Digital Insights: The Pharma Job Search: Exhaust All Resources

Feb. 2, 2010
With the unemployment rate in pharmaceuticals and life sciences estimated at an alarming 16%, it’s best to be proactive.

Here is a round-up of how you can best utilize the web for your potential job search.

Pharmaceutical Job-Specific Sites:

Biospace (www.biospace.com): This highly functional career search site offers niche job boards for biotech/pharma, medical device/diagnostics and clinical research as well as company profiles, career fairs and news. Interesting Biospace functions include a daily newsletter and “Hotbed Communities” which highlight specific regions and provide new company information.

HireBio (www.hirebio.com) and HireRx (www.hirerx.com): These e-recruiting and job search partner sites focus on helping you target your job search by region or skill area, and on helping companies do the same. There are also career tools and options to research companies you’re interested in.  

Medzilla (www.medzilla.com): This pharmaceutical job database with old school graphics does not boast glitz and glamour, just straight career searches in pharmaceuticals, healthcare, and science. Surprisingly, Medzilla does have a community forum called “The Biotech Insider” where people in the industry can air their concerns, provide tips, share struggles, and offer feedback. Worth a quick look.

Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Careers (jobs.pharmamanufacturing.com): Our job board site (shameless plug!) provides advanced search fields, personalized jobs alerts, career tips and select career studies and resources to help you find the perfect position.

PharmaJobs.com, aka LifeScienceJobs.com: This UK-based pharmaceutical job site is your go-to site for international life science careers. After a six-month free trial with an international Job Agent you will be required to pay a small fee.

PharmaOpportunities (www.pharmaopportunities.com): Started by healthcare and human resources professionals, this site caters to those who are not only actively but passively looking to further their careers. Special features include resume email blasting, free magazines, and career resources.

PharmStorm (www.pharmastorm.com): This recently launched site takes a slightly different approach to job hunting. With a monthly fee of $9.99, PharmaStorm will serve as your personal recruiter, only contacting you when a job meets your exact profile skills, whether you are job searching or not. Stressing “recruitment from a new perspective,” this platform allows you to upload not only your resume but videos and/or files to accompany your profile and create a personalized career dashboard for your particular area of interest.

And whether you are in the market for a new job or not, you should always leverage the powers of social media to help build your professional persona. By having and maintaining a profile on LinkedIn and/or Plaxo, you can ensure that your experience and interests are available to professional contacts in your business area.

About the Author

Michele Vaccarello Wagner | Senior Digital Editor