Casey Harrison: Welcome to today's episode of See Yourself IN, where you'll learn about cool jobs, people, and companies in Indiana. You'll also hear about skills that will help you find success, and most importantly, we hope they inspire you to dream big. I'm Casey Harrison, your host. On today's show, we're going to dive into Indiana's advanced industries and why they're important.
We'll talk about the skills that are transferable across jobs and industries, and determine some of the best ways to begin exploring these great opportunities. Today we're joined by Gabby Seal. Gabby's here to share her passion for a healthy life and how that inspires everything from where she works to how she spends her free time.
Gabby's one of the 63,000 Hoosiers working across the state in the life sciences industry, and she's inspired by connecting with others, one person at a time. Hello to our listeners and hello to today's guest, Gabby Seal.
Gabby Seal: Hello.Thank you for having me.
Casey Harrison: Oh my gosh. We're so glad that you're here this morning.
Gabby and I recently met and we learned that we have something in common. We both thought that we would leave Indiana to go to college and we didn't leave Indiana. Talk to us about where you went to school.
Gabby Seal: So I went to IU after I graduated from high school. I ultimately wanted to go out of state, but like a lot of other high school students, I went to a big high school.
So IU is kind of called IU 2.0. So I wanted to go somewhere different, but ultimately I'm really close to my family. They live in Carmel, so it could be an hour and a half away from them, and I could go home for every holiday, and ultimately IU has some great programs. So does Purdue and Butler and any college here, so I didn't see a reason why I needed to leave.
Casey Harrison: Did you know when you were enrolling in IU what you wanted to study?
Gabby Seal: Yes, in high school, I loved science, chemistry and biology were kind of my go to. I was really good at them and my mom was a nurse. So, she, growing up, I would always go with her to wherever she works, just hang out and watch her do her, her stuff.
And, ultimately, I wanted to go to med school. I wanted to get in and help people. I didn't know what I wanted to do in med school. So I went that route. I went the pre med route at IU, and I applied my senior year, but I didn't get in. So I kind of had to figure out, okay, what's plan B,
So that was something that, you know, you don't really think about when you have a goal. And so I had to pivot paths pretty quickly, after I didn't get into IU med school.
Casey Harrison: Well, absolutely. And I want to dive into that. But before we do, I think you were at IU when the pandemic hit. Can you talk to us a little bit about navigating that while you were in college and maybe how that redirected your path?
Gabby Seal: COVID started in 2019 and I was a junior. So halfway through, they sent everyone home. So my junior year and then half of my, all of my junior year and then half of my senior year was all online. There was a lot of kids that took time off. They ended up. Realizing, like, I need to have in person classes, I'm not gonna learn online, I didn't want to wait.
I kind of was like, I don't want to take any longer to get through school. So I did have to think about how that impacted it. And med school was a very big, obviously a lot of kids wanted to go to med school, but it was delayed because of that whole online time and the school situation so it didn't change my perspective of where I wanted to go in the medical industry, honestly it, kind of made me want to go more.
But ultimately, I did have to pivot after I didn't get into med school and say, Okay, where can I go with a biology degree? And how does that impact my future career decisions?
Casey Harrison: Let's take those a little slower, maybe chunk by chunk. So we're in the midst of the pandemic. You've also called an audible on your studies. So you've switched from premed to biology.
Gabby Seal: I can explain that a little bit more. So, biology was my undergraduate degree. Pre-med was just a track that you, to get into med school, you have a certain level, a certain amount of courses that you have to take in order to get into applied school. So IU has a great, I mean, if you tell your counselor you're going to go pre med, they kind of list all the classes that you need to take in order to get into med school.
So I didn't pivot from that path. I had stayed the course and I was on track to do that. But again, I hadn't considered any other options with a biology degree. So I had to really think about, okay, and connect with people about how to get a job and start a career down a different route.
Casey Harrison: So let's lean into that. How did you start your career? I mean, again, keeping in context that we're in the midst of the pandemic, it's really difficult to find jobs right now. You have a biology degree that you're thinking about a different workforce pathway with. What happened next?
Gabby Seal: Yeah, so it's a good point you bring up, it was a hard time to find jobs. I knew a lot of kids that were not getting jobs out of college. Luckily, I had some great people down in Bloomington, Indiana that could help me get connected with the life sciences industry. There's Cook Medical, there's Baxter down there, there's Catalent. So I didn't know what any of those were in college, which is kind of shocking, but I ended up applying to Catalent, which is a contract manufacturing organization down in Bloomington.
