Event Details: PhD to Industry Job Search Series

The biotechnology industry continues to drive innovation across healthcare, therapeutics, diagnostics, agriculture, and emerging technologies, creating diverse career opportunities for scientists and researchers. Yet for many graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and early-career researchers, building connections within the biotech ecosystem can be challenging, particularly if there are few opportunities presented by their school or research institution.

This interactive networking event is designed to help participants expand their professional networks and engage directly with professionals working across the biotechnology industry. Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in facilitated discussions with biotech experts and connect with peers who share similar professional interests. Through structured networking activities and small-group conversations, participants can ask questions, exchange experiences, and build relationships that support career exploration and professional growth.

Whether actively pursuing a biotech career or simply seeking to better understand the industry landscape, attendees will leave with new connections, practical insights, and strategies for continuing to grow their professional network within the biotechnology sector.

This interactive workshop will be conducted via Zoom meeting. Participants will be encouraged to engage in practical discussions and activities.

Join live, watch later. The best experience happens live: join the conversation, ask questions, and engage with the instructor in real time. Register now to secure your spot and receive access to the recording, giving you the flexibility to tune in live, catch up later, or revisit the content anytime.

This program is designed for:

Graduate students interested in exploring career opportunities and professional pathways within the biotechnology industry
Postdoctoral researchers seeking to expand their professional networks and gain insights into careers beyond academia
Researchers who want to connect directly with biotechnology professionals and learn from their career experiences
STEM trainees seeking to build networking skills and establish relationships that can support future career opportunities

While the PhD to Industry Job Search Series is designed to support comprehensive skill development, each session can also be attended as a standalone event. For those seeking to achieve the full learning objectives, we encourage registering for the complete series. Bundled member pricing offers the best value, and nonmembers may wish to explore the cost savings and additional benefits of membership before registering. If you register for the full series after one or more sessions have already taken place, you will receive access to the recordings for any events you may have missed.

*Our Student community includes Postdocs and Fellows

Category	Series Rate	Individual Event Rate
Member: Student*	$25	$10
Nonmember: Student*	$65	$35
Member	$50	$20
Nonmember	$130	$50

For many STEM researchers, networking can feel uncomfortable, inauthentic, or even unnecessary. Yet professional relationships play a critical role in how career opportunities emerge, particularly in industry settings where introductions, visibility, and trust often influence hiring and advancement. Effective networking does not focus on transactional interactions, self-promotion, or collecting contacts, but rather on building and cultivating genuine relationships based on shared values and interests.

This interactive workshop reframes networking as a process of building meaningful professional relationships. Participants will explore how opportunities actually develop, why traditional networking strategies frequently fail scientists, and how genuine connections can create long-term career value. Through practical examples and guided activities, attendees will learn a repeatable six-step framework for initiating conversations, cultivating relationships, and increasing professional visibility in ways that feel authentic and sustainable. Whether introverted or extroverted, participants will leave with actionable strategies for creating the kinds of connections that can lead to future collaborations, mentorship, and career opportunities.

By the end of this program, participants will be better able to:

Describe how professional relationships contribute to career opportunities in industry and other professional settings
Explain why traditional networking approaches may be less effective for many STEM researchers
Apply a six-step framework to initiate and develop authentic professional relationships
Differentiate between transactional networking behaviors with relationship-centered networking strategies
Create an individualized plan for building and maintaining a professional network that supports long-term career goals

This program is designed for:

Graduate students exploring career paths beyond academia and seeking effective ways to build professional relationships
Postdoctoral researchers preparing for industry careers and looking to expand their professional networks with confidence and purpose
Early-career scientists, engineers, and technical professionals interested in increasing their visibility and access to career opportunities
Researchers who find traditional networking uncomfortable, inauthentic, or difficult and want a more natural approach to relationship-building
Introverts and others who want practical strategies for initiating meaningful professional conversations without relying on self-promotion or small talk
STEM professionals seeking to develop long-term professional connections that support career growth, mentorship, collaboration, and opportunity discovery

David Giltner, PhD
Dr. David Giltner bridges the academia-industry divide from both sides. Having spent 25+ years developing cutting-edge technologies into commercial products, he understands exactly what companies need from scientific expertise.

As a hiring manager, he's interviewed hundreds of PhDs for industry positions, seeing firsthand what separates successful candidates from the rest. Through his company TurningScience, he's taught thousands of researchers to translate their scientific value into industry and business terms.

David holds seven patents and is a published author of three books for scientists who want to increase their impact by engaging with industry.

Category	Series Rate	Individual Event Rate
Member: Student*	$25	$10
Nonmember: Student*	$65	$35
Member	$50	$20
Nonmember	$130	$50

Transitioning from graduate school or postdoctoral training into industry can be challenging, particularly for researchers who have spent years developing deep technical expertise but may have received little guidance (or even been discouraged from) navigating non-academic career paths. Many PhDs approach the job search by submitting large numbers of online applications, only to find that this strategy rarely leads to interviews or offers. At the same time, industry employers often struggle to recognize how a candidate’s research experience translates to their organizational needs.

This workshop provides a practical framework for pursuing and securing industry roles with greater focus and effectiveness. Drawing on decades of industry experience, the instructor will lead participants in exploring how to identify career paths that align with their strengths, communicate their value to hiring managers, and develop a targeted job search strategy that extends beyond online applications. Through actionable tools and real-world examples, attendees will learn how industry hiring decisions are made and how to position themselves as compelling candidates. Participants will leave with a structured approach for designing and executing a successful transition from academia to industry.

By the end of this program, participants will be better able to:

Identify how research experiences and technical expertise translate to industry hiring needs
Apply a five-step career design framework to develop a targeted industry job search plan
Create a value proposition that communicates their qualifications and potential contributions to industry employer
Evaluate multiple job search strategies and prioritize approaches most likely to generate interviews, professional connections, and employment opportunities

This program is designed for:

Graduate students exploring careers in industry and seeking a strategic approach to securing their first non-academic role
Postdoctoral researchers preparing to transition from academia to industry and looking to position their research experience for employers
Early-career researchers who want to communicate the value of their technical expertise to industry hiring managers
PhD candidates, postdoctoral scholars, and research professionals interested in building a targeted, proactive plan for launching a successful industry career

Category	Series Rate	Individual Event Rate
Member: Student*	$25	$10
Nonmember: Student*	$65	$35
Member	$50	$20
Nonmember	$130	$50

September 30, 2026 · March 11, 2027 · April 13, 2027

Virtual Webinar Series | Individual Event Registration Available