fellow

scientist

statistician

postdoctoral fellow

safety officer

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

What is the best part of working at the company?
Working at the FDA has been a truly rewarding experience. One of the things I value most is the flexible and supportive work schedule, which allows for a healthy work-life balance—something that’s incredibly important to me as a parent and professional.

The mission-driven environment is both inspiring and motivating. I feel proud to be part of an agency that plays such a vital role in protecting public health. The leadership encourages professional development, and there are opportunities to grow and learn across different areas of the organization.

The culture at the FDA promotes collaboration, respect, and a strong sense of purpose. I’m grateful to be part of a team where my contributions are valued and my well-being is prioritized.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
While working at the FDA is fulfilling, one of the most stressful aspects can be managing tight deadlines and shifting priorities—especially when dealing with high-impact regulatory or compliance issues. Because the work we do directly affects public health and safety, there’s a strong sense of urgency and responsibility that comes with the job.

Additionally, navigating complex policies, evolving regulations, and interagency coordination can be challenging at times. However, these pressures are balanced by strong leadership, supportive colleagues, and a shared commitment to the mission, which makes the workload feel purposeful rather than overwhelming.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment at the FDA is professional, mission-driven, and highly collaborative. Colleagues are knowledgeable and passionate about their work, and there’s a shared sense of purpose in protecting public health. The culture encourages integrity, accountability, and innovation, which makes it a motivating place to work.

I’ve found leadership to be supportive and open to feedback, and there’s a strong emphasis on work-life balance, especially with flexible scheduling and telework options. Continuous learning and professional development are encouraged, and employees are given the tools and training needed to succeed.

While the work can be fast-paced and detail-oriented, the overall environment promotes mutual respect, teamwork, and a genuine commitment to making a positive impact.

A typical day at work:
A typical day at the FDA was dynamic yet structured. I had the flexibility to organize my schedule in a way that allowed for focused scientific work, team meetings, and collaborative discussions. The work was driven by both short-term goals and long-term research initiatives, which kept it engaging and meaningful.

What I believe I learned:
I gained a deeper understanding of regulatory science and how scientific research supports public health decisions. I also sharpened my skills in data analysis, scientific writing, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Most importantly, I learned how to navigate complex scientific questions within a regulatory framework.

Management:
Management was supportive and encouraged professional development. I appreciated the openness to feedback, mentorship opportunities, and the autonomy to pursue research interests within the mission of the agency.

Workplace culture:
The culture at the FDA was collaborative, mission-driven, and intellectually stimulating. There was a strong emphasis on teamwork and scientific integrity. Being surrounded by dedicated professionals created an environment that valued curiosity, rigor, and public service.

The hardest part of the job:
At times, navigating the administrative or procedural aspects of a large federal agency could be challenging. Balancing scientific research with regulatory priorities required patience and adaptability.

The most enjoyable part of the job:
The most enjoyable part was working in such a rich scientific environment with access to cutting-edge resources and experts across various fields. The opportunities for collaboration and the sense of contributing to public health made the work incredibly fulfilling.

A typical day for me was to answer, screen and transfer inbound phone calls.  Receive and direct visitors and clients.  general clerical duties including photocopying, fax and mailing, maintain electronic and hard copy filing system, retrieve documents from filing system
handle requests for information and data, resolve administrative problems and inquiries, prepare written responses to routine inquiries
prepare and modify documents including correspondence, reports, drafts, memos and emails.  Schedule and coordinate meetings, appointments and travel arrangements for managers or supervisors
prepare agendas for meetings and prepare schedules
record, compile, transcribe and distribute minutes of meetings
open, sort and distribute incoming correspondence
maintain office supply inventories, coordinate maintenance of office equipment, coordinate and maintain records for staff, telephones, parking and petty cash.

I learned about Congressional matters, as well as how to make Executive Secretary decision.

Management was great, fair, friendly and generous

Co-workers were different big office staff of 21 many different personalities and ways, for the most part enjoyable.

The hardest part was to resign.

I enjoyed my position with FDA as Secretary I love office work.

