The workforce challenges facing Massachusetts life sciences don’t belong to any one organization. Neither do the solutions.

On May 27, Northeastern University’s College of Professional Studies brought together nine partner organizations from across the life sciences workforce community for the first PathmakerBIO Partner Summit. Employers, trainers, placement partners, funders, and community organizations came to the table to identify where working together could make a real difference.

PathmakerBIO is a free, skills-based biomanufacturing training program, built with industry partners, to open doors to life sciences careers. To date, 140 participants have completed or are currently enrolled in training. The program is organized around six connected stages — recruitment, training and certification, experiential learning, placement, employer engagement, and community and policy — bringing together specialized partners at each one to move learners from entry to employment.

Partners participating in the summit surfaced a range of shared challenges across the workforce pipeline. Two emerged as the natural starting point for collaboration.

Marketing and Visibility: There’s a real opportunity across the partnership to share what’s working for reaching prospective learners and employers. A working group will begin exploring shared best practices, coordinated outreach strategies, and employer engagement approaches.

“PathmakerBIO is organized around six connected stages — recruitment, training and certification, experiential learning, placement, employer engagement, and community and policy — bringing together specialized partners at each one to move learners from entry to employment.”

Northeastern University College of Professional Studies

Curriculum, Scheduling and Program Coordination: Partners identified an opportunity to build greater visibility into the range of programs available across the field, including curriculum, format, schedule, and eligibility, so learners can more easily find the right fit. The group agreed to build upon ongoing ecosystem work led by Year Up United’s Life Sciences Career Alliance, of which PathmakerBIO is a member, to define next steps.

May’s summit was the first in a series of partner gatherings that Northeastern’s College of Professional Studies plans to hold. Each one will be tailored to a specific goal rather than following a fixed format, building on the progress from the previous session. If your organization works on workforce access in Massachusetts life sciences, there’s a seat at the table.

Contact us at [email protected] to get involved in future summits. Learn more about PathmakerBIO: pathmakerbio.sites.northeastern.edu