Frequently Asked Questions
What You Need to Know
If recruiters place candidates for free, why would I pay for career support?
Because a recruiter does not work for you. A recruitment agency is paid by the company that hires you, so its job is to fill the mandates it has been given, and it earns nothing unless you take one of them. That is a real service, but it is the employer's service. Some agencies also place you as their own temporary employee (Arbeitnehmerüberlassung) rather than directly with the company. When you fund the work yourself, the incentive changes. I have one client in the room: you. The guidance you get is not shaped by which vacancies I happen to hold or which placement pays a fee. If the honest answer is that you should stay where you are, or take an offer I had nothing to do with, that is the answer you will get.
What does a pharma career strategist do?
A pharma career strategist like Andreas Schulz helps pharmaceutical professionals find better roles faster by rewriting their CV and LinkedIn profile for ATS and hiring managers, coaching them on job search strategy, and — through reverse recruitment — searching for strong-match roles and submitting tailored applications in their name once they green-light each role.
How much does CV and LinkedIn rewriting cost for pharma professionals?
MoreThanCareer.de offers CV and LinkedIn rewrite packages starting from €149 net for career starters and up to €649 net for executives, tailored specifically for the pharmaceutical and biotech sector. Packages include ATS optimisation, achievement-focused language, and revision rounds.
What is reverse recruitment in pharma?
Reverse recruitment flips the traditional job search: instead of hunting alone, you hire a recruiter who works for you rather than for the employer. Andreas Schulz actively searches the market for roles that are a strong or very strong match for your profile and shares each one with you. Only once you green-light that specific role does he prepare a CV and cover letter tailored to it and submit the application in your name. He takes no fee from any employer, does not mediate between you and them, and does not negotiate offers with hiring organisations. Interview attendance, negotiation and acceptance remain your decisions.
Who is Andreas Schulz and why should I trust his pharma career advice?
Andreas Schulz spent 14 years inside Big Pharma and Global Top 3 CROs — including 9 years at Bayer AG — as a recruiter and talent partner. He has reviewed over 50,000 CVs, personally screened more than 10,000 candidates, and conducted over 1,000 interviews. He now uses that insider knowledge exclusively to help pharma professionals in the DACH region and beyond position themselves effectively and land better roles.
Does MoreThanCareer.de offer pharma career coaching in Germany?
Yes. MoreThanCareer.de is based in Berlin and specialises in pharma career coaching for professionals in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and the wider European market. Coaching is delivered via video call in German, English, or Polish.
What makes a pharma career coach different from a generic coach?
A career coach specialised in the pharmaceutical industry understands pharma-specific ATS systems, hiring manager expectations, regulatory and scientific role requirements, and the nuances of DACH pharma recruitment. Andreas Schulz spent over a decade inside pharma as a recruiter — he gives sector-specific strategy for roles in Pharmacovigilance, Quality, R&D, Market Access, and beyond.
How do I get started with MoreThanCareer.de?
The first step is a free 20-minute getting-to-know call with Andreas Schulz, where he assesses your situation honestly and recommends which service — if any — makes sense for you. No obligation, no sales pitch.
What does a pharma career coach do?
A pharma career coach helps professionals in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and life sciences sectors navigate their job search and career progression. Andreas Schulz rewrites CVs and LinkedIn profiles for pharma ATS systems, coaches on job search strategy, prepares clients for pharma interviews, supports salary negotiations, and through his DEDICATED service, actively manages the entire job search on the candidate's behalf.
Do you work with Associate Directors, Heads, VPs and C-level executives?
Yes. Leads, Heads, Associate Directors, Directors, VPs and C-level executives have a dedicated route at MoreThanCareer.de: the NAVIGATOR executive programme (8 sessions, €4,450 net) or reverse recruitment at executive depth, quoted on request. Discretion is the operating rule at this level. Applications only go out after your written green light for that specific role, and nothing about your search leaves the engagement without your consent. The full picture is on the
executive career advisory page.
Do you work with clients outside the DACH region, elsewhere in the EU or in the US?
Yes. Sessions run by video call in English, German or Polish, and clients elsewhere in the EU or in the US work with Andreas in English. Berlin afternoons overlap with US East Coast mornings, which keeps scheduling workable. His deepest market knowledge is DACH pharma; the mechanics that decide outcomes, ATS screening in Workday and Eightfold, document structure, interview and negotiation preparation, transfer across pharma markets, and 5 of his 14 insider years were at ICON and Syneos Health, two Global Top 3 CROs.
How is MoreThanCareer.de different from a headhunter or executive search firm?
A headhunter is retained and paid by the company that hires you, so their advice follows the mandates they hold. Andreas takes no payment from employers, holds no mandates and does not mediate between you and an employer. Applications go out in your name, with your consent, role by role. Interviews, negotiations and decisions stay yours, with his preparation before every round.
Can I book interview coaching or salary negotiation coaching on its own?
Yes, all three are standalone products.
Interview Coaching & Simulation is €349 net: a 90-minute mock interview for your target role with structured feedback.
Salary Negotiation Coaching, also €349 net, covers benchmarking, counter-offer strategy and a negotiation script for your specific offer. No programme required. The
Arbeitszeugnis decoding, €349 net, is standalone too: a line-by-line analysis of your German reference letter with the real grade and a corrected counter-draft.
Which providers offer career coaching for pharma professionals in the DACH region?
The market has four camps: employer-mandated executive search (Head-Gate, NES Fircroft, InterSearch, Kontrast), placement services with coaching elements (TOPSTEP, Der Pharmalotse), employer-funded outplacement (LHH, von Rundstedt), and candidate-funded pharma specialists like MoreThanCareer.de. Who pays the provider decides whose interests the advice follows. The full landscape, including the competition, is mapped honestly on the
provider overview page.
Which strategies work for long-term career development in pharma?
Seven approaches hold up, observed from the hiring side over 17 years: choosing the function ladder deliberately, building a T-profile (deep in one function, fluent in the neighbours), becoming findable before you need anything, keeping a dated evidence file, holding a reorganisation-proof skill such as QP or QPPV, treating languages as market access, and negotiating every transition. Each one is unpacked on the
long-term career development page.
