[Music] Concert Choir: Merry Christmas...Merry Christmas...Merry Christmas...to...you.
Up on the housetop Reindeer pause, Out jumps good old Santa Claus. Down thru’ the chimney with lots of toys, All for the little ones,Christmas joys.
Ho, ho, ho! Ho, ho, ho! Who wouldn’t go! Who wouldn't go! Ho, ho, ho! Ho, ho, ho! Who wouldn’t go! Up on the housetop, Click, click, click, Down thru’ the chimney with good Saint Nick.
Deck the hall with boughs of holly, Fa la la la la, la la la la 'Tis the season to be jolly, Fa la la la la, la la la la
Don we now our gay apparel, Fa la la la la, la la la la Troll the ancient Yuletide carol, Fa la la la la, la la la la
See the blazing yule before us, Fa la la la la, la la la la Strike the harp and join the chorus, Fa la la la la, la la la
Follow me in merry measure, Fa la la la la, la la la la, fa la la la la, la la… While I tell of yuletide treasure, Fa la la la la, la la la...la.
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree, How lovely are your branches! O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree, How lovely are your branches!
In beauty green you'll always grow, In Summer sun and Winter snow O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree, How lovely are your branches!
Jingle Jingle Jingle Jingle Jingle Jingle Jingle Jingle Jingle all the way. Dashing through the snow, Dashing through the snow, In a one-horse open sleigh, In a one-horse open sleigh, O'er the fields we go, O'er the fields we go, Laughing all the way, Ha ha ha
Bells on bobtails ring, Bells on bobtails ring, Making spirits bright, Making spirits bright, What fun it is to ride and sing, A sleighing song tonight. Oh, Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all the way, Oh, what fun it is to ride, n a one-horse open sleigh, hey!
Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all the way, Oh, what fun it is to ride, In a one-horse open sleigh. Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all the way, Oh, what fun it is to ride, In a one-horse open sleigh.
Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all the way, Oh, what fun it is to ride, In a one-horse open sleigh. Hey! Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all the way, Oh, what fun it is to ride, In a one-horse open sleigh.
Jolly old Saint Nicholas, Lean your ear this way, Don't you tell a single soul, What I'm going to say Christmas Eve is coming soon, Now, you dear old man, Whisper what you'll bring to me, Tell me if you can.
Jolly old Saint Nick...Jolly old Saint Nick...Jolly old Saint Nick. He's coming to your house tonight. Jolly old Saint Nick...Jolly old Saint Nick...Jolly old Saint Nick. He's coming...to...your...house...tonight....
Merry Christmas...Merry Christmas...Merry Christmas...to...you...
Samantha Sale: Alright well hello everybody. And first, I just want to thank the Moorpark College concert choir for their holiday music as we
get warmed up for tonight's event. Like to welcome you all to the second Moorpark College Foundation Job Ready Alumni Forum and tonight's spotlight is on our Biotechnology program.
And I'm very proud to say that the event this evening is sponsored by to Takeda,
and that's because I myself am an employee of Takeda, but I am also a brand new member of the Moorpark College Foundation. So I'm very excited to have joined. I have
Over 20 years of experience in the retail insurance and biotech industries as an HR supporting leader and very proud to represent both to Takeda and the Moorpark College Foundation tonight.
I can say I have seen firsthand the quality of the candidates that we've been able to place into internships and full time positions at Takeda.
So, tonight's forum is really an opportunity to learn about CE or career education programs. Many of these programs at Moorpark can be completed in one year and
at any point if you're interested in getting more information on the 23 different programs available, you can do so by going to at moorparkcollege.edu backslash CE.
So, tonight's forum, I'd like to just put a little plug is created by the Moorpark College Foundation and we're doing this for students, potential students, and the community, any individuals who are
interested in currently attending or just wondering about a career in biotechnology.
And this is a great opportunity for some successful alumni to share their experiences at Moorpark as well as in the biotechnology industry.
And you'll get to hear from them individually about their personal journey from student to professional,
as well as get some insight from an industry professional who hint hint is from Takeda as a potential employer with,
you know, an industry that has Internship and career opportunities for students.
So I would like to introduce my co-host tonight he is a faculty member here, and we'll be able to provide additional insights on the breadth and depth of the program.
It's my pleasure to introduce Dr. Subhash Karkare, faculty lead in Biotechnology at Moorpark College and
prior to joining Moorpark College in 2007 Subhash spent four years consulting for biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.
He spent 16 years with Amgen in various capacities of increasing responsibility starting as a research scientist and ending as an associate director in manufacturing.
He has a PhD in Biochemical Engineering from Rutgers University and has published more than 20 papers. So welcome Subhash.
[Subhash Karkare]: Thank you, Samantha. [Samantha]: Great.
So, Subhash, can you briefly describe the Moorpark College Biotech program and introduce our alumni for tonight?
Subhash: I'd be happy to. So as you know, biotechnology is a rapidly growing industry with projections of continued and exciting opportunities for employment.
The Biotech program at Moorpark College is one of the few in the state with a comprehensive curriculum in bio manufacturing. It was designed in consultation with members of the local industry like Takeda, and ThermoFisher, and Amgen,
to provide essential job skills and manufacturing skills that are needed in the industry. Our program is designed to be a very hands on program.
Students often have a misconception that you need a very strong background in math and science to enter and succeed in our program,
but in fact, we offer many options where students can start working in the industry within one or two years of starting college. For example, we offer a one year manufacturing operator certificate,
or a one year medical device manufacturing certificate, and a two year certificate of achievement in biotechnology.
These certificates are also an excellent way for adult learners to start a new career in biotechnology.
Of course, students also have the option of getting an associate degree and transferring to a four year college. So we have three
of our alumni here today. All of them, my students. And I'd like to introduce them to you today. First, I'd like to introduce Beatris Cruz. She's an agile champion at Takeda. Beatris began her career as a manufacturing associate working in upstream and bulk drug substance manufacturing.
