The IPhO Podcast

Episode 21: Charting a Course for Career Success with Mike DeLuca

On this episode, we are joined by Mike DeLuca, Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs at EVERSANA. Mike brings more than twenty years of expertise to the table, as he candidly shares skills and strategies to help PharmDs identify the right industry role.

Having started his career in retail pharmacy, Mike quickly rose to pharmacy manager, before deciding to pursue his MBA at Seton Hall, where he focused on pharmacy management and operations.

Since then, Mike's extensive resume highlights his expertise and wide range of knowledge in many fields, including medical information, strategic marketing, regulatory and safety; as well as his experience building and developing strong teams.

Tune in for career advice from a seasoned professional who knows what it takes to succeed in industry.

Episode 20 - Finding Your Fellowship Match with Georgia Quartey, PharmD, RPh

Growing up in a family of medical professionals inspired Georgia to focus her education—and ultimately her career—on health care. Though she always knew from a young age that she wanted to differentiate herself in some way.

During pharmacy school, she joined her IPhO chapter and it exposed her to a whole new side of pharmacy that she hadn't known much about. And that's where her path to industry began.

Today, Georgia is in a dynamic patient safety and regulatory role with Ironwood Pharmaceuticals. She discusses how she prepared for and secured her fellowship, her experience at Ironwood so far, and important advice for students about how to make sure their prospective fellowship company is the right fit for them—not just the other way around!

Episode 19 - Navigating Leadership from the UK to the US

Tania Thomas joins us for episode 19 of the IPhO Podcast!

She currently serves as the VP of Global Regulatory & Medical Affairs at Opiant Pharmaceuticals, and was a former Assessor at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency of the United Kingdom.

Tania—an exemplary leader and authority on all things medical and regulatory affairs—offers some key advice for being a successful and dependable leader, shares the difficulties of relocating for a position, discusses her experience maintaining work-life harmony, and much more. You'll get an insider's perspective on what it looks like to be a leader in the pharmaceutical industry.

Tania has been intimately involved and engaged in the pharmacy industry for over 20 years, and her knowledge and expertise shine as she and our podcast team discuss moving up the ladder, and the challenges that come with it. 

Episode 18: From Makeup Artist to Medical Affairs Fellow (Dimple Gandhi)

At a young age, Dimple discovered her passion for makeup, started her own business as a freelance makeup artist and genuinely believed that was the career path she wanted to follow.

But after tapping into her talent for science and interest in medicine, she found herself in pharmacy school. An internship introduced her to the pharmaceutical industry, and it was that experience that changed her career trajectory.

Hear from Dimple in podcast episode 18, where she shares her career journey thus far, tips for preparing for a similar role, and some of the lessons she learned along the way.

Episode 17 - New Year, Same Us

We are kicking off the new year with a special podcast episode. Hosts Sergio, Alex, and Aleksey are joined by Anum Saqib, a current pharmacy student who has been a critical member of the podcast team working "behind the scenes" since the start.

The team reflects on their favorite episodes and what they enjoy most about hosting the podcast. Plus, they have a candid discussion about how the pandemic has changed the way they (and their colleagues) work and live.

Ultimately, this episode was created to thank you. Our listeners have been incredibly supportive since the very first episode, and we can't wait to release new content this year. We wish you a new year filled with good health, happiness, and personal and professional growth. We are thrilled to be just a small part of your career journey.

 

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We'd love your feedback.

 

Our hope is that the IPhO Podcast shares topics that you find relevant, meaningful, and helpful as you navigate your industry career—no matter what stage you're in. Please take a moment to share your thoughts in a brief survey. It won't take long, we promise!

 

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Episode 16 - Taking the Scenic Route with Ornesha Watson, PharmD

"Ten years later, I decided to go to pharmacy school," Ornesha laughs as she opens her interview with Sergio and Alex. She jokes that she took the "scenic route," but her impressive accomplishments while on that route led her to where she is today.

An honest and insightful episode, Ornesha covers everything from her (indirect) path to her fellowship, raising a young child while completing her fellowship, how important company commitment to diversity was in her evaluation, and so much more.

For those who didn't secure a fellowship right out of pharmacy school, Ornesha's story will shine a bright light on how to continue developing your skills to be a prime industry candidate.

 

RevHealth: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/638a3c1ecf36ea329f33ebd23890cf45.pdf

Boehringer-Ingelheim: https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.us/careers/academic-programs/medicine-post-doctoral-and-post-pharmd-fellowships 

Northeastern University: https://bouve.northeastern.edu/pharmacy/fellowships/

University of the Pacific: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/0fc35b2551e97b954c21eb76053e420a.pdf

Episode 15 - Getting Back in the Race with Austin Murphy, PharmD

Sure, it would be nice to secure a fellowship early in the recruitment season. And we understand why! It can be a stressful time. And even more stressful is reading other students' fellowship acceptance posts on LinkedIn and still waiting for your offer to come through.

