C&EN: EMPLOYMENT - WORKING IN EUROPE

SALARIES CAN ALSO vary across countries in Europe. According to Halazy, the discrepancies are a function of differences in taxes and cost-of-living levels. However, in Switzerland, he says, "the salaries are not that far off the U.S. standard."

Making accurate compensation package comparisons is often difficult for potential international applicants, Thomas notes. In many cases, he believes that candidates make inaccurate comparisons, leading them to incorrect conclusions about salary and benefit differences between various countries. This is an unfortunate misconception that often holds more U.S. applicants back from applying for Europe-based openings, he explains.

"We need to educate people about the different benefits--like the European holiday schedule, the taxation system, and the social security system--so that they can make good decisions," Thomas says. He notes that a lot of information is available on this topic, but "it's not always easy for people who are looking to make this life decision to digest."

Serono's Halazy believes that some U.S. chemists are reluctant to apply for European positions because they "believe that positions in Europe, especially with European companies, are not as challenging as they would be in the U.S." Although noting that it does depend on where you work, Halazy says, "The excitement of the job, the challenges, the competitive environment, and the quality of support" are all similar to what one would expect in the U.S.

Potential candidates need to address some legitimate concerns before accepting a job abroad. The stress associated with uprooting oneself and one's family and concerns about living in a foreign culture often deter people.

AstraZeneca's King acknowledges that these factors explain why applications from U.S. chemists for positions based in Europe are "the exception and not the rule." But, perhaps the biggest factor that stops most people from even looking into job opportunities in Europe is the number of openings within the U.S.

"There are a significant number of opportunities in the U.S., both in the pharmaceutical industry and elsewhere in the chemical industry," he says. "So, that's where U.S. job seekers look first."

Once someone digests all the information and decides that he or she is interested in seeking a position in Europe, there are several ways to find out about opportunities. Even though companies tend to have a country-based recruitment process--that is, for an opening within North America, they tend to look in North America to fill it--"we do advertise openings, and there is always an opportunity for anyone to apply for roles in Europe and to be considered with all of the other applicants," King notes.

For those just completing their Ph.D. studies, King suggests that they do a postdoc in Europe. "It's a good time to get experience and to make connections within academia and industry," he says. At the conclusion of their postdocs, "they will be in a good position to decide to either go back to the U.S. or to stay and pursue a career in Europe." He also suggests that people use their connections to find colleagues who have contacts with European companies or universities. By creating this type of informal network, individuals can get helpful advice.


TESTING A scientist works in the lab at AstraZeneca's R&D facility in Loughborough. ASTRAZENECA PHOTO

THE INTERNET is the best source of readily available information. Companies located all over the world have developed career opportunity websites to help interested applicants search and apply for job openings. And a number of firms post their openings on job-posting sites like Monster.com.

Another good source of job postings is scientific journals and magazines. Nature was the most common publication cited by the people C&EN talked to for international job advertisements, but Chemical & Engineering News, Science, and New Scientist were also popular choices.

"We receive many applications from chemists for our Heidelberg facility through C&EN advertisements for U.S. openings," Glanville notes. Based on her experience, she believes this is the case for other global companies that advertise in C&EN. She attributes this to the large, diverse readership of C&EN.

Companies also attract new talent through direct contact with universities. Interacting directly with the universities "allows us to put something back into the academic environment by delivering links with the institutes," Thomas says. "It also means that we can be in direct contact with the individuals doing the research. We can help students through their academic studies and look to help them find opportunities in our workplace after they complete their research."

When considering a job outside the U.S., Tripos' Heenan warns that "job titles can also mean different things in different countries, so it is important to fully understand the scope of the job you are going to do and your level of responsibility and generally to make sure that what you think you are being employed to do is what you are being employed to do. Some of the simplest words mean something different in another country." It's important to ask the right questions and get the correct information.

Another approach is to "focus on getting very interesting roles in chemistry and build on good experiences, whether in the U.S. or Europe. Then, look for a potential move abroad," King adds.

That is sound advice, according to Amersham's Whitaker. "The easiest way to get involved in international employment is being employed by a company with offices in the U.S. and Europe and applying for a transfer once your own abilities and strengths have been proven." She adds that "if a transfer is not a possibility, then you can seek out websites or solicit European employers for positions abroad."

Emily Denney, media relations manager at AstraZeneca, agrees that transferring within a company is a viable avenue. She suggests that, if a person's long-term goal is to work in Europe, he or she "should, in the short term, find an international company, like AstraZeneca, that is willing to send their employees to other countries to work."

Many companies with international facilities realize the benefit of having employees work abroad and have set up programs to encourage current employees to take advantage of this opportunity.

"Once people join AstraZeneca, we like to offer opportunities for assignments outside of their native country," King says. Because AstraZeneca sees "chemistry as a useful and transferable skill," King explains, "we believe that actually taking the technical knowledge and scientific abilities you have and working in a completely different environment allows you to apply your chemistry skills in a different way."


	STANDARDS Analytical chemistry plays an important role at AstraZeneca's R&D facility in Loughborough. ASTRAZENECA PHOTO

A PRODUCT of its work-abroad program, King notes that AstraZeneca "encourages people from the U.S. to spend time in Europe either by working on a project that requires travel or by taking an assignment in one of our European sites," which may require anywhere from six months to two years abroad.

Pfizer is another global company that "sees the benefit in sharing ideas and experiences across all of our research sites throughout the world," Thomas says. "That sort of cross-pollination of learning is something that is hugely beneficial to our organization and is something we love to encourage."

To that end, Pfizer advertises all of its positions internally on a single website, Thomas explains. This single-site posting mechanism allows Pfizer employees from around the world to see what jobs are available. "So employees from one of our U.S. research centers could apply for a vacancy here in Sandwich, England, or in Fresnes, France, and vice versa," he notes.

Regardless of how people obtain employment in Europe, they have to apply and receive a work permit or visa. The process takes an average of about three months to complete, depending on family circumstances, according to AstraZeneca's Denney. All the companies C&EN spoke with indicated that they try to minimize the impact on the individual by providing the appropriate legal and administrative support needed to keep the visa process moving smoothly. However, "the onus is still on the individual to provide the necessary details needed on the forms," Thomas says.

To get a work permit or visa in any European country, a company must show that no worker in the country in which the visa is requested--or for European Union member countries, within the EU--has the job skills of the person to be hired.

"At the undergraduate level, there is a good pool of candidates within the U.K. and from continental Europe to fill openings," so there is little opportunity for chemists at that level to get work visas, Thomas says. But as you move up to positions that require more qualifications and experience, "then you're fishing in a smaller pool and there is an opportunity to look outside the EU," he notes.

Things are similar for non-EU countries. For example in Switzerland, Serono's Halazy says that "for scientific jobs at the Ph.D. level, getting a work visa is not a problem."

Working abroad provides a wonderful opportunity for chemists to expand their chemical skills as well as experience a different culture. The difference between having a great experience or an awful nightmare comes down to spending the time to learn and really understand the culture before you move there. The best advice may be that given by Tripos' Heenan: "Do your homework!"