Exploring various roles Beatris has served as an operations analyst and supervisor responsible for a team of nine investigators for the Deviation CAPA Management department. This year, she took on a new role as Agile Champion supporting continuous improvement initiatives site wide.
Beatris has her BS degree in Biology and a minor in Chicana/ Chicano studies from San Diego State University and holds an Associate of Science degree in Biotechnology from Moorpark College. So welcome Beatris.
[Beatris Cruz]: Thank you. Thank you, Sam. Thank you Subhash. I'm really excited to be here with us tonight. [Subhash]: Okay.
Subhash: And then I'd like to introduce Ryan Zastrow. He's an associate scientist at Amgen.
Following the completion of the Biotech program at Moorpark College, Ryan transferred to Cal State Northridge where he received a BS degree in Cell and Molecular Biology.
Ryan has held positions in clinical manufacturing, research, and process development and is currently an associate scientist for cell line development at Amgen.
Ryan is is passionate about his role in the field of biotech, which allows them to explore new and exciting discoveries in the field of Oncology research while working to improve the lives of the patients he serves.
So welcome, Ryan.
Ryan Zastrow: Hey Subhash. Hey everybody. Glad to be here.
Subhash: And last but not least, Uriel Gamboa is an operator in the molecular pre-production team at Thermo Fisher Scientific.
Uriel originally started at Moorpark College as a Nursing major until he took a Microbiology course and he decided he wanted to work in a lab setting.
In January 2020, Uriel began in internship at Thermo Fisher and was hired on after completing the program. Uriel is currently working on his Bachelor's degree at Cal State Northridge. Now I want to welcome everybody. And now, Samantha will introduce our industry professional.
Samantha: Okay thanks Subhash. Well I have the pleasure of introducing tonight's industry professional as I work alongside him. So Daniel Armstrong.
Daniel began his career as a swing shift assistant supervisor at Allergan where he transitioned to supporting product complaints.
He then joined Amgen regained experience and a variety of quality focus roles before moving to a strategic planning position where he was responsible for executing contract manufacturing agreements.
Upon joining Takeda, Daniel continued to support contract manufacturing partnerships until he assumed his current role as head of the Thousand Oaks site quality team just 14 months ago.
Daniel holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Masters of Business Administration from Pepperdine University. So now, we'd love to hear from our panel. So take it away Subhash.
Subhash: Alright, so my first question is simply, can you tell briefly, can you briefly tell us about a little bit about your company?
Beatris: Sure, I can go first. So I have the pleasure of working for Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Takeda Pharmaceuticals is a patient focused global biopharma company
committed to manufacturing life changing treatments for rare diseases. Specifically at our site at Thousand Oaks are life saving treatment is focused around our hemophilia community.
There we manufacture injectable biologics or proteins which aid in the blood clotting process. We have a motto at our site. Every vial has a name.
And this motto has a very special meaning to all of us employees. As each vial is manufactured and shipped out from our site it is destined for someone who depends on our medication each and every day.
Subhash: Great, Ryan.
Ryan: Sure. Yeah so I work for Amgen. It's great company. It's one of the world's leading biotech companies and
we develop innovative medicines that have reached millions of people in the fight against serious illnesses. We focus on six therapeutic areas Cardiovascular disease, Oncology, bone health, Neuroscience, Nephrology, and inflammation.
And we're usually addressing diseases where there's limited treatment options or
there really isn't a medicine available that as a viable option. So yeah, I'm happy to be working for them.
Subhash: And last but not least, Uriel.
Uriel Gamboa: Hi everybody. I work for Thermo Fisher Scientific, more specifically in the West Hills branch and
our site, we work closely with transplant patients more with a using
antibody assays to help get the necessary data for transplant patients to get the organs that they desperately need. I myself am working for the molecular pre production team at our site. And it's been a pleasure to work with them.
Subhash: Great. So my next question is to share with us how you came to Moorpark College and how you found your way into biotechnology?
Maybe you can continue Uriel.
Uriel: So, as stated earlier, I went to Moorpark for my Nursing degree thinking that I was going to go pre-med and I took a cell culture class. I really enjoyed working in a lab setting. I liked getting very hands on.
I loved everything about it. And afterwards, I had a change in career path and my teacher recommended me to the biotech
community. So after setting up an interview with Subhash I enrolled quickly in the Biotech program and soon after, after completing the program, I was able to
get an internship at Thermo Fisher Scientific and again once that ended, and I was offered, you know, a part time, full time position and I'm still pursuing my education.
Subhash: Beatris, you've had a similar thing right? You are going to go into pre med I think?
Beatris: I did so my first, you know, thought in my higher education was actually to move into pre med and become a pediatrician, but,
you know, things change life takes different tools. And so after transferring from Moorpark my I was at Moorpark for three years and I transferred over to San Diego State and I received my degree in Biology. Prior to that, though, when I was first
signing up for my classes at San Diego State, you know, of course, the path of pre-med and you're introduced to some of the courses and you know for some, you know, as, as Uriel mentioned you either like it or it's not a path that you decide to take. So,
I actually took a seminar, which was like a six week course that San Diego State offered really biotech, and it really interested me
so I continued through that whole course. It just, it was still really new. I mean, it's something this profession that was absolutely evolving. Right? So when I graduated from San Diego State I had the opportunity of being hired our company was Baxter, at the time, so
I was hired a year after I graduated and
Moorpark College was actually had career day and they were advertising
their program. And I know that quite a few colleagues of ours had already attended the program and even taught classes there. And so it just really sparked my interest and I decided to pursue
an Associates in Science and Biotech, and I just really enjoyed it. The hands on experience, the networking. You know, I see the people here on the panel and, you know, quite a few people just the names resonate to me and Ryan's especially because he was a classmate of mine and Bash's,
you know, one of our first classes with you Subhash and we would sit in the back of the lab and a colleague of ours in class also she ends up
working for us as well. And her name is Jennifer (last name indiscernable) through so she ended up being a direct report of mine. So that's how I know Ryan, you know, very familiar. [Samantha]: Big industry small world,
right?
