Returning to a previous employer remains relatively uncharted territory for many members of the workforce. Even parting on the most amicable terms can still leave employees unsure about opportunities for rejoining. Monica Reiser, Project Coordinator at Medpace, knows firsthand what it’s like to work in tandem with her employer to create a career that fits her goals.
Entry-Level
Monica’s career has undergone a drastic transformation since she started at Medpace. While searching for her first post-grad role with her eye on the biotechnology industry, she wanted a position that would fuse her Master of Business Administration with her bachelor’s in life science. When she stumbled across Medpace’s Data Coordinator role, Monica knew she had found her fit. “It was a great match for my interests and goals of entering the industry,” Monica recalls.
Monica’s ideal career path includes growth and development, and her skills grew exponentially during her tenure as a Data Coordinator. After nearly two years, however, she began feeling drawn towards a different challenge: medicine. Her experience in biotech sparked an interest in healthcare, and she wanted to make her way into a new industry, to develop on the clinical side of healthcare. Monica decided to take a nursing track and went back to school at the encouragement of family and friends.
When Monica made the decision to leave Medpace, her decision to leave was partially rooted in her mission to return with the ability to contribute to clinical research in a different way than she was able to before. She remembers thinking, “If I had a better understanding of medicine, I could one day become an advanced practitioner or return to Medpace.” Monica explains that the latter would allow her to “pursue a more robust career in clinical research.”
It’s Not the Destination
Once Monica had her BSN in hand, she embarked on a whole new journey: clinical practice as a Registered Nurse.
Monica hit the ground running, and in her quest to learn as much as she could about medicine, she landed in a Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit. She quickly progressed in title, rising through various levels and eventually becoming an Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Specialist. “It was truly fascinating and rewarding to learn how to manage ECMO circuits to help facilitate patients’ recoveries,” Monica says.
This high-intensity environment led to pivotal experiences in Monica’s career. She spent much of her time recovering patients from heart surgery and transplants as well as managing medical equipment and devices. Exposure to complex cases supplied her with the essential learning opportunities she was craving.
After nearly four years in this role and with upward progress beginning to wane, she started looking for new opportunities. Monica revisited the idea of returning to Medpace. “I had always known it was an option, [from] the minute I left,” she recalls. Her positive experience as a Data Coordinator combined with the prospect of career development convinced Monica to reapply.
Former Stomping Grounds
Monica wanted the function of her new role to remain the same: perform at the epicenter of patient care. As a nurse, she stood at the core of her patients’ care plans, from coordinating medication and orders to performing procedures. The ability to deliver high-quality care was the driving force behind selecting a new role. When she returned to Medpace, she stepped into a brand-new role in a brand-new department.
Monica now holds the title of Project Coordinator where she operates at the nucleus of the clinical trial. She works with every department within Medpace to produce a seamless trial and deliver top-of-the line outcomes. In addition to creating a fulfilling career for herself, Monica has also experienced a warm welcome back to where she got her start. Her new team has accepted her with open arms. “It’s been incredibly fascinating to see how much Medpace has grown these past five years,” Monica remarks. While change is inevitable within a growing company like Medpace, she notes that “the very fundamentals of the company are the same, which make it feel like home.”
Medpace careers