Careers 101: Pharmaceutical Jobs in Atlanta

Published on 2008-06-25

Schools:

The contemporary pharmaceutical industry encompasses a vast range of career opportunities, including production and manufacturing, marketing and sales, and research and development. Whatever your specialty, a bachelor's degree is imperative if you wish to pursue pharmaceutical jobs in Atlanta. A postgraduate degree is recommended, and for research and development jobs, it's essentially a requirement; nearly 2/3 of all workers in the pharmaceutical industry possess a bachelor's, master's or Ph.D. As one of the leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology cities in the U.S., Atlanta is home to several top-notch schools for future pharmaceutical professionals. The Georgia Institute of Technology has been ranked by US News & World Report as one of the nation's top 10 public universities in each of the last nine years. In 2007, its undergraduate and graduate biomedical programs ranked 3rd and 2nd, respectively. Georgia State University's CollabTech Biotechnology Development Center is an incubator for start-up companies. Located in Athens, GA, the University of Georgia offers graduate degree programs in areas such as medicinal chemistry via its Department of Pharmaceutical & Biomedical Sciences.

Employers:

Atlanta is one of the premier cities in America for pharmaceuticals, biotech and nanomedicine employment. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is headquartered just east of Atlanta. The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce lists 60 bioscience companies working in the pharmaceuticals sector. Clinical research or pharmaceutical sales jobs in Georgia can also be found at hundreds of companies outside of Atlanta. According to the nonprofit organization Georgia Bio, there are 270 pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, diagnostic, agbiotech and biofuels companies in the state. Georgia ranks seventh among U.S. states in number of biotech companies, according to a survey by Ernst & Young.