- Email: [email protected]
International science careers survey: staying a step ahead
New Biotechnology Volume 25, Numbers 2/3 October/December 2008
International science careers survey: staying a step ahead Aimee Rindoks, [email protected] and Emilia Daniłowicz, [email protected]
A new phrase has been appearing in policy reports as well as in international media sources – the global competition for talent. Although the phrase is applied broadly across industries, the biotechnology industry reflects the concerns on three fronts. First, biotechnology presents an example where pressures from competing regions and new firms are apparent. Europabio reported that 55% of European biotech companies were less than five years old in 2004. Furthermore, venture capitalists are driven by ‘critical mass,’ not only in terms of supporting regions where the number of biotech companies is already blossoming, but also in terms of the workforce availability. Regions therefore are in competition. Secondly, public concerns, such as global warming and energy availability or healthcare, and related scientific advances shape the direction of the industry and the skills that will be required by biotech companies in the future. Thirdly, there have long been fears in much of Europe of a ‘brain drain’ of scientists to countries with higher pay or stronger biotechnology industries. Within the EU, it has been suggested in some industrial publications that international mobility has become a ‘prerequisite’ for scientific careers and academic grants in Europe. However, although the ‘global competition for talent’ has been assumed as prevalent, OECD data show relatively low mobility of scientists. In general, there are few
details on the biotech workforce and few comparative statistics. How does the ‘global competition for talent’ really play out in terms of the career paths and aspirations of young life scientists? Do scientists view their personal career opportunities as truly global or are there other personal and professional factors that lead to a more local orientation in their careers? Understanding the drivers of international scientific mobility requires a more comprehensive look at individual factors including life stage, career trajectory, country and gender. YEBN is currently launching a survey to understand the career paths, aspirations and perceptions of opportunities better around the world for life scientists. The study is called Careers in Life Sciences (CiLS) and will address aspects related to the value of various skills as well as of international mobility through a survey of life scientists available via http://www.YEBN.org and the Naturejobs website. The survey will help to assess what skills young life scientists consider valuable. It will address topics such as: What are young life scientists doing to improve their skills and qualifications (languages, conferences, trainings, etc.)? How mobile are young life scientists? Which regions and countries are seen as offering the most attractive possibilities for biotechnology careers? The survey results will be complemented by qualitative interviews with companies across
1871-6784/$ - see front matter ß 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.nbt.2008.08.008
Europe interested in hiring life scientists, to have more information on the skills that employers value and the practices and barriers in recruiting life scientists. As the global biotech landscape of possibilities is changing and new competitors emerge within and across regions, the career choices of individual scientists become important not only for personal development, but also for regions and countries to stay a step ahead. Careers in Life Sciences (CiLS) Project, a YEBN international initiative. The CiLS Project Team: Emilia Daniłowicz, a YEBN ExBo member and an ASSB (Academic Students’ Society of Biotechnology, Poland) member, and a PhD student at the Institute of Biology, HumboldtUniversity Berlin, Germany; Dominik Heinzmann, a YEBN CH chairman and a PhD student at the Institute of Mathematics and Institute of Parasitology, University of Zu¨rich, Switzerland; Tabea Neidhart, a btS (Biotechnology Students’ Initiative, Germany) member and a PhD student at the University of Mu¨nster, Germany; Alba Olivares, an ASBTEC (Catalan Association of Biotechnologists) treasurer and a PhD student at Molecular Biology and Cellular Institute of Barcelona and CID-CSIC, Spain; Aimee Rindoks, an individual YEBN member, and a PhD candidate and research fellow at the Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Aimee Rindoks Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies (IMES), University of Amsterdam, Oudezijds Achterburgwal 237, 1012 DL Amsterdam, The Netherlands Emilia Daniłowicz Department of Molecular Parasitology, Institute of Biology, Humboldt-University Berlin, Philippstrasse 13, 10115 Berlin, Germany
