Innovation of the Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Talent Pipeline, Part II

The community college system in the U.S. is integral to the development of tomorrow’s technical workforce. Community college pathways into biopharmaceutical manufacturing careers have existed for decades, with the launch of the first two- year biotechnology degree program in the 1980s.

In the years since, the U.S. has seen a proliferation of relevant education and training programs at the community college level. Through U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and National Science Foundation (NSF) funding, community college educators have formed a close community and authored countless curriculum modules, textbooks, and lab protocols. These programs have educated and trained many thousands of technicians, providing them with a solid foundation of skills in areas such as aseptic processing and genetic engineering, as well as the upstream, downstream, and analytical technologies central to biopharmaceutical manufacturing.

Unfortunately, declining enrollment is evident in many state community college systems. The causes are multi-faceted, with cascading effects on biopharmaceutical manufacturing career awareness, program sustainability, and student placement. At the core, deeper industry engagement is critical to build and sustain institutional support for new and existing community college programs, catalyze the formation of new and innovative programs, and most critically, ensure that graduates from community college degree, diploma, and certificate programs are employed and adding value to the biopharmaceutical manufacturing industry. Lack of engagement by industry employers is not unique to biopharmaceutical manufacturing. A recent report authored by Harvard Business School in partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges noted that only 7% of community colleges were “very satisfied” with the level of collaboration with employers. Even more telling, they noted that “while 84% of business leaders claimed their organization hired community college graduates, the survey. revealed that, in reality, employers do not perceive America’s community colleges as the most efficient or effective way to acquire middle-skills talent.”

With this whitepaper, we seek to 1) ensure that the biopharmaceutical manufacturing industry understands the longstanding legacy of support that community college degree programs provide to the workforce development pipeline; 2) highlight the challenges that community colleges face in supporting the education and training of the biopharmaceutical manufacturing workforce; and 3) discuss how stronger industry–academic engagement can mitigate some of these challenges by building industry and career awareness, gaining institutional support for innovative programs and pathways, and ultimately, ensuring the talent needs of the biopharmaceutical manufacturing industry are met.

At the core, deeper industry engagement is critical to build and sustain institutional support for new and existing community college programs, catalyze the formation of new and innovative programs, and most critically, ensure that graduates from community college degree, diploma, and certificate programs are employed and adding value to the biopharmaceutical manufacturing industry.