Which agencies hire scientists? While the OITE is an NIH entity, great science happens in other divisions all across government.  Almost all of these places hire scientists for both bench and non-bench positions.  Non-bench positions can include: science administration (grants management from almost every agency, managing research programs, career development training), science policy (how innovative science is completed and promoted), regulation (determining if a drug is safe or an agricultural product is good for the environment).

Here is a list of government agencies hiring biomedical scientists. The list is not complete, and we would love your feedback on ones we missed!

National Institutes of Health (NIH): The NIH hires scientists for both bench and non-bench positions in the intramural research program (IRP), as well as non-bench positions within the division of extramural science, which manages the grants process in order to fund science around the country and the world.

Department of Health & Human Services (HHS): As the parent agency of the NIH, this organization hires scientists to do administrative jobs understanding how to improve health care and fund science for America.

Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC):  This agency is tasked with disease prevention and protection.  They have labs to understand the mechanisms of diseases and infectious agents, both at the bench and through epidemiology.  They also have administration jobs to help set policies and run the organization.

Food & Drug Administration (FDA): Most of the time people think of the FDA as only regulatory review; however, they have writing jobs, policy jobs, and science administration.  In addition, the FDA does a large amount of bench research in areas critical to the FDA mission. View more details here.

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA): The USDA has the Agriculture Research Service its division of lab positions.  There are also many laboratories across the US and the world to test our food supply safety.

National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA): NASA has an entire division set aside for biological research.

Department of Defense (DOD): The Department of Defense has many research programs housed in each branch of the military, and you can apply as a civilian (or opt to join the service).  These research programs focus on welfare of the military (protection and prevention), and also general labs for hospitals and forensics.  Also, there may even be faculty opportunities at the Academies.

• Army: https://armymedicine.health.mil/
• Navy/Marine: http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmrc/Pages/index.htm
• There seem to be fewer opportunities at the Air Force and the Coast Guard, but they do exist.
• The DOD funds biomedical science research through entities like Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP),. There are also opportunities for scientist to do grant reviews in these organizations.

Public Health Service: This is an all officer core tasked with protecting public health.  They have opportunities for scientists, clinicians, dentists, nurses, vets, and public health people.  Scientists in this group work all kinds of jobs both at the bench and away from the bench in the NIH, CDC, EPA and other government agencies.

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS): The medical/dental university of the armed services, which is located on the campus of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.  This is a medical school with positions for faculty member (including research programs), and other types of academic support positions.

Veterans Affairs (VA): Bench based positions will be within the hospital laboratory systems.  Non-bench jobs can include policy and administration to improve the lives of American’s veterans.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): The EPA hires scientists to understand how things in our environment will affect humans and the world in which we live.  There are bench jobs examining environmental factors to our health, both from a basic science perspective from the NC facility and also from labs strategically placed around the country.  Administration jobs can range from science policy, grants administration, regulation, and more.

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO): This organization reviews all patents submitted to the U.S. government.  Scientists review these patents according to their area of discipline.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): The FBI hires scientists as special agents and also to do research in the core labs (such as DNA forensics).

US Congress and Executive Branch: There are policy based jobs helping us guide science through the political process both in the US and abroad.  Congress has whole committees dedicated to science (like the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee or the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee).  The Executive Branch has the Office of Science and Technology Policy and also science policy within the State Department.

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Now, many people think that the only way to get a job with the government is to go through USAjobs.gov.  Not true!  Most offices also use a variety of contracting firms to help fill openings (for example at the NIH we often use Kelly Scientific, SAIC, and Leidos).  Contracting jobs are a great way to get your foot in the door and gain additional skill sets to make you even more competitive for a federal position.   They are also typically hired much faster than positions within the federal system, and may or may not have the same citizenship requirements.  Most offices treat contractors just the same as they do federal employees, so do not feel like this is not a good option to help move your career forward. z

Here is a list of contracting firms to explore; again, sure we missed some but this is a terrific start:

* Posting of these contractor names does not constitute endorsement by NIH OITE.        

