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Resume Rx: Tailoring Your Resume for Research, Academia, and Industry Roles
This program is part of BioBuzz's Career Catalyst series, a weekly virtual program designed for students, recent grads, and early-career professionals navigating the life sciences industry. Our sessions are intentionally built to foster direct, high-quality access to the industry leaders shaping it.
Overview
You can have the right experience and still be telling the wrong story.
A resume that works well for a research role may need to look very different for an academic position or a job in industry. Each environment values different things, uses different language, and looks for different signals when deciding who moves forward.
In this session, we’ll bring together three perspectives from research, academia, and industry to break down what makes a resume or CV stand out in each space.
You’ll learn what to highlight, what to leave out, and how to describe the same education, projects, skills, and experience differently depending on where you are applying. We’ll also talk about common mistakes, how to show impact when you are early in your career, and how to make your experience easier for a hiring manager to understand.
The goal is not to create three completely different versions of yourself. It is to learn how to tell the right parts of your story for the opportunity in front of you.
Key Takeaways
Learn what research employers look for and how to present technical skills, projects, and hands-on experience clearly.
Understand what belongs in an academic CV and what academic hiring teams may prioritize differently.
See what industry employers want to find quickly, including transferable skills, measurable impact, collaboration, and relevant industry language.
Learn how to tailor instead of rewrite from scratch, using the same background to tell a stronger story for different roles.
Leave with a clearer idea of what to change before your next application, and why those changes matter.
Agenda
6:00 PM - Welcome & Introductions
6:05 PM - Presentations
6:30 PM - Live Open Q&A + Career Connections
Ask questions, engage with the speaker(s) and host, and connect the conversation back to your own career journey in life sciences.
Why Attend?
Careers are built on connections.
The people you meet today can become tomorrow's mentor, hiring manager, collaborator, or your biggest advocate. That's why every Career Catalyst session is designed to help you expand your knowledge and your network.
Every Career Catalyst session, you'll have the opportunity to meet and connect with our expert guest directly, BioBuzz's team, and your peers. Don't miss this opportunity to build the relationships that will help you shape what's next.
Join us every Wednesday @ 6 PM ET.
SUBSCRIBE to our Career Catalyst calendar for the full schedule of events.
About the Speakers
Dr. Dina Schneider (Research/R&D Perspective)
About the Speaker
Dr. Dina Schneider is a scientist, inventor, and biotechnology executive with more than 20 years of experience spanning academia and industry. She currently serves as Vice President, Head of Discovery at Cartesian Therapeutics, where she leads the discovery and development of novel cell therapies and works across internal and external teams to advance programs from early research toward clinical development.
Throughout her career, Dina has helped advance multiple CAR T-cell programs into clinical development for cancer and autoimmune diseases. She is the co-author of more than 20 scientific publications, an inventor on numerous patents, and a passionate mentor to scientists building careers in biotechnology.
Having made the transition from academia to industry and from bench science to leadership, Dina brings the perspective of someone who understands both sides of the research hiring process - what scientists want to communicate on a resume and what research leaders need to see when evaluating candidates for their teams.
Da’Kuawn Johnson (Academic Perspective)
About the Speaker
Da’Kuawn Johnson is a scientist, educator, mentor, and STEM advocate whose career has been deeply rooted in academic research and scientific training. He is a Microbiology & Immunology PhD candidate at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and an HHMI Gilliam Fellow, with research focused on host-pathogen interactions and immune responses to bacterial infection. His scientific work has contributed to peer-reviewed publications in immunology and infectious disease.
Beyond the lab, Da’Kuawn has spent years helping students navigate research, graduate education, fellowships, and STEM career pathways. He serves as Scientific Program Manager and Training Faculty with EmpowerBio and has a long history of teaching, mentorship, outreach, and supporting emerging scientists as they pursue competitive academic and research opportunities.
For Resume Rx, Da’Kuawn brings the academic perspective - where a CV or resume may need to communicate research experience, publications, presentations, teaching, fellowships, service, and potential very differently than an industry application.
Aquilia Watson (Industry Perspective)
About the Speaker
Aquilia Watson is a life sciences professional with hands-on experience in regulated GMP environments and a strong interest in helping emerging professionals understand what it takes to succeed in biomanufacturing.
At Charles River Laboratories, now Rose Biosolutions, Aquilia served as a team lead and was directly involved in building and supporting her team, including reviewing resumes, screening incoming candidates, participating in interviews, and helping make hiring decisions for manufacturing and other industry roles.
That experience gave Aquilia a firsthand view of what hiring teams actually notice when a resume comes across their desk - from relevant GMP and technical experience to documentation skills, equipment knowledge, quality mindset, and the ability to clearly communicate how previous experience translates to the role.
Aquilia also supports workforce and career development efforts, including guest speaking for Frederick Community College’s Biotech Bootcamp, where she helps introduce students to the realities of working in GMP manufacturing and the skills employers look for when bringing new talent into the industry.
For Resume Rx, Aquilia brings the GMP industry and hiring perspective, helping attendees understand how to translate their experience into a resume that clearly communicates their readiness to contribute in a regulated manufacturing environment.
About the Host
Sneha Saggurthi
Workforce Engagement Lead, BioBuzz
Sneha Saggurthi is a life sciences professional, educator, and workforce engagement leader passionate about helping people build meaningful careers in biotechnology and beyond.
As Workforce Engagement Lead at BioBuzz, Sneha develops programs and partnerships that connect students, early-career professionals, educators, and employers across the life sciences ecosystem.
Sneha’s background spans quality compliance, GxP training, operational excellence, auditing, and professional development. She also serves as an adjunct biotechnology instructor and is actively involved in initiatives that create more accessible pathways into the industry.
Through Career Catalyst, Sneha brings together professionals, recruiters, advocates, and industry leaders to make life sciences careers feel more understandable and attainable. Her goal is to help participants gain practical tools, learn directly from people across the industry, and recognize how their unique experiences can contribute to improving patients’ lives.
Sponsors
TEDCO
TEDCO, the Maryland Technology Development Corporation, enhances economic empowerment growth through the fostering of an inclusive entrepreneurial innovation ecosystem. TEDCO identifies, invests in, and helps grow technology and life science-based companies in Maryland.
Workforce Genetics
Workforce Genetics (WGx) is a premier recruiting firm serving the life sciences, MedTech, and healthcare sectors, supporting companies from startup to commercial. The firm delivers transformative talent strategies through retained and executive search, contingent search, and outsourced talent acquisition.
Important Information
BioBuzz's Career Catalyst sessions are intended to provide insights, guidance, and support for students, recent grads, and early career professionals navigating their careers. These sessions are not a platform for selling services, recruitment pitches, or business solicitations. They are designed for job seekers and those looking to make connections and build community.
Please be respectful of fellow participants and help ensure this remains a valuable, trusted resource for all. By registering for this session, you agree to abide by BioBuzz's Code of Conduct.
Participants who engage in solicitation, promotional activity, or behavior that disrupts the intent of the session will be asked to leave. Repeated or serious violations will result in removal from the session and exclusion from future Career Catalyst events.
Want to be an expert guest?
If you're interested in sharing your knowledge with the BioBuzz community, get in touch via hello [@] biobuzz.io.