[Beatris]: Absolutely. [Ryan]: Yeah.
For sure.
You learn that, that biotech is definitely a small world, or at least it feels that way, even though it might not be but
yeah, we're I'm always running into former colleagues. I think my first job out of college I ran into, one of the jobs, I was at,
my coworker Carlos Mendoza. I was like, "Gosh, he looks so familiar. Did you take the biotech program?" And he's like, "Oh yeah, I think we were in the same class together." So it's just it's just really neat to see
how many lives its touched and how its really matters because, I mean, there's a lot of people that I've met in biotech program that I now get to seen in the industry. So it's great. As
far as my journey, gosh, started while ago I have, I have two kids. I have a two year old and a 16 year old. So there is a little bit of
an age difference there. Now, at the time I was going to college my 16 year old was a lot younger. So I was providing for her. And so I was, I
was working full time did mostly sales, bunch of odd jobs. And so while I was working full time Moorpark really helped me out because I knew. Okay I want to get higher education, but it worked with my hours.
My degrees changed a lot or my major changed a lot during that time. I started out as a Civil Engineering major because that's what my dad did, and then one of my jobs was with civil engineers and I realized I didn't want to do that.
And so
I remember that one of the Biology classes that I took at Moorpark with Katherine Courtney. She was amazing. I loved the class. I loved Biology. And she said, "Gosh, you know,
I know you really like Biology. You seem pretty good at it. Why don't you get biotech try?" and I said, "Okay, I guess so."
I looked into it and I was like, gosh it, you know, it kind of marries this whole, you know, science, along with helping people. And I thought, "Well, I love that combo. So I'll give it a try." And the biotech program sounded really neat. So I decided to enroll and
was in some of the first classes with Subhash teaching. I was with with Beatris in the back, and it was it was a lot of fun and a lot of hands on work and I just, I loved it. And so I've never looked back. From there transferred to CSUN got my, graduated and went to Amgen. So that's my story.
Subhash: All right. So having been in the industry for a while now, how do you think your experiences at Moorpark prepared you for the workplace?
Maybe you can continue.
Ryan: Yeah, gosh, it prepared me so much. It's hard to describe just how useful these classes were especially during my time at CSUN. I noticed a lot of the students that I was, you know, graduating with
they were able to graduate without really doing almost any like hands on lab work. I mean, some of them were able to get away with just doing cell counting and
that was about it. You know? Where here we are in our classes, you know, working with bioreactors where, you know, downing we're using a septic technique or doing cell culture, which is just amazing. I really, it's not something you usually see
when you're going to school and I mean I was able to do that to continue that when I was at CSUN
because I chose to and it really helped me get to where I wanted to be into the labs I wanted to be at and CSUN because I had that
technical and it... [Subhash]: Ryan? [Ryan]: really really helped me.
[Subhash]: Ryan? [Ryan]: Yes?
Subhash: We have a question. What did you study at CSUN?
Ryan: Oh Cell and Molecular Biology.
[Subhash]: Okay, thank you. [Ryan]: Yeah.
Beatris: As Ryan, oh I'm sorry Subhash.
Subhash: Go ahead. Go ahead.
Beatris: As Ryan mentioned, you know, just and so did Sam the, the real small world that you have around it's a really small tight knit community, right? So for me and my experience,
the Biotech classes really helped me to connect the dots, especially taking them concurrently while I was working my first job,
my first position as a manufacturing associate in the cell culture department. It really helped me to connect the dots. It brought back the
the fundamentals, the foundation of the sciences, even though I already had a degree in Biology, but I mean you learn so much the industry really, you know, teaches you a lot, and then having these courses, taking them side by side, which was an advantage for me especially for
as Ryan mentioned people, adults working at night and trying I'm sorry during the day and taking the classes at night is a great
opportunity.
I know for myself when,
you know, I decided to finish pursuing my degree in Biology,
it's a whole world that you have out there. Biology is just the fundamentals and the basics for the bigger picture in in the sciences right now. So definitely
the opportunity to meet people, the networking, the hands on and the fundamentals of biotech.
Samantha: I just wanted to give Subhash a plug there, he talked about networking and
he's a really great advocate for the students. I know, you know, he knows them by name. And you know, when I just started with Takeda when I first joined,
you know, he was right there. We had him come in to teach some of our employees about the industry, but he was there to help advocate for his students. So he's definitely there for you. [Beatris]: Yeah.
He definitely sends up- [Ryan]: Sure. [Beatris]: to get a job, and I'm sure Uriel can probably, you know, attest to some of the emails that he sends out and job opportunities that are out in the industry.
Uriel: Yeah, I mean, you know, I don't want to say my experiences aren't enough, but, you know, if I hadn't received that email that day from Subhash,
you know, I probably wouldn't be where I am now.
And, you know, as you mentioned, Beatris and Ryan too the experiences that I had in the classes were, you know, outstanding. You know, when I talked about working with bioreactors when I talked about, you know, all my work with GDP which is an industry term, you know, good documentation practices.
When I talked about my experiences counting a septic technique, working with a lot of the equipment,
you know they were you know my interviewers route which is, you know, dumbfounded. They were like, Oh, you did all this?
You know what university? You know how long was the program?" And I was like, "Oh, you know, it was
like, you know, the techniques that I learned there was, you know, in one semester they grow on each other but you know specifically just working with the reactor
it was, you know, one semester," and you know it's it's amazing experiences and the skills that I had received, there were just, you know,
incredible.
Subhash: I heard you were a little, little
mad at me,
you know, during the gowning exam.
Uriel: Oh, yeah.