And they were hiring a lot because they were manufacturing the COVID vaccines at the time, they were trying to grow rapidly during that period, which was kind of shocking. I will have to say, I think timing was a big proponent for me to get my job. And I can't think, I mean, it worked out. So I ended up getting that associate scientist role at Catalent and working in the microbiology department right after school.
Casey Harrison: Let's pause for a minute. Indiana is the only state to have produced all three of the COVID vaccinations, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and Moderna. And you had a critical hand in helping to create those vaccines and then get them all across the world. Reflect a little bit about how that experience maybe helped you decide, yes, I really do want to advance in the life sciences industry.
Gabby Seal: So I started at Catalent in July of 2021 and I graduated in May of 2021 and it was during their like rampant time of manufacturing and production of vaccines. I will have to say it was extremely rewarding to produce these vaccines and bring those products to market because I knew the impact it had on the U.S. at the time and getting those vaccines to market would help the U.S. get back to its feet, times of pre COVID. We all saw how impactful it was on not only people's, you know, physical attributes, but also their economic situation and also the economy at the time. So being a part of that was really impactful on my decision because I learned that, okay, so you make these drugs, but you don't really analyze the impact it has on a lot of other industries.
And I also learned that to do meaningful work, which I thought was med school, you don't have to leave Indiana, you don't have to go to some big city and work at a large company to have an impact on the U.S. and the rest of the world. Indiana is a really cool place. You have some really large pharmaceutical companies, Eli Lilly and Roche, and you also have the smaller companies, such as INCOG, that are trying to grow and help that area a lot. So, it did tell me that there's a lot more to the life sciences than I ever thought.
Casey Harrison: And just to maybe highlight that again and double down on your point, you also don't have to go through med school to be able to contribute to the life sciences industry. I think you're a huge testament to that and it's probably giving a lot of our listeners right now a sigh of relief to know that, okay, there are still entry points for gainful employment and meaningful work in this industry without having to go and complete med school.
Gabby Seal: Yeah, and there's so many aspects of the life sciences areas that I don't think people understand. There's also, I mean, there's business, there's engineering, there's biology, there's chemistry, there's operations, there's manufacturing, there's a lot of moving parts that go into the life sciences area that people don't know.
And when I say I work at a pharmaceutical company, they're like, oh, you test drugs. I'm like, well, not really, not anymore. I did, but in my new role, I don't. And there's people there that, do not do that and they are working on equipment and they're working on processes and how to improve that and how to actually make successful products and ship them to patients and having that impact.
They all come together and I think they don't really teach that much in school so getting out there and talking to people that have cool roles and stuff is really important.
Casey Harrison: Oh, my gosh. Yeah, that's, that's really the whole premise of this podcast is helping to demystify all of the opportunities that are out there. So again, we're just super, super glad that you're here today.
So let's transition a little bit, I mean, to connect the dots and move the conversation forward. Today, there are currently 2,700 establishments across Indiana that are in the life sciences industry. So with 2700 organizations, there's a ton of opportunity out there.
I'd love for you to introduce what you are currently an MSAT engineer. I would love for you to explain what that is and introduce your company INCOG BioPharma Services located in Fishers.
Gabby Seal: INCOG is great. I will say that. I started there in August of 2022 as a microbiologist. So I was working in the labs and helping get the company up to speed. That time it was pretty startup. We didn't have any products we were making yet. But about three months ago, I transitioned to this MSAT engineer role, which stands for Manufacturing Science and Technology Engineer. It's a mouthful, so we just say MSAT. My job right now is, so, INCOG is, we manufacture drugs. We do not make the drugs or develop the drugs right now. So, we have pharmaceutical companies that do not manufacture, they don't have the space, so they outsource to companies like INCOG. And my job there is to take a product that was made at another site and move it to INCOG and take all the variable moving pieces and say, okay, this is what INCOG has, this is what we are capable of, and here's how we can do it here, and we talk with the clients, and we figure out, okay, what's the best path forward to make those quality products.
So that's my role currently, and I'm still learning a lot. So, I'm not an engineer. I do not have an engineering degree. I have a biology degree, which also shows you that you do not have to have what's written on the piece of paper to get the job. A lot of times, I have some great mentors at INCOG. People there will help you out and willing to help navigate your career and your path. So, but they told me they're like, hey, you'd be great in operations. You'd be great in this role. So you should try it and we can help you and learn. So I'm really grateful for that. And I would just tell anybody, don't look at the requirements on an application.
