My title is Associate Biochemist 1. I do invitro experiments at a non-profit Bio-tech company. It is a huge research facility that works with many departments such as Chemistry, Biochemistry, Robotics, and Education Policy. I am a part of bio-science where I am a part of the drug development group. My colleagues and I receive new drugs where we do screenings to check to see if it is safe to put out on the market and consumed by humans. We are in the preclinical development stages of a current drug that we're working on to see if there are any possible effects made by the drug. The next phase after the preclinical development is the clinical phase where it goes to humans. I do experiments to test drugs to on how they absorb into the human body; there are four stages that it goes through: absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion. I would grow cancer cell lines and get a sample of each group and measure how much of the drug is in it. We have experiments where it mimics your lunges and stomach so we can see the results afterward.

EDUCATION | I received a BS in Environmental Toxicology BS at UC Davis.

HOW TO GET STARTED | You should be able to take on a lot of laborious work because the actual experiments aren't too exciting, but waiting for the results is something to be excited about. In the end, you're just waiting for that printout, that stack of data, or that export file where you do see how the compounds react with one another. Also, you must be able to be very analytical and very meticulous; this type of work is very detailed oriented because there are a lot of details to consider before you can get your results.

MUST HAVE TRAITS | Great patience, great organization skills, detail oriented, and a lot of character building. You will be frustrated a lot because sometimes the experiments won't work and you would have to retry over and over again. Sometimes you would have to develop your own methods that no one has done before. You are under a lot of pressure if the clock is ticking, but I believe that is the fun part because you get to figure it out; it's kind of like a science project. There are new drugs and compounds that no one has ever done before so you are really on your own. You just basically have to do trial and error, but it can be very time consuming or costly.

how I got started | I always wanted to do something with the environment. I went to my local community college and majored in Environmental Resources, however that made me take a lot of Physics and Calculus classes, which made me realize that I didn't like Physics. Plus, it didn't make sense to me because I wasn't interested in becoming an Environmental Engineer. I also hated Chemistry. Even though it was just basic chemistry, I didn't finish the series; I only took two out of the three classes required. I transferred to Davis and took the Chemistry courses there because I realized that I had to take them anyway, but surprisingly, I ended up liking it while at Davis. I loved Organic Chemistry. I changed my major to Environmental Toxicology during my first week there. I felt like it was more practical of a major for myself. Also, it is very broad with many branches within that field such as Forensics and Pharmacy. For me, I just didn't care about the velocity of a train and cannot imagine myself applying physics into my everyday life.

why this job?| When I was at Davis, I was doing an internship/work-study program. I worked for over a year in a lab near campus. First, I worked in a lab where we studied pulmonary toxicology and I was looking through a microscope and analyzing slides of animals who have been pre-exposed to different conditions like smoking, air particles, and air pollutants. My job was to analyze the slides and figure if their exposure causes an effect that can possibly happen to humans. To see if it can correlate to humans, the lab work is done at the the academia lab, which is a learning lab on campus. It is a great place to grow because you get to think on your own; no one is looking over your shoulder and figuring out your results for you. I liked how I had the freedom to understand my work. I then changed into a new lab which is considered as a "wet lab." This is where I get to work with DNA, RNA, and learned a lot of other techniques that would be beneficial for me later on. After I graduated, I started looking for work and sent my resume to a lot of places. I tried looking for entry-level jobs but a lot of the job postings asked for people with Ph.D's and Masters I chose my current job now because is a Molecular Toxicology lab where we dealt with a lot of DNA levels and protein levels. This was also during the time when the economy plummeted so it made my search more difficult and frustrating. I took two months before I found a job. I was pretty lucky that I found this job. It was really random, but I was on the Marie Claire website and there was a job search tab; I typed in “toxicology” and found a position that matched my qualifications. A week later, I got a call to come in for an interview and rest is history.

why I love this job!| My colleagues and I work with a lot of important drugs that deal with TB. I am doing a drug that is easier to obtain and cheaper to buy for under-developed countries. We are constantly fighting the bacteria. Not only do I get to work on typical diseases, but as well as rare diseases that have low funding because they're so rare. I like the idea that I am able to make a difference in the world and helping others. I like that each day is different from the last; I get to do different things every day and get to work with different projects, challenges, and compounds. I get to learn different techniques and different kinds of tools that help further my qualifications. I also like writing the protocol reports. I feel like I have a voice in the experiments that we do and it makes me feel even more accomplished in my work. Also, this is a very stable job. We don't get really big raises, but at least we don't get salary cuts.

my typical day| I come in the morning at 9AM and check my emails. When I assigned a project, I first talk to people that I work with and figure out what I need to do. I then would have to write up a protocol or get it from somewhere and tweak it a bit to fit the purpose of our experiments. I also would have to prepare for the experiments, such as making labels, buying supplies and equipment, receiving samples and logging samples, making solutions, and then I would actually do the experiments myself. After experiments, I analyze my own data and make charts, line graphs, and bar graphs to see my results. If I am not doing experiments, I am making sure that all the equipment are up to date, calibrated, and call people to fix the machines. I make appointments and make purchase orders. It's kind of like administration work. I know we have a person to do that, but it takes longer to tell her to do it because she's not too sure of what to do. I know what I want and need and I just do it myself to get the job done quicker, instead of spending my time explaining to her what I want. Other than labs and experiments, I plan events within the company, such as new hire parties, holiday parties, and organize Secret Santa to make things interesting at work. I leave at the end of the day at 5PM.

what they are | For me, the challenge is working with older people that are there. They are all in their 30's or older. Another challenge is not yet having a higher degree to permit me to do other things that I would like to do. I do some method development, but I would like to do more. Another major challenge is being under time pressure and budget pressure. Sometimes priority is switched back and forth out of no where. You have to be very flexible. We're not entirely academia; we're half industry and half academia or in between. Academia has little funding and the facilities are small. We're not too shabby or too high tech. We won't be making as much money as the industry facilities, yet we don't make as little as the academia facilities.

all about growth | There is a lot of knowledge growth, but for my position, it is hard to grow in title because a lot of people have much more experience and a much higher level of education. This is just a stepping stone for me to understand my field and it also made me realize that I can utilize my skills at a different place. I am thinking about getting my Masters, but I am not sure if I should stay within my field or focus on a different branch. I feel like this job will help me steer in the right direction for what's best for me.

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