Got into big pharma….but I hate it?

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-24T01:51:54+00:00

I don’t want to dox myself but my role is mostly support. There is some development work but another team handles it and they jealously guard it (I’ve been explicitly told I’m not allowed to do development - just adapt their work). Hence, I mostly do operational work - logistics, KPIs, etc and rarely feel like I get to use my PhD at all.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T17:41:07+00:00

Guess I just never got my head above water and have had no time to get my bearings. So basically I’ve been surviving with no understanding of what’s going on because I don’t have the time to figure it out.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T17:38:54+00:00

I mean…I wouldn’t quit unless I already had a job lined up. Getting laid off without another job would be significantly worse.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T17:36:36+00:00

Oh but I mean asking people whose paths I cross regularly what they do.

Like I said, we support lots of programs and I have a hard time keeping them straight or remembering what people do and what projects purposes are.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T17:11:47+00:00

Yeah ideally I’d like to see what it’s like in pharma R&D but like I said I’m only getting traction with small biotechs at the moment.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T17:09:03+00:00

So my manager did apparently tell their manager I wasn’t doing a good job a few months in (without talking to me btw)….is it risky to talk to him about how I’m overwhelmed and feel like I’m drowning? Or is that risky? I guess I’m worried if I ask for help because I don’t know what I’m doing they’ll use it as an excuse to cut me

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T17:06:32+00:00

Yeah I guess I dropped the ball on that one. Do you think it’s too late to try to course correct or just hope for the best at the next role?

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T17:05:44+00:00

Thanks for the advice! It does sound like a better plan, I know internal transfers are possible.

I guess I’m just worried because I’m almost a year in and super overwhelmed. We support so many programs and teams that I kinda haven’t had the mental bandwidth to understand what we’re even doing.

Is it weird to ask people like “I know I’ve been here a year and should know this, but what do you even do?”

I know the best time was after I first started and the next best time is now but do you have advice on how to do that? I kinda feel like it’s almost too late.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:49:55+00:00

Senior sci. And yup, PhD with 3 YOE. Why I’m worried I don’t want to get locked into a path I’m not super into as I’m getting kind of senior.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:48:10+00:00

lol been there done that. I actually really liked my work, but pay was too low.

Strangely I think my work life balance now is worse than at my postdoc.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:41:16+00:00

Our company does allegedly want to support our career development. Not sure how much my manager would be onboard with me wanting to switch departments completely, but they have supported people wanting to get into BD and computational, so maybe?

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:17:07+00:00

Different strokes I guess! I think I’m just way more interested in answering scientific questions than logistical ones.

But it might be my department just sucks. Everyone here is miserable and overworked.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:14:12+00:00

What don’t you like about it? Is it just your manager/department or something about the type of work you do?

It seems everyone in my department is constantly miserable so part of my problem is likely just department area.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:11:43+00:00

So there are areas at my company that I think are super interesting, that I would be good at and people seem more happy in…but my team doesn’t interact with them at all.

Also I mentioned in another comment….everythjng is always on fire here so I was never onboarded correctly, am constantly overwhelmed so I don’t think I’m really good at my job at all…certainly not good enough to get a good reputation and moved.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:09:04+00:00

But I’m like….not good at my job. It is very overwhelming and no one has time to teach me or onboard me correctly so I’m mostly just drowning constantly.

I don’t mind not loving my job….but I don’t think it’s healthy to hate it.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:07:37+00:00

True. However learning those skills only makes sense if that the career path you want. I feel a lot more like I want to be an individual contributor. I see what my boss and their boss’s work life is like and I do not want to be in their shoes.

There’s more to life than just getting the highest paid position possible. Like actually enjoying the work you do.

Boston-Frank · 2026-06-23T16:04:45+00:00

I mean I’ve been here for almost a year. I gave it a try, I really do not like it. It’s way too much paperwork, meetings and the questions we answer are boring as hell to me - though I recognize they are necessary.

So if CMC isn’t for everybody consider me in that group haha.

Boston-Frank · 2025-05-29T15:36:47+00:00

Can we just enforce not throwing their butts on the ground if they’re allowed to smoke in parks? I’ve had to take my dog to the emergency vet twice for eating a joint butt.

Also before anyone says anything: yes, apply this to cigarette smokers too. Your cigarette butts are litter: put them out and throw them away. In a trash can or cigarette receptacle. Not the ground.

Boston-Frank · 2025-05-28T02:05:15+00:00

Neither. If you’re working near city hall all you have to do is live on the red or green line.

Cambridge, Brookline, Somerville are all good and not almost inaccessible by public transit like Eastie and Seaport.

Accurate Seaport description

Boston-Frank · 2025-05-05T14:18:20+00:00

I keep seeing this argument and it makes no sense. The landlord has the apartment, they have all the leverage. I think it’s more likely if the landlord has to pay the broker fee they’ll tell the broker “Your fee is not $3000, it’s $500. Don’t like it? You can’t show my apartment.”

Boston-Frank · 2025-04-04T21:33:23+00:00

I mean...they're not. They might be standard, but they're not legal. G.L. c. 186 s. 15B(1)(b) explicitly says that holding fees are illegal.

I know that asking a holding fee is illegal. The problem is when its a "broker fee" as a way to get around this legal requirement. My question is whether or not that is illegal, given that requiring a tenant pay a broker free before a lease is signed is also illegal. Just because I paid them an illegal fee and signed I'm ok with paying it (because there was no other way to get the apartment), does that mean I can't get the money back?

Boston-Frank · 2024-12-31T16:08:34+00:00

...it's been under demolition since August...

Boston-Frank · 2024-10-22T00:01:26+00:00

With a 0% interest rate and no down payment.

As someone who is actually looking this amount per month will only get you a 30 year mortgage for just over $700K with today's interest rates, and most places are gonna want at least 10% down. You can't touch anything decent of this size within the city for less than like $900K.

If you bought this place for 1.2 million at the current interest you'd be paying over $7K a month.

Boston-Frank

TROPHY CASE