Nobody tell my supervisor, but,
I did, I did fail the the bunny suit,
which is, you know, to simply put, it's a full almost looks like a hazmat suit or a personal protective equipment, you know, PPE. And I remember during our practical, I kind of tripped over both my feet and I'm on the floor, you know, hands down. I'm like,
I just looked up and I was like,
"Can I, can I, can I just like restart?"
Ryan: We've all we've all been there. I remember
you know, trying that too in class and putting that line down and
Subhash explaining that I needed to, you know, gown in while stepping over the line. And I'm like, "I am not that coordinated and I have to do this with gloves on and this giant suit. So I don't know how I'm going to do it."
We made it work. You know, practice makes perfect.
Right? Now, I'm sure we're all pretty good at it. But yeah, I do remember it was not easy, but an awesome skill to learn.
Uriel: Yes.
Ryan: And you kind of look like the Michelin man once you're gowned up. It's kind of funny.
Beatris: Yeah.
Subhash: So,
one last question.
Can you tell us about some of the positive aspects of your career?
Who wants to jump in?
Ryan: Oh, I, I start?
I mean,
like we were saying before, I mean biotech is does feel like a very small world. You run into people all the time and the networking really really helps with that and
it was just so great to see so many people from the industry coming to volunteer during the program and giving their insights into industry and seeing that carry over to, you know, my career I it's it is
just amazing to be able to interact. I mean, there's a lot of people that taught there and were from Amgen and still work at Amgen and I still keep in contact with them. So that's pretty awesome. I would say to like in my line of work it's
exciting because we're at the cutting edge when it comes to finding new therapies for people. On the one hand, you know,
you, you're, you're dealing with the science side of things where it's very exciting it's very new and at the same time, you know that at the end of the day, what you're doing is is helping people and that
that's a great feeling, you know? It's good to know that the work I'm doing will potentially help somebody or potentially save their life, which is great. And as bonus I get to play with lots of really cool toys. So
one toy I work with for cloning actually moves cells around with boxes of light, which sounds like Science Fiction, but it's not so yeah.
Beatris: I definitely have to agree with Ryan, you know, just the industry that we work in it's very, it's a very humbling industry.
It is a very giving industry because we do have people and those people are our patients that are
there waiting for you know their medicine, you know, we are very fortunate to be essential, especially during these times.
And I know that at work we've had quite a few experiences with patient visits. Unfortunately, this year, you know, due to the circumstances with Covid we couldn't
have the patient on site, but didn't do a Zoom meeting with us. And this one particular patient was just so thankful.
It really puts a lot into perspective when it comes to your daily work. I think the biotech industry and and the learnings from the biotech program that really teach a lot of discipline. They teach you to,
you know, learn as you go like Uriel mentioned the classes build upon each other and it's the same exact thing in the industry, your knowledge just builds upon each other.
And so it's a very fruitful industry that allows for us to be very thankful for what we have. And I know having those patient interactions and
just give you though a different perspective when there's days that you just are, It's a tiresome day or it could be, you know, a stressful day at work, but all in the end
that one patient is expecting that one vial of medication and hence our motto every vital has a name. So, it is a great industry that has taught me a lot, and I know that for those that are here, you know with us in this forum,
especially a lot of the, the younger generation who doesn't know exactly where to go or what to do in a career path it's amazing, you know, give it a chance.
Subhash: I think we can go to Daniel now Samantha.
Samantha: Yeah with that said, I'd love to ask, Daniel a few questions. He's been sitting patiently waiting to chime in. So,
so thank you, Daniel. So, can you tell me a little bit about what you as an employer and, you know, keep in mind me too, but how we as employers, what we look for in internship candidates coming from Moorpark College?
Daniel Armstrong: Yeah and Moorpark College is a great program. And I have a little bit of first hand experience. So when I made my journey from Allergan which is a medical device company and I went to Amgen that's essentially night and day technology.
And I remember being very new and not knowing what's going on and so I took a career on the floor to try to learn what people do on the floor exactly what Uriel, Ryan and
Beatris were talking about is, is what do those manufacturing operators do?
And even that was a complete different career path. So I remember there was a lady that I was going through who actually had the book from the Moorpark College program and she gave it to me and I kept it with me in my 11 years at Amgen
until the day I left and then I gifted it to someone else, because I always pull that out as a reference. So I think that, you know, personally, it's a great it's a great program.
And being able to take a few minutes today and support it and let you know how much it's meant to me personally is fantastic. So thank you.
I think as far as an employer we at Takeda, at Amgen, and any other company we're always looking for people that are highly driven highly interested in going after a career.
So we, we make a very concerted effort to to look for interns to go out of our way to try to find interns that want to pursue careers in this kind of a field because it's fascinating.
And I think programs like Moorpark, give you a little bit of a leg up from from the other people that are going after because it shows passion, it shows interest, and
from an employer, that's exciting to know that people are out there, they're going through
they're willing to you know spend their time getting an education, even more importantly, now they're thinking about their career and where they want to go. So, from an employer, you know, that very positive. Couldn't speak more highly of that as a career path.
Samantha: Would you limit it to internship candidates? Would you see people coming into roles straight from Moorpark College?
Daniel: Oh, yeah. So even more broadly. Absolutely. You know, an intern is just one way into the career.
But I would say just going through the program and if you're driven look for those positions at companies like that the Takedas and look at the Amgens, because even if, intern, is just one way to get into the into the
the career. There's a I didn't do it. There's a lot of people that didn't choose that path, but still ended up with very promising careers. So as an employer in the local community, Moorpark College's a great feeder into especially the site that I worked at.
[Samantha]: Yeah. We had a... [Dainel]: So look for... [Samantha]: Oh I'm sorry. [Daniel]: Go ahead Sam.
Samantha: Oh, we had a couple questions. You know, asking about, do you have to have an internship first. I think we've addressed, you know, you don't.
