Charles P. Gerba
Professor of Environmental Microbiology, Departments of Microbiology and Immunology and Soil, Water and Environmental Science, University of Arizona

B.A. in Microbiology, Arizona State University, 1969
Ph.D. in Microbiology, University of Miami, Floria, 1973

Dr. Gerba has authored more than 400 articles including several text books in environmental microbiology and pollution science. He actively conducts research on the development of new disinfectants and drinking water treatment processes, new methods for the detection of waterborne pathogens, occurrence and fate of pathogens in the environment, and microbial risk assessment. He was a member of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Committee on the development of the "Guide Standard and Protocol for Testing Microbiological Water Purifiers," which forms the basis for testing the performance of water treatment devices used for outdoor recreation. He is a member of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Science Advisory Board Committees on Drinking Water and Research Strategies. He is a member of the American Academy of Microbiology.

The following is a transcript of Dr. Gerba's presentation at Biology Career Day 1997:

I'm the token faculty member here today, largely because I work a lot with industry on the applied and environmental microbiology. Seventy percent of my research support comes from industry. I started out with a B.S. degree in microbiology, and my first job was looking at sewage and sewage treatment. This was rather interesting. I thought everybody went into the medical area, and I never knew there was such an opportunity in sewage and sludge. That area is overlooked. There are a lot of jobs there. What I've learned is that it's important to find a career that you can use that kind of training in.

I went on, deciding that I didn't want to be at the bench. Usually if you have a B.S. in microbiology, you're a bench grunt. I didn't want to be that. So I went on to get my Ph.D. at the University of Miami. I said I wanted to do something outside. So my advisor said, "They're worried about viruses coming out of the sewage out fall," which was raw sewage coming out on the Miami beach at that time. He said, "Why don't you do that?" And I said, "Well, okay!" So a few weeks later I was on a boat throwing up and collecting sewage samples outside of the marine out fall.

I later did a postdoctoral where the field of environmental virology was evolving and looking at viruses in the environment. I had a rather entrepreneurial advisor, and one day he actually leaned back and felt the droplets when he flushed the toilet he was sitting on. He got the idea that maybe viruses spread in developed countries by toilet bowl flushing. He ran down and grabbed me, had me sit on the toilet, and flushed it a few times. I thought it was an initiation, but it ended up being the beginning of about a million dollars worth of research for Procter & Gamble! That got me interested in consumer products. Now I'm developing new products, evaluating their environmental safety, and working with biotechnology companies.

I also did a stint with the EPA to introduce scientists to government policy - how to write regulations and the documentation for that. I had most of my students go and work for government or industry, and I can give you an idea of a lot of the career paths that are possible. There are incredibly fascinating jobs that you'd never think about, where there are opportunities if you are interested. Right now, I'm the environmental sector. This includes the food industry, the wastewater industry, and all levels of degrees (B.S., Ph.D., master's). There are a lot of jobs available right now. I can almost guarantee any students with a bachelor's degree can get a job right now in environmental microbiology. There are a lot of biotechnology companies in environmental areas.

Questions and Answers

Could you comment on how research is done, in the academic sense, such as graduate school and postdoctoral work - it's very specific. Is there a danger in getting very specific in a project in graduate school and postdoctoral work?
I think, from my standpoint, focused research demonstrates problem solving and accomplishment. That's in terms of from what I've seen in my career, when I've had the opportunity to see the applications. We've done work on every continent, including the MIR space station. There's sewage in space! All you have to remember is the astronauts have to go to the bathroom! If you have postdoctoral experience working on toilets, you can work at NASA! (Laughter)

When you get into specialized problems, realize the potential of it in different areas, particularly if you go from academics to industry. You'll have a lot of background you can use, and you can solve problems because of your experience. Just don't narrow yourself. Problem solving is what you really learn. In terms of academic versus industrial research, academic research tends to be long-focused on a specific problem.

Industrial research tends to be short term. You're solving a specific problem that has a short-term application. They want it solved quickly. It's really challenging from that standpoint. Doing industrial research is very challenging because if the production line is down because there's a fungus growing in there you've got to find it fast - they're loosing millions of dollars! If you're in a biotechnology company, you've got to find a solution, and if you can't, you'd better change paths very quickly. You have to learn when you've pursued a problem too long. Unlike me, I can sit there and look at the ceiling for six months before I have to think of something. In industry, it's much more challenging to do that. Everybody I know in industry loves that because that's the kind of thing they feel comfortable with.

