The Medical Writer

Kathleen A. Gardner - Marketing Associate

Major: Technical writing, with minors in biology and international studies.

What's Next: "As a writer in the marketing department at QED Communications Inc. [in Hawthorne, N.Y., a Division of Quintiles Transnational], I facilitate continuing medical education programs as well as market new drugs direct to physicians."

Typical Starting Salary: $30,000-$38,000 (QED does not disclose salary data.)

My WPI: "I came here thinking I would be a veterinarian; I had worked for three summers in a vet's office. Then I discovered I'm allergic to cats, so I had to change direction. I read the WPI course catalog from front to back and decided on technical writing. My grandmother had a long battle with breast cancer; it has since become 'my issue.' My major project was creating a comprehensive public health message for women at high risk of breast cancer as a secondary cancer."

Five Years Out: "Working at a hospital or pharmaceutical company and pursuing master's degrees--in communications and in public health."

Little-Known Fact: Katie trained as an operatic coloratura soprano in high school.

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Last modified: Sep 02, 2004, 11:33 EDT