Katelyn Nuñez Speaker Event

Katelyn Nuñez

21 March, 2025

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katelyn-n

Email: katelyn.nunez@gmail.com

From Biomanufacturing to Technical Writing - All in the Details

Written by Austin Esparza, CSULB Biotechnology Club

Katelyn Nuñez got her start in biotech working in GMP production environments. In our speaker session, she discussed her transition from GMP manufacturing to technical writing in biotech, highlighting career paths beyond traditional lab roles and how students can apply their technical skills in diverse biotech roles.

After completing her undergraduate studies in biology at Boston University, she returned home to Long Beach to begin her entry into her career. Having initially set out to pursue a career in genetic counseling, she quickly found that this was not the right path for her and began to search for other ways to apply her education. Her first job after college was in quality assurance for a medical device company, Edwards Lifesciences in Irvine, CA. 

Following her time with this company, she moved to San Diego, where she found herself in a hub of biotech innovation. Her next role would be with a contract manufacturing organization, Abzena, where her focus shifted to protein purification, operational design, and efficiency.

Following her time with Abzena, she began work at Sorrento Therapeutics, another manufacturing site, where she would develop her skill sets in project management and technical manufacturing support. In February 2021, her manufacturing site was purchased by PacBio. With this acquisition came a new corporate structure and the opportunity to branch out of direct operational support into a technical writing position.

You mentioned that you have found yourself working across quality environments, been involved in direct manufacturing and operational support, and finally in technical writing. What were these jobs like day to day?

Quality tends to be a very predictable working environment. Instances of product nonconformance and testing deviation allow for deeper exploration into manufacturing processes to troubleshoot issues. However, the job primarily involves strict environmental monitoring, lab testing, and documentation. You know that pretty much every week, you will enter manufacturing spaces to collect samples and perform sterility testing.

Manufacturing depends heavily on the schedule demands of a particular manufacturing run. In a contract manufacturing organization (CMO), each production run will vary by project timeline and based on the client's specified needs, such as production method and scale of product needed.

Technical writing has a different pace than the strict demands of a manufacturing environment. This role is primarily centered around the support of my team. My role facilitates documentation needed for production, marketing, and compliance. Oftentimes, this role can function as a necessary bridge between different teams and higher management. An essential function is to ensure that all documentation is executed to a high standard, following all team and company requirements.

When you were describing your work on protein extraction and purification, I was curious about how you felt managing such a detailed and structured workload. Did you ever find yourself missing a sense of autonomy or room for your own direction?

The work can sometimes feel repetitive, but there is still much room to find ownership in your projects and drive process improvement. Manufacturing itself is a type of work that requires strict attention to detail. However, the process is subject to continuous improvement. As long as you build acceptable tolerances into your manufacturing campaigns, there is still room to work within the margin of error.

When you mentioned that in the corporate side of science sometimes you can get used or taken advantage of, what did you mean? What should we watch out for?

Especially in a male-dominated corporate environment, you might bring many soft skills to your team that get overlooked. Critical skills like team building and interpersonal and inter-team communication, while often essential to the proper functions of a team and driving overall success, are usually attributes that can be overlooked. In an environment that focuses on output and qualified metrics, these skills facilitating everyone's work are less quantifiable and, therefore, harder to receive recognition for. While good managers recognize these values that you may bring and the success they drive, you need to be your advocate and ensure that you receive the recognition you deserve in your role.

What types of skills and experiences did you leverage from your undergrad when you were navigating the job market for the first time? And what experience would you recommend current undergrads getting now?

When I graduated college in 2015 with my degree in biology, I applied to positions everywhere. And on my resume, I listed every possible course and skill that could convey to an employer that I had a lot of exposure to many different areas in science. Any lab or project that could demonstrate competency was another item I could use to speak to my experience on my resume. When it comes to applications, apply for as many positions as possible. Often, it is a numbers game.

In terms of experiences recommended to undergrads - put yourself out there. Meet new people, learn new skills, and try your best to find not just what you are good at, but also what you like doing. At the end of the day, your degree is your path forward in your career. But your education as a whole encompasses so many different facets of personal and professional growth. Lean into those experiences and those opportunities while you can.

What were your interviews like?

Interviews are a way for employers to get to know you. It is so hard to characterize all types of employment interviews, but many have employed the STAR method in this process. Many of the interviews are very results-driven, so be sure to be able to quantify your experiences and frame things in the context of impact.

If you’re interested in learning more about her journey or seeking advice, Katelyn welcomes connections from students and early-career professionals.