Finishing University and entering the working world...

Hey everyone, I’m Stephanie a Project Assistant here at Fingerpost Consulting and I recently completed my Biomedical Sciences with Industrial Experience degree at the University of Manchester. On Monday I found out I’ll be graduating with a First (woo)! 
Over May and June this year I was revising for my final exams and started to think about my career after University. That’s when I contacted Cath to see if I could help her out at Fingerpost Consulting! Before I tell you about how I joined the Fingerpost team, I’ll begin with some background about myself, how I met Cath and how I decided I wanted to work in consulting…  

When studying a science subject, it sometimes feels that the only jobs out there are in a research laboratory. Throughout my degree I was required to do quite a lot of lab work. My final year project was lab based, where I spent two months in the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology investigating strategies to improve production of biologic medicines like monoclonal antibodies and fusion proteins. Although I am so thankful for this experience, the opportunity to learn new knowledge and skills and getting to meet my lovely lab mates, I also realised that a career at the bench  was probably not for me.  ​
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Other than working in a lab during my degree, I also worked a year-long internship with a strategic healthcare consultancy (this explains the ‘with industrial experience’ part of my BSc title). The consultancy I applied for worked in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, however, when I applied for the role I was unclear what consulting really involved! Despite this, my biomedical knowledge and a keen interest in the pharma industry led me to secure my position. During my internship I gradually learnt what a career in consulting entailed.  I enjoyed the fact I could apply my scientific knowledge to real life industry challenges. I also enjoyed working with pharma as I find it interesting to keep up to date with the development of innovative medicines. Moreover, I enjoyed the collaborative nature of the work, which involved working in close project teams and on a variety of different disease areas. This contrasted with my lab experience which was predominantly independent work on the same topic in the same disease area (well it was for me anyway).  

It was during my year ’in industry’ that I met Cath. I was working on a project that required the development and finalisation of materials for a workshop. Cath was called in to provide freelance support on the project to finalise several deliverables. Cath was so helpful and friendly, I remember her systematic way of thinking which really helped finalise the project! When completed, the project and workshop were well received by the client!
Following this Cath and I kept in touch via LinkedIn and saw each other occasionally at Christmas/Birthday work dinners. 

…So back to final year, there I was in the library, revising for my finals and thinking about what I wanted to do when the exams were all over. After deliberation over my work experience in the lab and consulting fields, I began to lean towards a career in consulting. I regularly checked LinkedIn and saw Cath posting updates about   Fingerpost Consulting , so I decided to send her a message to see if she had any need for additional resource, and (thankfully) she told me she did ! Just two weeks after finishing my exams I joined the Fingerpost team as a Project Assistant. So far, it’s great; Cath, Lou and Kaz have been so friendly and inviting. The office is very calm and in a lovely location. I love being greeted by Kipling and Larkin (our canine assistants) every morning I come in. Plus, Yoga on a Friday is an extra bonus (of course we have lots of work to do too though)!!  
Well… I just gave you a a little whistle stop tour through the past few years of my academic life, which have been very exciting and have gone very quickly, I am excited to see where the next chapter of my career takes me! 

I hope you enjoyed reading this blog and I hope to write a few more soon.  

Best wishes,
Stephanie 

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