SelectScience® speaks to Emma Howarth, Managing Director of scientific recruitment agency Langton Howarth, to find out what is on offer at the event for scientists looking towards the next step in their career.
“ELRIG is keen and committed to support early career professionals in choosing their career paths, as well as giving them a real flavor of the types of opportunities available to them outside of academia,” Howarth explains. “We’ve decided to really support ECPs to make sure scientists know what opportunities are available to them and how can they become standout candidates for their chosen career paths and dream jobs.”
Three dedicated sessions will run during the meeting to highlight career opportunities available to post-doc, postgraduate, early career researcher or professionals. Scientists will also be able to access dedicated career advice in the careers zone of the exhibition, as well as free training sessions and a number of learning paths, which highlight relevant talks for five different research areas.
- Careers in Drug Discovery: Where to next? Tuesday, Oct 9, 14:00 – 15:00, Platinum Suite 6, facilitated by Dr. Clare Viney, CEO, CRAC Vitae
- Careers in Drug Discovery: Network like a boss, Tuesday, Oct 9, 17:15 – 18:15, Career Zone. An opportunity to ‘speed-network’ one-to-one with representatives across the drug discovery community, including pharma, biotech, CROs, non-for profit and more
- Careers in Drug Discovery: Preparing for your new role, Wednesday, Oct 10, 14:00 – 15:00, Platinum Suite 5, chaired by Emma Howarth herself
During the ‘preparing for your new role’ session, Howarth will be joined by internal recruitment managers from Illumina and Lhasa to highlight what makes a standout candidate for these companies. Langton Howarth will also be there to explain how scientists can showcase themselves as a compelling candidate. “You’re learning about yourself and how to present and promote yourself in the best possible light for opportunities that could propel your career,” says Howarth. Anyone who wants one-to-one advice can also meet with a member of the Langton Howarth team supporting early careers professionals in the career zone of the exhibition hall, where they will be able to provide support with CV advice, salary guidelines, what to expect at an interview, and more.
The dedicated early careers professionals’ events will highlight the many different careers available, from roles with manufacturers supplying equipment and consumables, to roles in pharma, CROs and biotech companies, right down to recruitment. “There are so many opportunities out there for scientists to consider, and they may never have thought of anything apart from bench research,” Howarth continued, adding: “It is important for ELRIG to open their eyes to what is available and support them through their career journey.”
“It’s a great networking event with a melting pot of people and companies. You could gain first hand from speaking with representatives across the field about their own journey and how they got to where they are today. You wouldn’t get access to these people or resources anywhere else other than ELRIG,” Howarth explains. “You may even get a new position out of it in a career you never thought possible.”
“It’s free for anyone to attend and it’s a great resource for those involved and interested in advances in science and sharing science, as well as those interested in the careers advice and guidance we can offer as an organization,” Howarth concludes.
