6 Things to do when looking for your next Pharma job

1. Define the perfect job - Unless you know what job you are after, you’re unlikely to get it. So define your “perfect” job. Include Job title, location, company(s), benefits etc. If you can’t do this, you need to think about your future! 

2. Do some searching - search for jobs online on PharmiWeb.jobs and identify the closest jobs you can find to your perfect one. Find at least half a dozen.

3. Make a list - of the key requirements for those jobs. What skills, experience etc are being asked for in the job adverts. Put them into a spreadsheet to create a list of target skills & experience that you will need to successfully get your “perfect job”.

4. Now look at your CV - and be honest with yourself. Would you give yourself the job if you compared your target skills & experience list against the content of your CV? Do the words on your list even appear on your CV? If not, then either you’re not qualified (and you need to update your skills), or you’re not putting enough emphasis on the right things in your CV. 

5. Update your expectations, yourself, or your CV - if your expectations are realistic (ie you’ve got the skills) then all you need to do is update your CV with the appropriate missing items; However, if your skill set is not up to the mark, you should now have a clear idea what you should be focusing on. Armed with that information :..

a. Identify any additional training you need to match your target list. For example, If you need more soft skills or technical skills, you can find a lot of courses online at minimal cost, and many can be done in a few hours. If you need an MBA for your perfect job, and you don’t have one, then you need to plan longer term. This process might help you identify one or 2 simple things, or it could be a long list, either way - Create a “training plan”. 


b. If you need more experience, then find a way of getting it - maybe you could volunteer for a project at work, or if you’re interested in sales, shadow someone you know. You could volunteer for a clinical trial if that’s an area you are interested in. Or even work on a project of your own “for the experience” - whatever you decide to do, create an an “experience plan”

c. Unless you already have all the skills and experience, the idea of your new plans is to fill the gaps. Once you’ve done this; then now is the time to update your CV, (and make sure you’ve got all the new skills and experience on your new CV). 

6. Read all about it! - Read all you can about the requirements for that perfect job, the skills & experience you need, and if you defined them in step 1, the target company(s). Become an expert in the field - if nothing else, it will help at the interview stage!


So invest in yourself - you are your biggest asset, and if you do this review periodically, you’ll be more realistic about the jobs you’re applying for, and more prepared when the perfect job comes along.

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