Elizabeth Rico-Bautista, PhD, has studied science in multiple countries, including her home country, Colombia, for her undergraduate and Master’s degrees, as well as Sweden for her PhD. She flew back across the Atlantic Ocean and completed two postdocs in the United States, one in Boston and one in San Diego, before landing a Senior Scientist position in industry. Since exiting academic science research, Elizabeth has risen the ranks and is now a Principal Scientist at Crinetics Pharmaceuticals where she helps develop exciting novel therapeutics for rare endocrine diseases and endocrine-related tumors. 

Can you describe your academic and professional background? What path led you to pursue this field? 

I started being interested in science very early on. I knew when I was 14 years old that I wanted to be a Scientist. I enjoyed very much my classes in Chemistry, Math, and Physics during secondary school. I have always been very curious about the phenomena that occurs around me and wanted to know why certain things happen.

After I finished secondary school, I went straight to study Chemistry in college. I did that at the National University in Bogota, in my home country (Colombia). During my 5th year of college, I started thinking that I wanted to focus on Biochemistry and decided to do a Masters in Biochemistry, also in Colombia.

During my master studies, I got a research fellowship from the Uppsala University through the IPICS program. I visited a lab at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden for 6 months. It was a great experience that opened more opportunities for me. After finishing my master studies, I moved to Sweden to pursue a PhD in Cellular Biology at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. My studies resulted in several publications, visits to other labs, attendance to conferences worldwide, and a lot of personal growth.

However, one question was always popping in my head, how to translate basic science into human health issues? To answer that question, I decided to pursue a postdoc that allowed me to see the basic science integrated into a health problem and at the same time, permitted me to learn about new technologies and the field of drug discovery. I was then offered a postdoctoral position at Harvard School of Public Health in Boston and then here in San Diego at Sanford Burnham Medical Research Institute.

How did you find this particular position, and what was the hiring process like? Is there a typical structure for this in your field? 

After the postdoc, I wanted to move to the biotech/pharmaceutical industry and hopefully to have a more direct impact on human health problems. I sent more than 100 applications in a period of 3-4 months to different companies nationwide. Some companies replied right away (mostly automatic emails) letting me know that I did not have all the requirements needed. Still, I kept sending applications.

I got several emails back to schedule phone interviews and I also had two formal interviews. One of those was at Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, the company that I joined at the end of 2013. Because the company was still small at the time, the hiring process was very quick. However, it took about a month from the moment I sent the application until I got the call from the hiring manager (my future boss). After the initial call, an informal meeting was set and then a formal interview was scheduled, which included a presentation of my scientific work. I was offered the job the day after the interview and I started 3 days after. I joined as a Senior Scientist and now I am a Principal Scientist in the Biology group in Discovery.

I found that the hiring process varies depending on the size of the company. Big companies take either a very short time rejecting the application or a very long time deciding to make the call. I got several emails and phone calls even 6 months after sending the application. It also happens that some companies advertise the job but decide that the position is no longer required sometime after. 

Can you tell us about your current responsibilities? What is a typical day or week like in your role?

My current job involves the interaction with other groups in discovery, managing one specific program but also participating in other projects, either running specific experiments, preparing reports, presentations or just attending the program or working group meetings. 

There is not really a typical day or week. At least not at the level I am right now. I used to have more typical days when I was a Senior Scientist doing pharmacology and specific experiments for the different projects. I planned the experiment, executed it, prepared the results (presentations), communicated the results and planned the experiments to answer the next question. 

Nowadays, my time varies depending on the priorities and the specific deadlines in the different projects. Priorities can change very rapidly, and what I plan for a week can easily be moved back or forward in time. I also do one specific experiment for one of the research programs that requires the use of a system we acquired recently and that takes 3-4 full working days. 

What do you enjoy about your current job and work environment? 

I enjoy the opportunity to learn from other groups but also to actively participate in several projects and be able to see the whole picture, rather than just a piece. I still get very excited when new data comes out and if I am running an experiment and I see that it worked nicely, I get very happy. 

What are some of the challenging aspects of your job? Is there anything you wish you had known about your job or industry before joining?

I have been in my current role for less than 2 years. I am still learning how to be more flexible and to decide what the priorities are. I am still used to doing everything myself and it is hard to realize that I cannot do everything, that I need to prioritize or delegate specific tasks.

When I decided that I wanted to move to the biotech industry, I contacted people, read information and attended workshops that could help me prepare for the transition. In all of them, the most discussed subject was the fast pace of the pharmaceutical industry. I thought I was prepared but the reality is that there is a major difference working on a single project during your PhD or postdoc and working on several projects with specific deadlines and priorities that can change any time, which is how a company works most of the time.

Do you have any professional plans for the future? What are some future career paths that could open up for someone in your position, 5-10 years down the road?

As I said above, I have been in my current position less than 2 years. I still have a lot to learn as project manager and certainly I can get that experience and knowledge at the company. 

The second part of your question is my personal homework. It is difficult to plan the next 5-10 years without knowing what opportunities can arise. I certainly want to stay on research in the drug discovery field but in what capacity is something I need to investigate further.

What activities, internships, or organizations would you recommend someone get involved with to help them break into this field?

As I mentioned above, I contacted people, attended workshops but also read a lot of blogs and pertinent information on LinkedIn and the UCSD website, among others.

Is it common for people in your field to have a scientific/academic background (i.e. have PhDs)? Can you think of any advantages or disadvantages someone with a PhD might experience while pursuing or working in your field?

Having a PhD certainly helps getting higher positions within the organization faster. For a Scientist entry level position, a PhD is most of the time required unless the candidate has more than 10-12 years experience in the field.

I personally don’t see any disadvantage getting a PhD. However, the option of continuing with a graduate education is personal and may depend on the circumstances. Some people may need to start working right away after college even if they want to pursue graduate school. 

Do you have any final words of advice for those navigating these career questions? Is there anything you would have done differently given what you know now? 

I do not regret the path I took. I have learnt and experienced a lot during my studies, my time as a postdoc and at the company. However, I would have appreciated it if someone would have told me not to spend so much time doing a postdoc. At the time, I felt like I needed it but that may not be the case all the time. Having said that, I learnt a lot during my postdoc and I am absolutely sure that it helped me prepare for the challenges I faced in the new job.