Preparing for What's Next: An Industry Perspective

Determining the next step in life after nearly 20 years of education can be quite daunting as mentors, advisers, parents, and friends may be encouraging you to pursue different career paths. While a post doc position seems like the natural next step to take, maybe youve also flirted with the idea of another path outside of the comfortable familiarity of academia. The reality is that few PhDs will reach the coveted level of Full Professor. So_what are the rest of us to do? There are many career paths to follow of which a position in industry is one. _Perspective on what you can expect in, what type of people thrive in, and how you can prepare for a position in industry will be shared. Open dialogue is encouraged. _ As a Senior Scientist in Global Microbiology at the Procter & Gamble Company, Maiysha leads beauty care microbiology productivity and compliance innovation and ensures product quality and compliance in market and for R&D initiatives globally. In addition, she is a member of Biofusion (internal Life Sciences Community of Practice), serves on the new hire-focused North America R&D On-Boarding Steering Team, and also serves as a life sciences recruiter in partnership with North America Talent Supply. Externally, Maiysha was recently appointed to the American Society for Microbiology Education Board Committee on Minority Education. _ Maiysha received her B.S. in Biology from Xavier University of Louisiana and then spent six months as an intern in P&Gs Environmental Science Department (now the Environmental Stewardship Organization) optimizing a chemical screening assay for wastewater discharged to surface water. She then earned her M.S. and Ph.D. from The Gillings School of Global Public Health at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Environmental Sciences and Engineering where her research focused on identifying soil bacteria that degrade organic contaminants. _ Maiysha offers a unique career perspective as she started working for Procter & Gamble directly after finishing her Ph.D. In addition, she was more interested in pursuing a career in industry that took her away from the bench and into a managerial position.

Contact

  Huck Graduate Student Advisory Committee
  psu.hgsac@gmail.com