HELIS Academy Experience

Curious about the experiences of previous participants of the HELIS Academy GMP course? We interviewed some participants (level II advanced) to give you an idea what to expect.

Jesus is a graduate in Microbiology and wants to make the transition to the pharmaceutical industry.

He is particularly enthusiastic about the course because he now has a better picture of all departments involved in the manufacturing cycle and what their specific roles and responsibilities are in bringing a product to the market.

Seyda, a PhD in biotechnology and biophysics, has a similar experience: “I have a better understanding of the GMP rules. I also have a much better understanding of a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant…we learned a lot about the different departments, what they do and how they interact and work together to make the end product”.

Jesus adds: “also a lot of do’s and don’ts are brought to the spotlight. The workshops helped me to think out of the box and improve my troubleshooting skills”.

Practical training

Jesus highly values the practical side of the training: “in the labs and cleanrooms we learned all basic aspects of procedures like gowning and entering the cleanrooms. It means you don’t have to start at zero when you are going to work in a pharmaceutical company”.

Seyda also likes the practical training: “it made you realize you have to be very careful, much more than you thought before taking this course. For instance, we worked with LAF cabinets, and we were instructed to move very slowly! This is very different from working in a research lab”!

Nurhan, who is a medical doctor and specialized in clinical microbiology, agrees: ”Yes, I really liked the practical part of the course, in particular in the 2nd week when we started working with the automatic filling line, that was great, I learned a lot about GMP”!

Brenda has a background in quality management and lean 6 sigma, but biotech and pharma are new to her. She liked that the course program has much workshops and practical modules.  She says: “Even something as simple as mixing a solution on the lab is actually a big deal if you have no prior experience. You get a sense of the background of the business.” When asked where Biotech Training Facility could make improvements she suggests to add even more practice.

About the trainers

Jesus finds the trainers very experienced: “Most of them have many years of working experience in the industry in various areas. This meant that they can come up with solid examples to explain the theory. Seyda confirms this: “The trainers are very efficient, knowledgeable and have a lot of practical experience”.

Recommendations

All participants would recommend this GMP-course.

Marta (molecular biotechnologist)” In fact this course was even better that I expected, it exceeded my expectations. I would definitely recommend it”.

Brenda explains she applied for a  job in de pharmaceutical industry and was called in for a second interview. After telling her potential employer that she would follow the ten-day GMP course at Biotech Training Facility, she had a benefit over other applicants and she ended up getting the job. Brenda says: “Following the HELIS Academy GMP course can increase your chances of a job in the pharmaceutical industry. The course positioned me better for the quality job I wanted.”

Nurhan concludes: ”during my research on tuberculosis I learned a lot about protecting the patients, now I have learned how to protect the product. And the level of protection is much higher under GMP!