I think others asked if you could go back to school while you're working. I think we have two examples of individuals here you have done that. So I think we have a great,
you know, demonstration here today have a variety of ways to land in your career during after school. So Daniel,
when we're looking, when we're talking about biotech, right, sometimes it's really easy to think you have to be an AP Bio student for to end up in a career in biotechnology, what would you say to that?
Daniel: So first hand experience, I am not a biologist by by trade. So if you're looking for a career it is not the only way and it is just one way in.
But speaking from experience, if you look at the industry it's very diverse. Science and Biology is just one component of it.
If you're looking for other things within the biotech industry, but you still want to be as part of the industry there, there's a magnitude of positions supply chain, business planning,
things outside of just the research or the or the science driven field. So don't let that be a hindrance to you.
Speaking from experience. There's, there's lots of different ways and lots of really rewarding careers to get into. So it helps. Sure.
It would have helped me a little bit more than then I realized, but the, like I said, you just go after it. And as Beatris said the people in the industry,
highly driven, highly knowledgeable, and love to talk about what they do. So I think if you get into it with no experience if you're
interested and you want to seek people out, and mentors, and other people that have those experiences, it's you want at least I have not run into anybody that's not willing to help you, so please don't let that background keep you from choosing a career, such as this.
Samantha: Great and I'll open this up to any of you before we open up to the Q&A from our attendees, but what advice would you give anyone who's considering or
interested in the current
Biotech in the Moorpark College program?
Beatris: I think the advice that I would give if you are, as I mentioned, if you're pursuing a career in the sciences just don't limit yourself to those opportunities, right? Don't have that
I know sometimes we have these desires and our heart set on a particular career path, you know, such as myself, but things change. Your life changes. Give yourself the opportunity to explore,
you know, up and coming careers, which is in the biotech industry. If you happen as Daniel mentioned, if you happen to major in something else but it sparks your interest don't deny yourself of that opportunity. We do have quite a few diverse backgrounds, you know,
colleagues in our company and they are all key components, you know, people at our company that really help to, you know,
move forward with the manufacturing process in our company we have from engineers to, you know, HR, to my role what we do here, continuous improvement.
There's our quality side. So there's a lot of different avenues that will get you into a path if it's just, you know, if it's of interest to you in biotech, and it doesn't always have to be a science based but as far as this program goes, I would highly recommend it because it dabbles in every aspect of the industry.
Subhash: So following up on that, there is a question.
What would you say to a student who is discouraged to go into science and math related fields such as biotechnology?
Ryan: I would say. I can answer this is just keep an open mind. I think that when you're,
you know, looking into anything as a prospective career it's important to get some hands on experience.
You know, if you're if you're looking into, say, being a dentist and it might be a good idea to shadow a dentist and see what they do. I mean, in my case I shadowed a civil engineer and I was like, "That's definitely not what I wanted to do."
It helped out I was a vet tech for a little bit. I was like, "Nope. Don't want to be a veterinarian either." I love animals just don't want to deal with that other stuff, so.
I think that
when it comes to like the, like this biotech program, it's great because it does give you that hands on experience. I mean, you
you're literally working with your hands. You get to see firsthand. "Okay, this is what I could be doing in this in this career path." And so I would say, yeah, just to give it a chance and see what it's like to really
work in that sort of setting, you know, in a hood, for instance, or with a bioreactor or or I mean there's other aspects that this program also covers too like codes and federal regulations for instance.
All sorts of really neat things that are like Beatris said there, they were like cross functional they touched so many different areas. Biotech is it's very sprawling very large field to explore. So, yeah give it a chance.
Uriel: I think I would also agree with a Beatris and Ryan.
You know, just going into the program, especially at my site. It's not just, you know, scientists and, you know, doing a lot of math, it's, you know, engineering, you know, when the equipment goes down.
There's IT, you know, with everything being electronic now you know we always need, you know, technical support.
As Beatris said,
Public PR.
We need HR, you know, there's, you know, you, you know, you shouldn't just limit yourself just because you hear biotech. It's not don't be serious like, "Oh, I'm gonna need, you know, Calc or Ochem," you know,
there's a lot of different paths you can take within the realm of biotech. So I mean, always, you know, always keep an open mind. You never know. You know, you're...
Beatris: If you can avoid Calc and Ochem,
by all means. [Uriel]: Oh yeah.
I wouldn't, you know, wish Ochem on, you know, my worst enemy or anybody else. [Ryan]: Oh yeah...I don't miss Ochem at all. [Beatris]: Me neither.
Subhash: All of you, how much Calc have you done on your job? How much calculus have you done?
Beatris: Probably none.
[Uriel]: No. [Ryan]: How much I've done or
how much of my my
machines done for me?
[Uriel]: I think the only time... [Ryan]: Me not so much... [Uriel]: I've done Calc I think when I'm like talking like we're on the coffee station. I'm like, "Oh yeah, I remember Calc,
worst semester of my life." [Uriel and Ryan laugh]
Beatris: The industry teaches you a lot. I mean, the expectation is
is not that you are a super, super human you know that has every knowledge and every aspect of the industry, it's it really will help you
you have a lot of experienced colleagues. You know, both Uriel, and Ryan mentioned is, the mentorship. You try to shadow someone, and we do that at work as well. If we're moving career paths within the company it's highly encouraged to be able to shadow somebody
in that special department and is it what you want to do? Possibly not, but you give it a chance. Right? You,
you know, you have a lot of opportunities to be able to reach out.
Samantha: Yeah, thank you Beatris for that plug for I feel like might seem so I mean one piece of advice I would give to anybody
in any industry, but especially from what I've seen, being here at Takeda is you've got to be open, right? So you come in and you learn one thing, but you just never know. I mean,
Beatris when you started would you have thought like, "I'm going to be in continuous improvement and helping drive site strategies for fine tuning operations and you know..."
