Two years before he finished his doctorate in molecular biology at the University of Pittsburgh, Venky Raghavan already knew that he didn’t want to pursue an academic career at the bench. “I wanted to do something different,” Raghavan recalls. A career in consulting sounded intriguing but how does a grad student become a consultant? Raghavan took outside finance and economics courses. With student friends, he competed in mock consulting contests. Then last July, Raghavan flew out to Claremont, CA, one of 40 grad students and postdocs accepted for the ASCB-Keck Graduate Institute (KGI) intensive course in management for the biotech industry.
For Raghavan, the ASCB-KGI course clarified his focus, created a network, and gave him needed grounding. “The biotech course was really, really great,” he says. “We used the Harvard [Business School] case review approach. I really didn’t know much about how the pharma industry is managed. I didn’t know anything about how patents are filed. The case-based approach really taught me a lot. The lectures were also phenomenal.”
Raghavan, who now works for the IMS Consulting Group on Lexington Avenue in New York, says that he flew back to Pittsburgh last summer with clear goals. “I finished my degree in September and I got my job in October,” he says. “So I guess I can say that the course really helped a lot.”
“Managing Science in the Biotech Industry” is the title of this year’s six-day ASCB-KGI course to be offered July 11-16 on the KGI campus. Course registration will cost $300, which includes all curriculum materials, lunch Monday through Friday, and the Saturday closing reception. A $500 accommodation package provides dorm housing, breakfast and dinner, plus transport to and from KGI all week. Qualified international applicants are welcome but all students must get themselves to the Southern California college town of Claremont.
The deadline for applications—Friday, April 15—is fast approaching. Applicants must be ASCB members, but joining is easy. Full details on the course, costs, and details are here.
About the Author:
John Fleischman was the ASCB Senior Science Writer from 2000 to 2016. Best unpaid perk of the job? Working with new grad students and Nobel Prize winners.