The Career Field Resource pages describe the more common fields that employ scientists with advanced training, with a short list of websites which will help you understand the field. Each section has:
- at least one or two articles to provide an overview of the field or career paths;
- resources specific to Berkeley (access to opportunities you can pursue while a student or postdoc);
- more general sources of information including professional associations, sites with industry news and career advice, and fellowship/job listings.
Science and the Law: Tech Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Regulatory Affairs
Intellectual property is the area of law dealing with patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. Tech transfer has to do specifically with transitioning technology from university to the for-profit sector for commercialization. Regulatory affairs is about compliance with all regulations and laws pertaining to a business (such as drugs or medical devices) – generally working with federal, state, and local regulatory agencies.
Berkeley Resources
- Berkeley IPIRA
- Patent Law Society (PLS) – This group is comprised of School of Law students but may be a good resource for scientists as well
- Life Sciences and Policy Center part of Berkeley Center for Law & Technology (Boalt Law School)
- Interview and career profile of Eldora Ellison, PhD, JD, patent attorney and director at Sterne Kessler
- Interview article with Miki Yamamoto, PhD, vice president and head of regulatory affairs at Arrivent Biopharma
Careers in Tech Transfer and Patent Law
- Biotech Connection Bay Area article, “Science trainees, have you considered a career in technology transfer?“
- Chronicle of Higher Ed article, “Beyond the Bench: a Career in Technology Transfer”
- LinkedIn article, “7 Reasons you should choose technology transfer as your next career”
- Science articles, “Careers in Patent Law” (series)
- Chronicle of Higher Ed article, “From Ph.D. to Patent Lawyer”
- From the American Chemical Society, “Chemists in Patent Law”
- From the American Physical Society, “Career Alternative for Physicists: Patent Law”
- Association of University Technology Managers
- NIH Fellowship – the NIH Office of Technology Transfer has doctoral level internship opportunities available in the fields of law, business, or life sciences
- IPWatchdog – sources for news, information, analysis and commentary in the patent and innovation industries. Includes information on the patent bar exam.
- AIPLA – American Intellectual Property Law Association
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
Careers in Regulatory Affairs
- Naturejobs article, “Finding Job Satisfaction in regulatory affairs”
- LinkedIn article, “How I Broke Into Regulatory Affairs, and How You Can Too”
- Regulatory Affairs Professional Society
- From Sciencedirect.com – “What is Regulatory Affairs”
- Career Savage, video on entry level perspective in Reg Affairs
- Biospace Jobs in Regulatory Affairs (Bay Area)
- Podcasts: Top Biotech Podcasts
- TOPRA – The Organisation for Professionals in Regulatory Affairs (for Europe)
- FDA – in particular the section on regulatory science careers and on fellowship opportunities