www.elsevier.com/locate/nbt
125
YEBN
YEBN
International science careers survey: staying a step ahead Aimee Rindoks, [email protected] and Emilia Daniłowicz, [email protected]
A new phrase has been appearing in policy reports as well as in international media sources – the global competition for talent. Although the phrase is applied broadly across industries, the biotechnology industry reflects the concerns on three fronts. First, biotechnology presents an example where pressures from competing regions and new firms are apparent. Europabio reported that 55% of European biotech companies were less than five years old in 2004. Furthermore, venture capitalists are driven by ‘critical mass,’ not only in terms of supporting regions where the number of biotech companies is already blossoming, but also in terms of the workforce availability. Regions therefore are in competition. Secondly, public concerns, such as global warming and energy availability or healthcare, and related scientific advances shape the direction of the industry and the skills that will be required by biotech companies in the future. Thirdly, there have long been fears in much of Europe of a ‘brain drain’ of scientists to countries with higher pay or stronger biotechnology industries. Within the EU, it has been suggested in some industrial publications that international mobility has become a ‘prerequisite’ for scientific careers and academic grants in Europe. However, although the ‘global competition for talent’ has been assumed as prevalent, OECD data show relatively low mobility of scientists. In general, there are few
details on the biotech workforce and few comparative statistics. How does the ‘global competition for talent’ really play out in terms of the career paths and aspirations of young life scientists? Do scientists view their personal career opportunities as truly global or are there other personal and professional factors that lead to a more local orientation in their careers? Understanding the drivers of international scientific mobility requires a more comprehensive look at individual factors including life stage, career trajectory, country and gender. YEBN is currently launching a survey to understand the career paths, aspirations and perceptions of opportunities better around the world for life scientists. The study is called Careers in Life Sciences (CiLS) and will address aspects related to the value of various skills as well as of international mobility through a survey of life scientists available via http://www.YEBN.org and the Naturejobs website. The survey will help to assess what skills young life scientists consider valuable. It will address topics such as: What are young life scientists doing to improve their skills and qualifications (languages, conferences, trainings, etc.)? How mobile are young life scientists? Which regions and countries are seen as offering the most attractive possibilities for biotechnology careers? The survey results will be complemented by qualitative interviews with companies across
1871-6784/$ - see front matter ß 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.nbt.2008.08.008
Europe interested in hiring life scientists, to have more information on the skills that employers value and the practices and barriers in recruiting life scientists. As the global biotech landscape of possibilities is changing and new competitors emerge within and across regions, the career choices of individual scientists become important not only for personal development, but also for regions and countries to stay a step ahead. Careers in Life Sciences (CiLS) Project, a YEBN international initiative. The CiLS Project Team: Emilia Daniłowicz, a YEBN ExBo member and an ASSB (Academic Students’ Society of Biotechnology, Poland) member, and a PhD student at the Institute of Biology, HumboldtUniversity Berlin, Germany; Dominik Heinzmann, a YEBN CH chairman and a PhD student at the Institute of Mathematics and Institute of Parasitology, University of Zu¨rich, Switzerland; Tabea Neidhart, a btS (Biotechnology Students’ Initiative, Germany) member and a PhD student at the University of Mu¨nster, Germany; Alba Olivares, an ASBTEC (Catalan Association of Biotechnologists) treasurer and a PhD student at Molecular Biology and Cellular Institute of Barcelona and CID-CSIC, Spain; Aimee Rindoks, an individual YEBN member, and a PhD candidate and research fellow at the Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Aimee Rindoks Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies (IMES), University of Amsterdam, Oudezijds Achterburgwal 237, 1012 DL Amsterdam, The Netherlands Emilia Daniłowicz Department of Molecular Parasitology, Institute of Biology, Humboldt-University Berlin, Philippstrasse 13, 10115 Berlin, Germany
www.elsevier.com/locate/nbt
125
YEBN
YEBN