Are there really thousands of Canadian biotech jobs to be found?

An Ottawa-based national organization is trying to attract laid-off manufacturing workers to the biotech industry.

BioTalent Canada has launched an online tool encouraging workers in Ontario cities such as Brockville, Cornwall and Kitchener-Waterloo to help fill a nationwide skills shortage in biotechnology

Read Biotech recruiter targets unemployed workers on the CBCnews website.

Can you write in 75 words the current state of employment in the Canadian Biotechnology sector.

Let’s build our collective voice!

We all have skin in the game when it comes to building employment opportunities in biotechnology.

The media are watching this blog – lets get our unique point of view heard.

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If there’s a nation-wide biotech skills shortage, why is it so hard for PhDs to find a job?

If there’s a nation-wide biotech skills shortage, why is it so hard for PhDs to find a job?

I recently read a story on the Canadian NewsWire that has me quite confused. According to the report, BioTalent Canada (formerly the Biotechnology Human Resource Council) is launching a program aimed at training unemployed manufacturing workers with skills necessary for entering the biomanufacturing field. According to the report:

Many traditional manufacturing skills are transferable to the biomanufacturing field. But unemployed workers simply do not know this

.

The report concludes that Canadian biotechnology companies are currently suffering from a nation-wide skills shortage and that properly trained manufacturing workers can help alleviate this shortage.

Last time I checked, there were hundreds of newly graduated PhDs and postDocs who have not been able to find industry jobs despite their best attempts. Furthermore, their many years of university level training in some of the best programs in the country has not netted them any success. Am I missing something here??? How can there be a skills shortage on the one hand yet an excess supply of already trained skilled workers with no place to go? Why look to trained manufacturing workers in biotech when an already trained workfoce is readily available and willing to work?

Postdoctoral Comic Relief!

An honest look at the PostDoc from our friend at the Upturned Microscope (reprinted with permission).

Do universities really care if international PhD students succeed?

We came across a very interesting article published on the University Affairs website by a couple of PhD students at the University of Western Ontario .

The article describes how many international PhD candidates are awarded placements in Canadian University PhD programs based on their ability to pay higher tuition and how many of them leave the program empty handed four years later after their ability to pay runs out.

While the article specifically focuses on the arts and humanities, I am wondering whether the issue may be even more profound in the biological sciences where the outcome of bench research is often unpredictable and graduate work can stretch well beyond the official 4 year time allotment. Should this be taken into consideration when accepting foreign students or is their ability to pay more important than their ultimate success?

Great week for British Columbia scientists

Genome BC has had a great week announcing over $33 million in funding for research programs across the province.

Earlier this week, Genome BC announced that the Province is providing $25 million to Genome BC in support of its ongoing research in the areas of agriculture, forestry, fisheries, human health, bioenergy, mining and the environment.

The second announcement, released yesterday concerned five projects funded through Genome BC’s Proof of Concept (POC) Program. Genome BC’s program promises close to $9 million to accelerate the commercialization process for technological innovations in the life sciences. The program is intended to provide bridge funding to move innovations further down the development path towards potential commercialization and real-world applications.

For more information visit the Genome BC website.