Welcome to Next Phase Recruitment! Please see below our current jobs that match your search criteria. For a broader job search please visit the home page or call us on 01403 216216 to discuss career options in other areas of Life Science and Technology.

Welcome to Next Phase Recruitment! Please use the above link to see our current jobs that match your search criteria. For a broader job search please visit the home page or call us on 01403 216216 to discuss career options in other areas of Life Science and Technology.

QA Specialist

Quality Assurance (QA) is a vital function within all Pharmaceutical and Medical Device companies.  Job titles within the QA area can vary a great deal across different companies, with titles including QA Coordinator, QA Associate, QA Officer, QA Specialist, QA Officer and QA Scientist, then progressing to QA Manager, QA Lead etc. The QA terms, especially at junior-to-intermediate level, are often quite interchangeable.

The QA team is typically responsible for ensuring that the quality standards and systems followed in the manufacture of drugs is in compliance with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and meets the specific quality standards laid out in the company’s Quality Management System (QMS). A QMS will include quality standards for internal audits, deviations, change controls, corrective actions, quality review reports, clean room monitoring, batch record review, and external documentation reviews.   

A pharmaceutical QA professional’s responsibilities will include analysing the production process of pharmaceuticals, identifying areas where errors prevail, root cause analysis, observing every activity,  monitoring the drugs being manufactured or packed for visible defects, testing the drugs (or at least interpreting the data from lab-based QC analysis), noting down observations gathered from the quality control process, and accepting or rejecting batches of drugs on the basis of samples (Batch Release). Quality Assurance teams will often be divided into different QA groups, with some more focused on batch record review while others are more involved in non-conformance investigations and SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) updates.

Skills and Experience required to become a Quality Assurance Specialist

  • Science degree (this is not always essential)
  • Experience gained in a GMP / ISO environment
  • QA processes and systems
  • Diplomacy
  • Batch record processing
  • Ability to multi-task
  • Several years’ previous experience in a QA role

Salary Levels

Quality Assurance salaries can vary enormously depending on what specific duties the person will be undertaking. If the QA role is a relatively entry-level or administrative one, focused on batch review or entry and processing of Quality Assurance documents / data, salaries could be in the £18k - £24k range. QA salaries can then increase steadily once you start to specialise in a particular QA area, especially if this means getting involved in hosting / conducting internal or external audits, continuous improvement initiatives, team leadership, or training. Quality Assurance offers a varied and interesting career path and you could earn up to £40k in a non-management role and significantly more than this once you are in a management-level QA position.

 

 

 

 

Oxford, Oxfordshire

Oxford, known as “The City of Dreaming Spires”, is a beautiful and historic city in southeast England approximately 60 miles from London, 65 from Birmingham, 70 from Birmingham and 25 from Reading.   Oxford University, founded in the 12th century, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world and has frequently been ranked as the top university in the world.  The Oxford Science Park, which is owned and managed by Magdalen College, is home to many science and technology businesses and Oxford enjoys a growing reputation as a centre of digital innovation.  The stunning architecture, world class museums and attractive riverside setting make Oxford a major destination for tourists from around the world and a popular location for films and TV series.

Famous people born in Oxford:  Hugh Laurie, Actor and Tim Henman, tennis player

Oxford is a major site for biotechnology, rare disease, ATMP, cell therapy, gene therapy and pharmaceutical development. It houses a number of university spin-out businesses, start-up biotechs and other organisations attracting seed investment. If you are looking for career opportunities in life sciences within the Oxford area, call the Next Phase Recruitment team on 01403 216216.