Beatris: Not at all for me that lingo seems so foreign right, when you're first have that entry level job and I was just mesmerized to be inside the manufacturing area and then looking at the bio reactors and it was just, it was huge. It was like a different world, but
never, never did. I think that like, as I mentioned, it's the networking. It's the reaching out to others. And, you know, we rely on HR as well. You know, how, what can we do, and how can we have that,
you know, shared knowledge and career path movement across the site?
[Samantha]: Yeah if you're that person always raising their hand to learn something new, it's really hard to get passed over so. [Beatris]: Absolutely.
Daniel: Same and I think you know if anyone is discouraged about,
you know, or concerned about how to get into the career I think if you look back at, you know, at the end of your career and the contributions, you want to make I think being in a field like this where you're
day to day, you know, making a difference in someone's lives, you know, whether you're at Amgen or somewhere else, you know, the medicines you make end up helping children and people in society in general and
it's, it can be tough but I think when you look back on the kind of impact that you want to have
a career, such as this is so impactful and getting into this industry, regardless of your background, regardless of what you do
so many opportunities as Beatris said, continuous improvement, and supply chain, and business analytics. You can come at it from so many different ways and
and I just encourage you to think about you know what it is, what you want your legacy to be and what you want to do,
and then think about what career is going to help you get there and look at Amgen and Takeda and some of these other companies, you know, great opportunities. So don't let anything slow you down if you want to get there. Use the Moorpark College program and anything else you can.
Ryan: I would say too from personal experience. I mean, I've since I've entered the biotech industry I've hopped around a bit and different departments. I started out in clinical manufacturing and then went to research and now I'm in a process to help all
have their own sort of rhythms to follow and they're all a little bit different but in all of them I found that
the program has helped me for sure. I can, I can see that, you know, what I am able to apply what I've learned at Moorpark College at the Biotech program to each one of these different departments, so. It's pretty awesome.
Subhash: Ryan while you are there. Is it possible, is it possible that Dr. Peplinski was your principal or teacher at Moorpark High School?
Ryan: Oh, gosh.
Now you're dating me because it's been so long since I've graduated.
Subhash: He's attending. He's attending this webinar.
Ryan: Really wow alright, well cool.
Hey doc. [Subhash laughs]
Samantha: So, so we got a question earlier, and I'd be curious to hear from you all, you know, as far as your employers do they support continuing education? Support your any continuing education while you're working financially?
Beatris: Yes, absolutely. For now our company, especially very flexible hours. It's also just being very transparent with your, your supervisor to letting them know that education is a big part of your, your career and
I know that, you know, for myself, I was able to work day shift and, you know, take the program classes at night. And we also have
reimbursement for the education and I believe it's also
I think we have it for the graduate program as well. So we have undergraduate and graduate program
support.
Ryan: Yeah.
Same with Amgen they're very supportive of
higher education.
Daniel: Yeah, and I've actually used
it across three different companies, Allergan, Amgen, and Takeda. [Ryan]: Nice.
Daniel: I've used it every step of the
way so I do you find that this industry is very supportive of continuing career. They generally want because I think they believe
the more people are driven in the more they're passionate about continuing their own education, the hole in the collectible will improve. So, I, I've used the program throughout my career to continue my education throughout.
Uriel: I mean me just recently, I
guess moving on, from my internship.
I, you know, you're thinking internship and you're, you know, you're hoping for compensation, but the fact that I was able to be partaking in a paid internship, you know, amazing experience within a company and all the while they were very flexible with my hours, you know, I would
Monday I think Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and I do general work day, you know, the good old nine to five and then get home and, you know, then have to do Calc but,
you know, doing my classes, you know at night or, you know, doing a whole day classes, you know, on the off days like Tuesday Thursdays,
you know, just being transparent with your manager. Letting your supervisor know, like, "Hey,
you know, my schedule's gonna be changing next semester, or what not. They were very, you know, very encouraging to keep studying because, you know, I, thankfully, I'm still, I'm still with Thermo but if that weren't the case,
I'm thankful. I'm thankful that they were able to accommodate to my schedule.
Samantha: So I'm going to take a couple of questions from the Q&A that's being submitted, but just a reminder to anyone else who's on the line,
please do feel free to continue to submit your questions, we'll keep going through these while we have time. So,
I see someone, Michael mentioned that the Ventura Capital Company based in Conejo Valleys announced they have a 500 million funding
rpoject for biotech companies in the Thousand Oaks area. So I just think that's a great call out that was
an article that just was released this week and I just think it speaks to the opportunities that are available now and in the future, you know, this is going to be a growing, you know. As much as I,
you know, love to see all these companies working together, I'm also like thinking, "Oh, there's so much talent online. There's so much talent out there. How do we get it because we need it right?"
So it's just it's a great you know challenge to have is having, you know, opportunities for great talent. So.
Alright, so, you know, let's see what other questions we have? "As a previous student did you find employer info sessions that attended your school did you find that valuable, and if so, what did you find valuable. What kind of information did you glean from that, that helped you?"
Uriel: I mean I can, I can go ahead and start with that one. I definitely remember when I was in a lot of Subhash's classes, we would have a lot of
alumni actually come in or we have, you know,
people from Amgen, people from Takeda come in and they would,
you know, they'd be like, "Hi," and I was, you know, they talked about the opportunities or alumni would be like, "Well I was, you know,
a couple semesters I was in that seat, you know, just where you are." And the thing I got most of it I think was the interview process of building a
I've only ever had to, you know, work with a job resume. You know, like, "Oh, I'm going to work as a bartender, gonna be a barista,"and getting a resume like that. But getting a professional resume and definitely was I think one of the biggest impacts that I got out of it.
Like they had a little, a little seminar in our class and we just, you know, we got our experiences in our education and we're, we were able to just build a resume for the professional world.
Ryan: Yeah I mean it's, it's really cool to have people from the industry come and describe what they do and go into detail
that you probably wouldn't normally hear by or read about, you know,
I I vividly remember somebody from Amgen coming and actually inviting us to Amgen to their pilot plant to help pack chromatography column which I was like, "Whoa, that's crazy so cool," like
talk about hands on like this is what they do for a living, and they're showing us how to do it and why and the science behind it.
