3/31/2011 Careers in Regulatory Affairs

On Thursday, March 31, 2011, a panel discussion geared toward Duke graduate students and postdocs on careers in regulatory affairs took place at Duke University.

Regulatory Affairs (RA), also called Government Affairs, has developed from the desire of governments to protect public health by controlling the safety and efficacy of products in areas including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, agrochemicals, cosmetics and complementary medicines. Most companies, whether they are major multinational pharmaceutical corporations or small biotech companies, have specialist departments of regulatory affairs professionals. The regulatory affairs professional's job is to keep track of the ever-changing legislation in all the regions in which the company wishes to distribute its products, and help the company avoid problems caused by inappropriate scientific thinking or poor presentation of data. RA is a promising field for scientists searching for alternative careers because it offers a multitude of starting jobs and opportunities for advancement.

The panelists discussed their career paths, how they made the transition from academia to regulatory affairs, and how current grad students and postdocs could make the same leap.

- Cathy Anderson, PhD, Senior Regulatory Scientist, CATO Research (former Duke postdoc)
- Randy Batenhorst, VP of Global Regulatory Affairs, GSK
- Jelena Berglund, PhD, RAC, Associate Director of Regulatory Affairs, Duke Translational Medicine Institute
- Noah Byrd, PhD, Regulatory Scientist, United Therapeutics (former Duke postdoc)
- Vicki Gunto, PhD, Director of Regulatory Affairs, King Pharmaceuticals

This workshop is sponsored by the Office of Postdoctoral Services and the Duke Career Center.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Regulatory
• Science