Like if it says two to five years, just go ahead and apply. You never know who's going to connect to you. You might be moved around, they might have a better position, just reach out and put yourself out there.
Casey Harrison: Well, and a little later in the episode, we're going to get some actual recommendations that you have that you want to share with our listeners. But I am curious too, you have spent a lot of time being really intentional about cultivating a network. Why was that so important to you?
Gabby Seal: After I didn't get into med school and I had to figure out another path, I didn't do a lot of networking in college, which I regret, and I wish I had worked a little bit harder at working on those connections.
So I realized after I graduated, in order to meet the right people, get connected, get the opportunities, and obviously, go down the path that I want for myself, I realized I need to reach out to people and talk to those people that have inspiring careers or they do really cool things with the community.
Just passionate people, ensuring that I have a network around me that can help me out if I need help or even just to grow and gain experience. So I just realized it's really important and obviously people are important in your life. So having those strong networks is crucial.
Casey Harrison: I want to go back just because we know in Indiana, jobs in the life sciences industry pay an above average wage, which allow Hoosiers to have balance and quality of life.
And I know you've shared with me that that was something that was really important to you, but maybe talk to us a little bit about how your work aligns with some of the other things you do and hobbies and such.
Gabby Seal: I'm very passionate about health and fitness. I take that, I will not take that for granted, so I've always been a big proponent of that, helping me stay sane a little bit. But recently, I've come across some, I've had some family issues with health, and it's really kind of shown me what's important in my life, and I know that there's two things that I will always strive for, is like the people and the connections that I have, make sure that they're strong, and then also my health and wellness.
I want to be able to do the things that I do now, when I'm 80 years old. So being in the life sciences industry helps me stay on track of my path and what's important to me and my purpose. So I can help people in other ways and their own health and physical ailments by producing quality drugs and making sure that there's no holdups, there's no delays in manufacturing and also just making sure that they can live the lives that they want to live and stay healthy.
Casey Harrison: You've shared so much with us today. And before we go, like I said, if we're gonna ask you to share, you know, you've had a tremendous career journey and you're just getting started. What are three recommendations that you might have for our listeners about how they can just start really leveraging and optimizing all the opportunities in front of them?
Gabby Seal: Yeah. So one I would say is connecting and getting out there on LinkedIn or other platforms. Connecting with people and reaching out to people is number one. So how I got my job at INCOG, I cold messaged three people at the company. I think I got responses from two of them. One of them was the HR director, so obviously she helped me out a little bit. But cold messaging people is, is hard. It's a difficult task and you might not get a response, but if you're polite nudge, you can, they'll respond to you if message them 10 times. So I would say that's number one and keep up with your connections. If you have a person that you think will be a, you know, mentor for a long time. Make sure you follow up with them and keep them in your life and keep them updated. They appreciate that. So I'd say networking is number one.
Number two is if you're applying to a position at a job, make sure that your core values align with their values. So, I worked at Catalent. It's a big public company. Then I went to INCOG, and it was tremendously different. INCOG is a phenomenal place. The people there will push you. You have the same goal you're all working in. You're not, you know, your own little silo working independently. So, researching the company and making sure that they align with who you are and what you believe in is also extremely important. And it'll affect the way you work. So that's number two.
And then number three, which is something I've come across in the past six months, is having hobbies outside of work. I know people say that, but you never know who you're going to meet doing, you know, playing soccer or playing pickleball, or even going golfing, like all these things outside or whatever, if you're artistic or and you want to join a club. There's networks between that and you meet somebody and they're like, oh, hey, I know them from, they work at Eli Lilly. They're pretty big. You know, I can get you in contact. It's happened to me. It's one of the easier ways to get connected because it's less pressure and I just think it's fun. It helps you keep your work life balance. It helps you stay motivated and stay sharp outside of work and you don't get drained. So, number three is just to keep your hobbies outside of work.
Casey Harrison: Three fantastic recommendations. And if you're wanting to dive into networking more or you're not sure where to get started, make sure to check us out at www.cicpindiana.com/syi.
Gabby, thank you so much for joining us today.
Gabby Seal: Thank you for having me.
Casey Harrison: We are so glad you were able to join us today to learn more about Indiana’s advanced industries and how you can start or enhance your career journey. Until next time, we hope that you will be able to see yourself in the unlimited opportunities right here in Indiana.