It was really interesting and it was cool to kind of be on the other side of it recently, I, I got to talk a little bit about cell line development, what I do for a living
to one of the classes recently, which is really neat. So I mean it's it's cool to see that, you know, when, like when I was talking, I was talking about what I do too.
You know, it's I think it's important for the students to know what we do, you know, day in and day out, and why we do it. And that's, that's what you get when you go to one of these classes. So it's cool.
Subhash: There are a couple of questions that are similar, I would say, what are the challenges when working in the biopharmaceutical companies? Or what's the most difficult thing you did in biotech and for you and
why?
[Beatris]: Maybe the most. [Uriel]: The hardest...
Beatris: Oh, go ahead sorry.
Uriel: No go go. Sorry, go ahead.
Beatris: Maybe the most difficult has probably just learn the lingo. The different terminology that we have in in the industry. It is not the expectation that you're to memorize anything. We have so many acronyms that we use and sometimes the acronym,
you know, I can give. I can give you one, PM. We use that a lot. It can mean preventative maintenance.
Personnel monitoring. So it's just trying to keep all those acronyms straight, depending on what department and what colleague air you're talking to, you know, referring to and but other than that, I think,
the expectation in the industry is never that you have to memorize everything. You have procedures, almost, if I can put it, just in a simple term an instruction or a recipe that you follow
to do what you in the manufacturing area or these procedures, whenever you are, you know, writing a procedure or just doing it a different type of assignment or task in the industry. I know maybe something difficult, you know, part of the program
we had Subhash I think gave us a
an assignment was can you prepare a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? And everyone's like, "Yeah, sure, peanut butter and jelly, why not?"
Well, you actually have to write the procedure how can you know make sure that, you know, for instance, Uriel, Ryan, Daniel if they were to pick up the same procedure
can they make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, the exact same way. But it's a little bit challenging, but I would say
challenging but not impossible or difficult.
Subhash: Alright, I have a question from Madison. She said she says that...
Ryan: And it's funny that that you meant.
Subhash: Sorry, go ahead.
Ryan: Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt. I was just gonna say it's just funny that Beatris just mentioned SOPs because that was something that
was a challenge during one of my positions too. I was at a startup and we had like no procedures for some things, and they're like, "Hey Ryan, can you like right up
procedure?" like it's no big deal, but it, it is a really big deal. Especially when, you know, you're starting from scratch and the whole point of what we do is to build quality into, you know,
into our processes to make sure that what we do is the same every time, and we're getting the same quality every time. And so I, I can't tell you enough how helpful, you know, those, those sorts of exercises like making a jelly, peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
How helpful that was when I was having to make these SOPs from scratch and, you know, how to run one of our, you know, to do a purification process for instance, or to culture and one of our new bioreactors so it was just it, it definitely helps.
Subhash: So I have a question from Madison. "I just graduated this fall and I'm looking for an entry level job I can get into while I also start starting a master's degree. I'd love to get my foot in the door. I just don't know where I can start with no lab experience besides in university lab classes."
Beatris: Well, listen, I think the first one I can recommend as the first thing to do is just
go on to any of the, you know, the websites for these companies. I mean, here you have three companies that you can look into the career paths, it would,
you know, just look at what is available, what is open. As I mentioned, you know,
most of these companies are very supportive of higher education. We also do promote I think
Channel Islands' programs where we have the dual masters with Biotech and
Business.
But yeah, it's just a matter of, you know, getting ready to look at all these opportunities that these companies have and, you know, congratulations on graduating and moving forward with your education. I think that's wonderful. [Ryan]: Yeah, congrats.
Subhash: Take some of our classes that are on the very hands on industry related classes.
Beatris: Absolutely.
Subhash: So I have another question, "I want to go into Neuroscience and build devices that will help people who have suffered from lower brain damage, how do I prepare myself for that?"
Beatris: You have a stump there.
Neuroscience is awesome.
[Ryan]: I remember my Neurophysiology classes... [Subhash]: Medical...
super interesting. [Subhash]: Device manufacturing certificates. So.
Uriel: I mean,
just as a starting point with the medical device class the subject recovered you could not get an insight on how the many restrictions or the many things that wouldn't be applied to, you know, actually starting to get one admitted to the FDA.
Just to give some insight on, you know, especially with the with product and drug the pipeline. You know, I remember learning about all that. And it's incredible. I mean. Will it prepare you?
And be like, Subhash said, you get a certificate, but just getting an overall view of how things get accepted for the FDA, how many, you know, the one I can't remember the number,
but, you know, it's definitely more than one a million that that go or is it what 400,000 that actually get pushed through big product line.
Ryan: Yeah, when it comes to
Neurophysiology I remember my course at CSUN it's super interesting and
the big takeaway was "Wow, this is amazing and look at all this information," and we only know a fraction about like how the brain actually works.
And and so it is, it's a really exciting field, and I, I can't really speak to it personally, but I will say that biotech is definitely a field that is looking into helping those with neurodegenerative diseases. That's something that
there are new therapies on the horizon, where they're hoping to help out with, you know, Alzheimer's, for instance. I know we are already some
drugs out there now I'd like to put in a plug for Aimovig for migraines. That's something that's very these therapies available so biotech is is definitely the field to be in if you're
looking into something like that, helping people with, you know, neurodegenerative diseases.
Samantha: And I guess I would just say to remind everyone that when you get your foot in the door, you know, you can learn so much more than what you realize. You have access to so much and,
you know, as a company with med device, you know, it's, you just don't know you know getting exposure to, you know, GMP and, you know,
Regulatory Agency, every aspect of it is a learning experience that you can apply when you're interested in a specialization. So,
I would say, you know, make sure you have broad horizons when we're looking at potential opportunities. So with that said, I'd like to, unless anyone has any last comments on that topic...
