Prepare for Tests in the Pharmaceutical Industry

As part of the Healthcare Industry, the Pharmaceutical Sector centers on medications. There are different subdivisions in the Pharmaceutical Industry, devoted to the development, production and marketing of medications. Dependent on each other, these divisions consist of drug manufacturers, biotechnology companies and drug marketers. Drug manufacturers can further be divided as follows:

• Drug Manufacturers – Large Companies are represented in the United Kingdom by such organizations as Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, Novartis UK, Abbot Laboratories, Bausch and Lomb, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals Limited, Bayer, Novo Nordisk and Servier, among others.
• Patented Drugs – Large Companies develop patented drugs through in-house research and manufacture them under licenses from patent holders. Patented drugs bring handsome profits to their manufacturers. Among pharmaceutical companies that produce patented drugs are Pfizer, Merck & Co, Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline and Teva Pharmaceuticals.
• Generic Drug Manufacturers – Generic Drugs are exact copies of equivalent original branded drugs. They contain the same active ingredients. It becomes marketed when the originator’s patent protection expires. Generic drugs have the same standards of safety, quality and efficacy. Generic drugs are sold at lower prices. UK Companies that specialize in producing generic drugs are Mylan, Brown & Burk UK, Crescent Pharmaceuticals, Aspire Pharma, Martindale Pharma and Kent Pharmaceuticals, to name only a few of them.
• Contact Research and Manufacturing Services (CRAMS) – This is a quickly growing sector in the Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Industry. The pharmaceutical market uses outsourcing services from low-cost providers represented by Contact Research Organizations (CROs) and Contact Manufacturing Organizations (CMOs). The CRO conducts preclinical and clinical research for the Pharmaceutical and Biotechnological Industries. The CMO develops and manufactures pharmaceutical products under contracts.

The Pharmaceutical Industry provides drugs that cure diseases, maintain health and prevent infections. This industry depends on people’s well-being, hence is monitored by several international regulatory organizations that supervise drug safety, patents, quality and pricing. The most prominent among these organizations are the World Health Organization (WHO), US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). The Pharmaceutical Sector is growing quickly, increasing its revenue every year. If in 2001, worldwide revenue of the global Pharmaceutical Industry was about US$390.2 billion, in 2011, the industry’s revenue rose to US$963 billion. In 2014, global pharmaceutical revenues hit a trillion mark. Last year, the revenue of the global Pharmaceutical Sector reached US$1,105.2 trillion.

As it is elsewhere in the world, the Pharmaceutical Industry in the United Kingdom is fast growing. The country has the third-highest share of global pharmaceutical Research and Development expenditure of any nation, coming after only the USA and Japan. Among other European countries, the UK has the largest expenditure (23%), thereby leaving behind France, Germany and Switzerland. What also shows the significance of this sector in the UK is that one in five of the world’s biggest-selling prescription drugs is developed by its researchers. The Pharmaceutical Industry employs more than 72,000 specialists. If you are looking for a job in this sector in the United Kingdom, you may be employed in one of the following leading pharmaceutical companies:

Headquartered at Surrey, this company is one of the leading pharmaceutical organization in the world. It is the world’s fifth-largest researched based company. Most of the consumer healthcare products in the world are produced by Pfizer. The company has US$16.3 billion net income and boasted US$49.2 billion of revenue last year. Among the drugs Pfizer produces are Lipitol that lowers blood cholesterol, Lyrica, its most successful product, for neuropathic pain, seizures, general anxiety disorder and Celebrex, an anti-inflammatory drug. The company’s research focuses both on the discovery of small molecules and related modalities and large molecules, including vaccines. Pfizer also offers some of its drugs free of charge to the third-world developing countries.    

