This summer, during my internship at Pfizer, I had the opportunity to chat with Jocelyn McDermid, who was then the International Commercial Office Legal Lead at Pfizer. With over two decades of experience, Jocelyn has been critical in delivering legal advice across the company’s many business sectors and contributing to different leadership teams. During our conversation, I learned a lot about her career journey, her role at Pfizer, and how she came to specialise in pharmaceutical law.
What was your university experience like? What has your career path been since graduating from law school?
“I went to Newcastle University, in the north of England, where I studied Law with French. I chose this because I thought having the language alongside a straight law degree would give me an additional string to my bow. I spent my third year in France, studying law at the University of Nancy, which was an amazing experience.”
“After university, I took a few gap years and then joined a large regional law firm for my two-year training contract. This involved rotating through different departments—six months each, including litigation, commercial property, and a few other areas, before qualifying into the commercial team. I was sent on secondment to a large water company almost immediately after qualifying, where I spent a year. When I returned to private practice, I realised I preferred in-house roles, working for one client as part of a team, which led me to Pfizer.”
What made you choose a law career within the pharmaceutical industry?
“I didn’t have any pharmaceutical experience when I joined Pfizer but I found there were similarities between my experience at the water company where I was on secondment and pharmaceuticals, both being highly regulated industries. It wasn’t part of a grand plan; it was more about following what interested me and taking opportunities.”
“I spent 10 years as a generalist in the UK legal team before moving to a global role in pricing and market access. This gave me experience with various market access regimes, particularly in Europe, where I advised my clients on navigating different pricing and reimbursement regimes. This gave me the relevant global experience that prepared me for my next role.
“For the past few years, I’ve worked almost exclusively on the COVID-19 vaccine contract with the European Commission. This has been a huge challenge but one which has resulted in significant personal and professional growth.”
Is there any guidance you can offer to college students interested in pursuing a career in law?
“Be creative in getting as much experience as you can. For example, when I didn’t get into a particular law firm summer placement scheme, I offered to do administrative work instead. That got me in the door, and they invited me to all the summer placement events. I would definitely recommend doing internships at different law firms—large city firms, smaller boutique ones, and regional ones— to help decide which culture is right for you.”
“My other piece of advice to finish on would be to build and maintain a strong network. Maintaining those connections is invaluable, I think of it as creating a ‘personal boardroom’ of people you can rely on throughout your career.”
Image by Coolcaesar via Wikimedia Commons