Name: Nikita Francis (she/her)
PhD: Neuroscience, Stony Brook University, 2020
What was your main area of research?
I studied the effect of lifestyle factors on Alzheimer’s disease using rodent models in grad school. Afterwards, I conducted various projects in cancer-neuroscience in my postdoc.
What is your current job?
I am a Medical Science Liaison for Bristol Myers Squibb.
I provide and exchange in-depth, unbiased, and up-to-date scientific information with healthcare providers, educate and train healthcare providers on clinical application on company’s medicines, assist in development and execution of clinical trials, gather insights from the medical community and much more.
My favorite part of the job is the scientific exchange.
How did you find this position? What were the career steps you took to get to where you are now?
I found this job on the company website.
PhD grad ➡️ postdoc ➡️ MSL
Why did you decide to not pursue a career in academia?
The decision came easily. I wanted to do more patient-focused work (medicines used by patients).
What advice do you have for someone getting their PhD and looking to pursue a career outside of academia?
LinkedIn networking was a huge part of my journey. Identify industry roles you are interested in and start talking to those in the position.
Once you identify the job, see what you need to fill in your resume and work towards that. Find a mentor (this can be done through LinkedIn) to help with the position you want. Network with recruiters on LinkedIn.
For MSLs, there are podcasts that you can listen to (the MSL talk). Pay attention to the guests in the podcasts and see if you can network with them too. Sometimes it can be a long process, but don’t lose hope because it is worth it at the end.