A recent Hidden Brain podcast entitled “You 2.0: Dream Jobs” explored the importance of finding meaning in your work. Amy Wrzesniewski is a Professor of Management at Yale and her current research focuses on studying how employees shape their interactions and relationships with others in the workplace to add meaning to their job and change their own work identity. She notes, “People who see their work as a calling are significantly more satisfied with their jobs. They’re significantly more satisfied with their lives. They’re more engaged in what it is they’re doing and tend to be better performers regardless of what the work is.”

One finding in her research focuses on the idea of cognitive crafting, reframing what it is you’re doing and how you come to think about your work. People aren’t always in a position to change their job description or the nature of their job; however, changing the way you think about your job is perhaps the greatest power you have.

Wrzesniewski discusses three types of job crafting techniques:

• Task Crafting This is when employees change their formal job responsibilities by adding/dropping/altering tasks or the time devoted to certain tasks. Example: A tech-savvy customer service representative offering to help with IT issues, even though it is not technically in her job description.

• Relational Crafting Altering how and when employees interact with other in order to perform their job duties. Example: A software engineer collaborating with a marketing analyst about product design and market response.

• Cognitive Crafting When employees alter the way they perceive the tasks and relationships that comprise their job. Example: Hospital cleaning crew sees their job as a way to also check in on patients while tidying their rooms.

This work also ties in with research from Daniel Pink, who believes that there are three essential elements that motivate us. They include: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. Most people strive to find purpose in their lives and in their work. They yearn to see how their contributions can fit into a larger picture.

Some of the key takeaways from this research are that it is often up to you to branch out and find creative ways to add something new or different to your work in order to make it more meaningful to you. Be sure to continue to do the tasks assigned to you, but if you are feeling stuck at work, then take some time to think about how you can craft your current position into one that offers you more meaning and satisfaction.  

Interview season for professional schools has begun! Those of you who are selected for interviews may be told that the school will use an MMI interview format.   This is a common interview format used by admissions offices for medical schools (MD, MD/PhD, DO), dental, pharmacy, veterinary and other health professions schools.   Using the MMI helps a committee assess candidate’s professionalism, interpersonal skills, ethical and moral judgement.   Other areas that are assessed are cultural awareness, empathy and listening skills, problem solving and judgement.

The Format In a typical MMI interview, a group of 8 candidates progresses through a circuit of six to eight stations where they are asked to answer a question, complete a task or engage in an activity. Each session is approximately 10 minutes in length. After a brief group introduction, each candidate is placed in front of one of the rooms. Next, they will hear a signal and will have two minutes to read a prompt and think about how they will respond to it. At the next signal, the candidates enter the room and have six to eight minutes to respond to the prompt with the interviewer(s). A final signal will be heard and the candidate finishes their sentence, thanks the interviewers, exits and proceeds to the next room. This cycle continues (for about 90 minutes) until the candidate has visited all 8 MMI stations. In some schools, there is a final station that is about 20 minutes in length where a traditional interview is held.

How to Prepare Here are some suggestions to prepare for the MMI interview.

• Practice your answers to MMI questions verbally with a partner. Review websites to gain familiarity with the typical MMI questions. Here are a few: US News MMI Preparation | Portland State University website that has a comprehensive list of resources
• American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC)
• Review a reserve copy of Desai’s book Multiple Mini Interview MMI: Winning Strategies from Admissions Faculty from the OITE library.
• Practice physically moving through a circuit of stations when answering each question to experience what it is like to adapt to new rooms and persons.
• Practice and use the SAR behavioral interview technique so that you are able to describe the behaviors, feelings, and ways you think through a situation.
• Stay abreast of current issues, events, and policies related to health care by viewing the AMA (American Medical Association), American Dental Association, etc. websites.
• University of Minnesota - MMI Overview
• Prepare for ethics and professionalism questions by reviewing the Hippocratic Oath taken by medical students. The University of Washington has a useful site to learn about ethics in medicine to help you prepare. Also review a copy of the Hebert’s book, Doing Right: A Practice Guide to Ethics for Medical Trainees and Physicians or Hope’s book, Medical Ethics: A Very Short Introduction located in the OITE library.

Visit the OITE website to take advantage of our about our premedical resources.  If you are part of our extended readership, we encourage you to visit your college’s pre-med office or the AAMC for more resources to prepare.