Degree snobs? When did this happen?

When I was a life sciences major at UMASS back in the mid-to-late 80s, Biogen employees (IDEC Pharmaceuticals barely existed back then, if at all) were frequent guests at career nights for undergraduates, suggesting a welcoming atmosphere for new college grads with BS degrees. Having earned my degree and amassed 20years of experience in the realms of clinical research and regulatory affairs. I'm nonplussed to find out that now BiogenIdec now prefers folks with advanced degrees, even for positions in these disciplines for which no,formal degrees exist.

Are they REALLY turning up their noses at new graduates of nearby Harvard and MIT because they lack sufficient education?

 

What the HELL are you talking about? You may need to go back and get a degree in writing clear and cohesive thoughts as the gibberish you are writing above make no sense. What point are you trying to express?

 

That's very helpful. Thank you.

See? Simple sentences for a simpleton. Give my best to your wife-cousin.

 

Its been like this for the last 5-8 years across all pharma's. Big and easy money attracts the consultants from BCG, Mckinsey, PWC, Bain ... they establish themselves within the company. They are the degree snobs as you put it and only see fellow uber-qualified ivy leaguers as truly qualified to be within 500 feet of their presence in the office. That's how things are with Development and Sales at least. I can't speak for lab work

 

Thanks for the information.

How sad to pass up a workforce right in your own backyard. I'd like to see one of these uber-educated MBA types go on a site visit or write a briefing book for an Advisory Committee; let's see how useful their Finance degree is then.

 

It is sad. To the degree snobs, unless you attended an Ivy, that workforce in our own backyard are not qualified enough and sadly never will be in their eyes. Welcome to the new world of pharma.

 

I think the bigger issue here holding you back from any career progression is your ability to express clear thoughts and your anger management. Not to mention your trailer trash, low level sense of humor might be hurting you too...! Hope this helps.

 

I think the bigger issue here holding you back from any career progression is your ability to express clear thoughts and your anger management. Not to mention your trailer trash, low level sense of humor might be hurting you too...! Hope this helps.

 

On average slightly over 60% of yearly acceptances into schools in the Ivy League are legacies. Pharma is a place for the well-connected, not the best and most experienced professionals

 

Most of the Ivy League grads I have ever worked with were either arrogant, lazy or entitlement-poisoned, and this is years before the Gen-X and Millenials and their cosmic-level demands.

I went to a state school for both grad and undergrad, and received criticism from some Harvard and Yale grads for being a "public schooler". Funny how they didn't make it and I'm still with the same company and I have been promoted more than they ever have.

Our last chief medical officer, one of those "impeccably credentialed" Exeter and Yale grads, crashed and burned within six months when it became clear he had zero business sense. Not a very good thing for a profit-driven enterprise.

 

Meanwhile, based on weekly job postings from LinkedIn and Glassdoor, recruiting for the position I applied for has been farmed out to various third-party agencies (I can tell it's on BI's behalf because the acronyms, descriptions, and qualifications are the same), which means they're not having much success on their own.

 

ROFLMAO.....look who's offering advice on anger management--the local troll.

 

OP back with a follow-up. BI is apparently having so much trouble finding an advanced-degreed candidate for the same position I applied for that they're now offering it as a co-op--still for a Master's or Ph.D. candidate. Not only don't they want to pay a highly experienced candidate with merely a Bachelor's degree, now they don't want to pay a grad student either. Well played--desperate, but well played.

 

Nomination for Post of the Year!

Well done, sir.

Seriously, OP, who gives a crap? And as the poster above has stated, learn how to express yourself clearly...well, you are in the most corrupt part of the industry, and in the most corrupt industry, so we should expect much stupidity from you.

 

Figures some folks don't get the OP's point. Complex sentences weren't meant to be understood by such simple-minded trolls.

 

This post best answered the OP's question. I have been around in this field for many many years, and I agree 100% with this poster. It starts when you bring in the big-name consulting firms. The biotech hires on a few or more that worked on their projects. They in-turn institute a certain level of snobbery that cascades on downward, where they will only consider Ivy league or top 10 schools for most *internal* positions. The contractor roles and FSPs are left for the state schooler's as I have heard one Director at Biogen put it just this past summer.

In short, the consultants come in, lay their foundation, degree snobs take over over, the culture changes in hiring practices, and the pharma/biotech then becomes deathly afraid of a come-from-nothing worked their way up style self-made man or woman.

 

Actually, there are a number of programs for Regulatory Affairs, Temple University has an exccelent RA/QA Masters. I heard the USC and Florida State also have degrreed programs.

 

1. What top scientist came from UMass vs. Harvard or MIT? Let's be real people.

2. Why do I want my finance and corporate strategy done by someone who couldn't do basic high school math that they got subpar SAT scores and had to go to State U taught by other loser State U professors

3. No Ivy league grad is afraid of state school grads. We are afraid of how dumb you are and what stupid decisions you can make that will screw the company.

 

Screw you I went to University of Rhode Island and I know that I am smarter than you slick Harvard/MIT/ Dartbmouth pieces. Of shit. Go F yourselves you ego maniacs.

 

My uncle was pretty high in admissions at one of the Ivies at one time. He always said over 60% of acceptances at the Ivies on average are a combination of legacies and/or kids of parents donating a lot of $$$. These are the not valedictorians. Another 20% are the types who excel at extreme memorization and regurgitation of notes and textbooks. I wouldn't classify that as being smart or competent to think independently. We have all worked with these types - they have the credentials, but outside of a classroom they are very underwhelming.

Its all about connections and birthrights and an ability to memorize vast amounts of information for a short period of time. One that can function in the real world of achievement, performance and merit is a clear threat to someone who only got to where they are out of a 19th-century-England style birthright or academic success in the era of standardized tests and rote memorization.

We are not talking about the CEO or COO or CFO roles. We are talking about Managerial or Director positions, to be held by people who had been with in the field and gained experience through many years of good hard earned work. Too many times I and others see the 28 year old Ivy MBA former consultant from McKinsey, with 3 years of work experience leading 37 year olds with 15 years exp on sales strategy or the 31 year old Ivy educated career student with an MD and Masters in Health policy from the Kennedy School at the helm of Development.