Great people to work with.  Customers are friendly and mostly accommodating during pandemic.  Management leaves you alone, but you also can't get equipment/supplies either.  IT rules/regs are sometimes frustrating since can't always solve issues because if them.  Scissors - didn't have for 1yr - a user took pity on me and sent me some from another office. 
 Pay sucks - I am a contractor and they don't pay nearly what a full-time employee makes - about 50% less and do most of the work :(.  Job security not great and no chance for advancement as a contractor.  Get to work from home - but full time IT person lazy and rarely comes in for onsite tickets so I have to go in their place >:( .  Hilariously, keeping safe there is a challenge as no face masks provided and empty hand sanitizer bottles everywhere.  Breakroom Fridge is ***DISGUSTING***.

In my opinion the FDA is a great place to work and acquire skills, knowledge and abilities that will enhance an individual background. It is a great entry level opportunity but in my experience fails to provide a clear path and opportunity for career development. The office appears to have politics where individuals who are friends with management are considered for new roles and opportunities  as opposed to eligible and capable employees who have shown the merit to do the job. 

The organization has great benefits when it comes to working at home or adjusting daily schedules, along with advantageous health benefits including flexible spend accounts. The company has a 401k type of retirement plan where they match up to 5% of the contributions made by the employee. 

The hardest part of the job is sometimes there isn't a standard approach that is followed by all employees when performing the task related for each assignment.

Each day, I audit, review, and evaluate the manufacturing processes of FDA regulated products.  This means performing inspections of hospitals, food manufacturing companies, veteran’s hospitals, blood banks, chemical companies and even grain elevators.  I meet new people on a daily basis and am constantly in unique and dynamic situations.  I continue to learn to communicate with industry, other government entities, and local health departments.  I appreciate fluid management where expectations are clearly defined.  I enjoy performing team inspections and investigations with my co-workers as they are the only ones who understand what it is like to watch certain functions of a facility at 2:00am.  The hardest part of my job at this juncture is finding the time to fit all of my inspections into the allotted time, due to a high attrition rate.  I do enjoy that I meet new people every day in the field.  

A typical day at this job included morning and afternoon meetings along with a daily email of tasks to complete and an email at the end of each shift to document completed assignments and upcoming assignments due for completion. I learned how the Southeast Region of the FDA receive their budget, what they are allowed to spend it on, how much time they have to spend it, and what happens if the money is or is not spent. Management was very impactful, approachable, and excellent and solving problems and teaching others how to solve problems as well. Co-workers worked well as a team. The hardest part of this job was leaving. The most enjoyable part of this job was constantly learning new information that was beneficial inside and outside of the job.

My first assignment with FDA was so exciting and informative. I've learned more in my first year there about American history and our government than I had with four years of study. I became fascinated with FDA's enforcement policies. Advancement within the Agency was unparalleled. One of the biggest challenges I faced there was taking part of a Center for Drugs project which called for digitizing all previously approved drug applications using Adode Acrobat software. Over 25,000 applications were processed by the group I personally supervised over a nine month period. The most impressive part of that assignment was that all the work performed on the project was all done after regular working hours.

Management does not have your back.  After 20 years I had enough.  It's a shame because the opportunities are there but, not worth the risk they put the employee at in the mandatory foreign travel program.  The morale problem continues to fester and get worse.  Management has changed over the 20 years I was there.  It was a "Family" and all worked together with real "Public Health" in mind.  Now, its well, not nearly as effective as it was.  Just hope and pray that the mfg. of the drugs and devices you and your children take and use are manufactured by companies that have a conscience.  
A recent "Realignment" of enforcement programs has ruined the possibility of the rank and file cadre to effectively perform their duties.  I'm glad I was able to retire when I did.

Overall, I learned so much from my time in the Food and Drug administration. A typical day at work is filled with learning new things about projects and coworkers. Specifically, I learned that one has to really go out and take advantage of information most may not see. One thing people are looking for is a self-starter. You're always going to have to go out of your way to find infomation to your projects. 

Management wasn't always entirely engaging but the co-workers are easy to work with and really assisted me in learning about the job. The hardest part of this job is the consistent diligence to the research it takes for some projects. The most enjoyable part was always having something new to learn.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Fellow 3 salaries reported	$118,000 per year
Scientist 3 salaries reported	$113,107 per year
Statistician 4 salaries reported	$137,500 per year
Postdoctoral fellow 1 salary reported	$77,490 per year
Safety officer 9 salaries reported	$140,094 per year

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