But if you don't secure your fellowship during the traditional recruitment cycle, remember that it isn't game over!

On this episode, Aleksey is joined by Austin Murphy, PharmD. Austin is a first-year Global Safety Strategy & Risk Management Fellow at Janssen. Austin tells his story of how he initially went through the process without any offers, but still managed to get a fellowship in the end. It’s always a good idea to be prepared for every situation, and this episode will help you do just that.

 

Novo Nordisk
https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/a6a585162b1b2a4048b40e1b39092cfd.pdf

University of North Carolina
https://pharmacydpetfellowships.web.unc.edu/applications/

University of Southern California

• AbbVie: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/0cf4416bd9b6dc398284ed8efbf127a9.pdf
• Gilead: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/bf533185f02a7baa67053a8bfcbbb07c.pdf
• Kite: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/ada43d369ca28f7fce8994c0aa20461a.pdf
• MannKind: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/ed81e0e89f5c7073f75eacb5efc1ca2c.pdf
• Neurocrine: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/95870cdce0c6961e3468620e78c22583.pdf
• Adaptive Therapeutics: https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/f8f6929abbf39218dff9f4c914803053.pdf

University of the Sciences

https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/8ee0b3f4f8cedcf5f24fbddf22cfc245.pdf

Episode 14 - Advice from a Champion (Iram Hasan, PharmD)

On this episode, Sergio and Alex are joined by Iram Hasan, who currently heads up the UCB Fellowship Program while also working in Regulatory Affairs. For Iram, a fellowship was nowhere on her radar when she was graduating pharmacy school. She stumbled upon her fellowship program and spent time evaluating industry against residency.

Ultimately, though, she made a choice that changed the entire trajectory of her career. Iram shares her advice about applying to multiple functional areas, the most important traits to highlight in an interview, the unique way the UCB Fellowship Program recruits, the "intangibles" recruiters look for in candidates, and more.

AbbVie
https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/515a14a2320d5aa5ac12c89252ae51f6.pdf

Lilly
https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/6553db877502dc8c0f995c58309c1f42.pdf

Pfizer
https://www.mcphs.edu/academics/postgraduate-opportunities/biopharmaceutical-fellowships/pfizer-fellowships
https://cppr.pharmacy.uic.edu/fellowships/
https://pharmacy.ucsd.edu/research/uc-san-diego-pfizer-post-doctoral-research-fellowship-clinical-pharmacology-oncology
https://pharmafellows.rutgers.edu/partner-companies/
https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/a6a585162b1b2a4048b40e1b39092cfd.pdf

Northeastern
https://bouve.northeastern.edu/pharmacy/fellowships/

Episode 13 - Competing as a First-Time Runner with Elizabeth Wilks, PharmD, RPh

Worried about applying to fellowships with no prior industry experience? Don't be! Many fellowship candidates are in the same situation. And many secure positions by highlighting other transferable and relevant skills.

On this episode, Aleksey is joined by Liz Wilks, PharmD, RPh, a First-Year Pfizer/Rutgers University Post-Doctoral Fellow working in Global Medical Affairs. Liz talks about her experiences applying for fellowships without having any prior direct experience in the pharmaceutical industry, and provides advice on how to best navigate the process by utilizing other life experiences.

 

RevHealth:

https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/638a3c1ecf36ea329f33ebd23890cf45.pdf

 

Boehringer Ingelheim:
https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.us/careers/academic-programs/medicine-post-doctoral-and-post-pharmd-fellowships

 

University of the Pacific:
https://www.industrypharmacist.org/resources/0fc35b2551e97b954c21eb76053e420a.pdf

Episode 12 - Setting Your Strategy with Veronica Nguyen, PharmD

"Coincidence or Serendipity?" Next up in our Midyear Marathon series, Veronica joins us to share her career journey and how a sequence of serendipitous events led her to pursue fellowship training. Inspired by her brother's love for research and with her strong belief in the scientific method, Veronica has always had a logical and calculated approach to life, until chance and destiny stepped in to take care of the rest.

Listen in as Veronica shares her candid philosophies on navigating Midyear and her fellowship experiences. Her guiding principles? Have positive influences, come over-prepared, stay true to your values, and trust your instincts. Plus, hear how she is navigating fellowship interviews on the other side and her advice for students going through the recruitment process.

The brochures mentioned in the episode can be found HERE.