Fueling the Next Generation of Scientists

With summer officially behind us, our 2017 Next Generation Scientists (NGS) Program has come to a close. It is a personal point of pride that Novartis is home to world-class scientists, who span across disciplines and specialties. The NGS, which I have been closely involved with since 2015, offers young and talented scientists from developing nations the chance to join us on our campus in Basel, where they work directly with our Novartis teams and the University of Basel to partake in research projects and professional development classes designed to help build a successful research career.

This year, we were lucky enough to host 23 students – who themselves are already accomplished scientists at varying stages of completing advanced degrees – from 11 countries, guided by Novartis mentors across drug discovery and development fields ranging from the science of clinical trial operations to the exploration of new disease targets.

I find one of the most valuable aspects of this program is the relationship students form with their new mentors. I personally would not be where I am today without the influential mentors I had during school and throughout my career, as they taught me important lessons that I continue to carry with me and inspired me to always strive for more.

I hope that we at Novartis can instill inspiration into each class of NGS students and continue to see them grow in their careers. Recently, I was excited to hear about a former NGS student, Dr. Thandiswa Ngcungcu, who has continued her commitment to genetics research and achieved a groundbreaking discovery of the genetic mutation responsible for a rare skin disease, which will go on to benefit many underserved patients who can now be more accurately tested for the disease.

In addition to mentorship, this program presents opportunities to work toward our mission of delivering healthcare to the developing world. At Novartis, we feel capacity building is key to achieving this and by offering access to Novartis’ technologies and capabilities to scientists who are on the front lines of addressing the needs of developing nations, we help expand knowledge of advanced skills and techniques and further progress ongoing efforts in areas of need.

We must remember, developing next generation medicines requires investment in the next generation of scientists. I want to thank our teams at Novartis and the University of Basel who have invested the time to train, mentor and learn from our NGS fellows. To our class of 2017, as you return home, I wish you the best of luck and hope you can share these new experiences and skills with your colleagues and patients as you continue to make an impact on healthcare in your local communities and beyond.