bioMeriuex! I will be joining the device validation team to bring #invitrodiagnostics to the market!"

Alec Vallota-Eastman

Alec Vallota-Eastman

Scientist

at bioMeriuex

"I aced the interview, I signed yesterday and begin next month!"

Sinduri Vuppala

Sinduri Vuppala

Field Application Specialist

at Bruker Daltonics

"Thank you for your advice, Isaiah! I’m super excited and grateful! I would never negotiate the salary and the other details of the offer if it weren’t for Cheeky Scientist. Thank you again"

Marta Silva

Marta Silva

Policy Analyst

at Health Canada

"I'm happy to share that I'm starting a new position as Founder at Relearning Earning!""

James Wadsworth

James Wadsworth

Founder

at Relearning Earning

"Good news...I've secured a job! Thank you for your support during the job search process and for giving me the courage to transition from academia to industry."

Marlyn Brookins

Marlyn Brookins

Regulatory Submissions Coordinator

"I'm excited to announce that I have accepted a position as an Innovations Analyst at Cleveland Clinic. Looking forward to using my background to help commercialize healthcare innovations!"

Joe Thomas

Joe Thomas

Innovations Analyst

at Cleveland Clinic

"I'm happy to share that I'm starting a new position!"

Norhaziland Mohamed Zaid

Norhaziland Mohamed Zaid

Senior Development Scientist

at Haleon

"Aside from all the technical pieces, the comradery, I really had an excellent time at the symposium that I was in Florida, that was super helpful...having a community that takes a part in your wins and also helps you pick yourself up and dusts yourself off when you don't get those wins and that you're not alone."

Christine Lo Bue-Estes

Christine Lo Bue-Estes

Medical Communications

at NBA

"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

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