Subhash: There's one question I think that might Daniel and Daniel and Beatris might be able to answer.
"What's the best career path trajectory for in biotech, do you recommend for every student to start out as a manufacturing associate? What are other entry level positions in the industry? What graduate level programs do you recommend?"
Beatris: You wanna take that one Daniel?
Daniel: Sure, sure. Not, not an easy one either.
But it's everybody's path is going to be a little different. You got to find the one that's most genuine to you.
I know from my, my experience, you know, for me, I'm very hands on. I'd like to know what's going on the floor exactly like Beatris said.
I remember walking into my first manufacturing area and you see massive stainless steel bioreactors, and complicated pieces of equipment, and people that are dressed up
like Ryan was saying with the hazmat suits and it's very intimidating, but it's fascinating and exciting.
So I think pick whatever one works best for you. For me, knowing what I know now, go in and getting that experience on the shop floor and like be interested in learning the lingo, learning the top learning how these things get made
helps you in whatever career you ultimately go into whether it's research, supply chain, you know, distribution, there's
that experience is invaluable to you. So to anyone. So if it feels right to you I would strongly suggest or recommend that you do something like that for as long as it, you know,
makes you excited about the industry and then and then look for the next step in their career. I don't think that your education is
needs to be a limit or needs to be necessarily a guide for you. I think you got to do what works best for you and just be open to new experiences, and using the different programs that are out there and the people that are out there for help and experience.
Beatris: I agree.
Samantha: Alright. Well, thank you Subhash. Thank you to all of our panelists. Really appreciate your time and what I'd like to do is hand it over to my fellow board member Paul Aguilar to wrap it up for us tonight.
Paul Aguilar: Yeah. Good evening, everyone and thank you, Samantha. Wow. Thank you, panelists. What, what a great discussion I learned so much and I really just love love the energy here. It was fantastic.
Again, good evening, everyone. My name's Paul Aguilar and like Samantha I'm also on the Moorpark College Foundation Board.
I'm also in the biotech industry. I am currently the head of HR for the Thermo Fisher Scientific transplant diagnostics division based in West Hills. I work with Uriel.
I've been with the Thermo for the last four years and lucky enough prior to that I've also been able to work in in biotech and other companies I had other HR leadership roles with Amgen,
and then prior to that, I was with Baxter Bioscience, which is now to Takeda so I feel like I'm a brethren with our
colleagues here. You know, so, so it's great. I've been in the biotech industry for so long and know firsthand great work, and from Moorpark College Biotech pogram.
So, so it's great, great to be part of this. One other bit of information too as Moorpark Gollege alumni,
it's great to see how our panel is just progressing in their career. And it's great to see again the education from Moorpark progressing. And with that, and that was one reason why I'm so motivated to be part of the Foundation.
What I'd like to do before we close is just highlight a couple of things that the Foundation is focused on. We are really looking at
moving forward. The first thing that we're trying to build out is, we're really in October, we started and we launched our annual campaign.
Which is focused on in three key areas. The first one is, as you can see here is around scholarships. And obviously its core to the Foundation.
Last year we sponsored $165,000 in in scholarships for Moorparr students so, so that's fantastic.
The second one, there is Rising Scholars and and when, when I learned about this, this immediately became my favorite area here.
This is a program that it's designed to really support first generation college students. So, so, the way it works is students in middle school are identified and through this program they're supported
through tutoring, education support, all the way from, all the way from junior high, basically through high school and then upon graduation
they're given tuition for free to go to Moorpark and then after that, really, a straight route into a four year school if that's their desire. So again, a great program. And then the third is the Basic Needs program and again, this is another
big support for our students and something that is well needed and the focus here is really to provide our, you know, Moorpark's students basic needs
immediate needs. And the core of of what the Foundation is really trying to do is make sure that no students go to school or go to class hungry,
or worried about where they're going to sleep at night. And you know, again, thinking about what the mission is of the Foundation and to be
really part of this basic needs, and is a big support to what we really try to accomplish for for students at the college. So,
with these three focus areas along with events like this tonight,
it's really designed to help our Moorpark College students and community. And that's the mission of the Foundation. So I really want to put a plug on the Foundation in terms of what we're trying to accomplish
to help awareness, not only to incoming students or even alumni that might be hearing about this for the first time. So, as I think about closing. Really,
you know, again, I know we have some incoming potential incoming students and I hope this was very helpful to you.
Alumni on the call, I know there's a number of questions here about just learning more about the biotech industry, how to get jobs, all this information
is available if you later want to go to our website, which is moorparkcollege.edu forward slash foundation again, moorparkcollege.edu forward slash foundation. There's information on here about the panelists,
and about our program, and about our campaign. So I hope you visit the site to learn more information about that.
So, in closing, what I want to do is is one more plug. So I hope you enjoyed tonight because we have another session. This is a series that we want to plug, that we want to facilitate four times a year. This is the first one focused on Biotechnology. The second one is scheduled for April 28, 2021.
I know we're already thinking about 2021 but, so again, I'll say April 28, 2021 and that's actually going to be sponsored by Thermo Fisher.
So we hope to see you at that session. And again, again great insights and hopefully a really informative night. So, in closing, what I'd like to do again is thank the panelists. Again, great energy,
great insights, I really enjoyed the stories, fantastic. I like to again thank Samantha and Subhash for your leadership in this it was fantastic, and then,
again Takeda Pharmaceutical for sponsoring tonight's event. We couldn't have done it without you. So thank you.
And again, thank you for your participation tonight. Again, if you have any questions, go visit the website for more information. And I just like to say again, thank you for your participation. Be safe, be well, and have a good evening.
Subhash: Bye.
Ryan: Thanks, everybody. Bye.
Beatris: Thank you.
Daniel: Thank you. [Beatris]: Happy Holidays. [Subhash]: Really appreciate it.
Samantha: Bye, thank you.
Uriel: Thank you guys.