Founded in 2000 and headquartered in London’s Brentford city, this company is ranked as the sixth-largest pharmaceutical company in the world. It manufactures drugs and vaccines for such diseases as cancer, asthma, diabetes, digestive ailments, infections and mental illnesses. The most famous drugs of GlaxoSmithKline are Advair curing respiratory disorders; Avandia, designed to treat diabetes, especially the type 2 diabetes; Coger that treats congestive heart failure; Paxil, an antidepressant medication; and Zofran, a medicine that is used to treat nausea, especially experienced by those patients that are undergoing chemotherapy. GlaxoSmithKline’s net income is £2.169 billion; its revenue is £30.186 billion. There are more than 99,300 employees working for the company.

Established in 1999 and headquartered in London, this is a multinational British-Swedish pharmaceutical company. It is ranked as the seventh-largest pharmaceutical company in the world. AstraZeneca has offices in more than a hundred countries and specializes in developing medicine for respiratory diseases, cardiovascular diseases and gastrointestinal infections, among others. Among medicine that AstraZeneca produces are Accolate treating asthma; Arimidex, treatment for advanced breast cancer; Entocort EC, designed to alleviate Crohn’s disease; Imfinzi, a drug for stage III non-small cell lung cancer; Nolvadex that treats breast cancer and Vimovo, manufactured to help patients with arthritis. AstraZeneca’s market capital has reached $US 90.6 billion this year. Its revenue is $US 22.44 billion. Learn more about AstraZeneca's Graduate Scheme.

Follow the links in the table below to learn more about the application and selection process of some known employers. 

Check out our high-quality practice materials specifically designed to help you land a job in these or other pharmaceutical firms. Our tests will improve your numerical, verbal, logical reasoning skills and teach you how to build an impressive personality profile. Equipped with our resources, you will pass your tests with confidence and high grades and will leave a favourable impression on your recruiters. 

The Pharmaceutical Industry is wide and does not suffer from ups and downs, as other sectors do. There are, therefore, plenty of rich opportunities for career growth. Whatever is your background – manufacturing, science, quality control, engineering, or maintenance, you are guaranteed to find a position that you would like to take up in one of the pharmaceutical firms. Below is a list of some of the job opportunities available in the Pharmaceutical Centre: 

The Microbiologist – This scientist is a specialist in microorganisms. Microbiologists test and monitor levels of microbial contamination at every stage of the process of drug manufacturing. Hence, their contribution to the production of drugs or medical devices is of paramount importance. A starting salary for microbiologists or other healthcare scientists who are employed at band 6 is £26,565. Those who are hired on band 7, earn from £31, 696 to £41, 787. Depending on their work experience, principal and consultant scientists employed at band 8 and 9 earn from £40, 430 to £100, 430 respectively. 

The Laboratory Technician – This professional gives a helping hand to scientists with research and testing. In the Pharmaceutical Sector, the help of the Laboratory Technician is required during the research, development and manufacturing of a drug or device. An average annual salary of the Laboratory Technician in the United Kingdom is £25,000. 

The Process Technician – This employee operates equipment and ensures that manufacturing processes are conducted in strict adherence to protocols. The involvement of the Process Technician is required in the manufacturing process and the Pharmaceutical and Medical device industries. As a rule, the Process Technician works in a laboratory or office and earns £26,155 per year. 

Pharmaceutical Companies care about the overall well-being of people and, therefore, ensure that they hire employees possessing qualities required for the successful fulfilment of their tasks. Required in the Pharmaceutical Sector are the following personality traits:  

• Assertiveness;
• Ego Drive;
• Risk-Taking;
• Abstract Reasoning;
• Idea Orientation;
• Decision-making skills, including an ability to make tough decisions;
• Organizational skills;
• Ability to express opinions confidently;
• Motivating others to perform well;
• Strategic thinking;
• Ability to implement problem-solving strategies;
• Persistence;
• Thoroughness;
• Accommodation.    

JobTestPrep has developed specific personality assessments that will teach you how to highlight and even develop these qualities in yourself and how to impress your employers with your personality profile. Our Situational Judgement and Personality Tests included in our materials will help you prove to your recruiters that you have the required qualities to succeed in your role in the Pharmaceutical Sector.