What kind of experience do you value more, academic - say laboratory experience - versus industrial laboratory experience? Or does it matter?
It depends on what you want to do. They both have value. In academia, it depends on what your area is. I think sometimes people in academia are too focused, and they're too specialized. I think the tragedy of a lot of academics is that they focus on one thing, forgetting that there's a big need for what they're doing somewhere else. I think flexibility for both is important. In industry, it's an absolute necessity.

I realize that these days most people who get an education learn English, but do you think that there's any demand or advantage in your field to knowing two or more languages?
I think it's one of those things you want to add as a competitive advantage. For example, there was a job available with a company that we work with. There were a number of candidates, but one of the candidates spoke fluent German. She was at the top of the list because they work with a German company. So it was a competitive advantage that got her to the top of the list. Don't rely on that advantage for a job. It's just one of your competitive advantages. It might get you the interview.

What do you least like about your position?
You know you're successful if you don't have enough time to do your job. People are placing more demands on you than you could possibly do. But if nobody gives you any work, you're not very successful, and it's time to look for another job. Of course, the university bureaucracy is another life form. Trying to deal with it - there's only one thing worse, and that's the government. Sometimes no matter how good you do, it's just the bureaucracy that you get lost in. I think in industry they are much more flexible. They want to get the job done, but then again they cut throats sometimes to do it. Things do get done faster in industry than I can do it here at the University. You just have to learn to live with the system.

In my work, I work with high school teachers in Arizona. One common comment is that there's the sense that there's a lack of biotechnology careers in Arizona. There's no industry in Arizona. One question is, is that true? Secondly, why is that? And third, what can be done to change it?
I think that what you see is a lot of the technology around Tucson is in the nonbiological area - like Tracer, Inc. There are a number of small companies around here that are high tech but not biologically based. To me, the best opportunities are the jobs in water, wastewater, applied microbiology, etc. There are more jobs than there are people out there. Last time we wanted to recruit somebody, we had to go to Europe and hire somebody for a faculty member because there weren't any in the U.S. The best way to get a degree, in my opinion, is in microbiology with training in molecular biology and wastewater technology or some other area. But have a background in molecular biology. People don't want a molecular biologist - they want someone who knows wastewater and who knows molecular biology. It's easy to find somebody with a molecular biology background, but it's hard to find somebody who has a wastewater background to compliment that.

The other thing is to get some experience. If you want to work in these industries, try to do internships with faculty here at the University. Most of my students who get jobs are because they're working with a product development for an industry or biotechnology company. Several of them, they know so much about the product that they have to hire them. They're afraid that their competition is going to hire them! I've had two people who actually got jobs that way. By doing the 499 and 599 independent study courses, all of my students got jobs. They're working with companies. Or a company calls me that's working with a product and they're looking for a student. That's your best game.

There are a few biotechnology companies in Tucson, but I think you have to realize that your first job may not be where you want. I graduated from Arizona State University with a B.S. degree, and my goal was to become a faculty member at the University of Arizona. I had to go somewhere else, but I got very good where I was at and I got the job because it was available here. I think if you really want to live in an area, find a job with a company that you can grow with. Eventually, if that's where you want to be and you're good enough, you'll get the job you want.

Do you find that you have enough spare time - to see your family?
I think what you see a lot in professionals is that they take their families with them, or they involve them in their research. I remember when the rota virus was first discovered. They didn't know how to grow it in the laboratory, but it infected all sorts of children. Every time my child had diarrhea, I changed the diapers. That was my job because I wanted that stool! (Laughter) So I involved my children very early in research projects.

I do work on every continent in the world, and I've taken my family everywhere but Antarctica. When they ask where we're going for vacation, they also ask, "Do we have to take samples again?" I think if you're in an environmental career, there are a lot of opportunities to travel and do your research at the same time. Professional meetings are another opportunity. My vacations are usually planned around professional meetings or doing field research. Sometimes I do consumer products. I have my family try out new detergents, soaps, pathogen-free panties! So it depends what you're in. If you're in consumer products, you're always bringing something home for your family to try out. I think there are ways of integrating your family into the work lifestyle.

What skills do you think are important?
I'd say communication skills are the most important. Next to that, the best advice would be to get skills in the area you want to work. When I got my B.S. in microbiology, I couldn't even pour agar into a petri dish because I never did anything to take a practical lab course. The first day at work the guy told me to pour a couple of petri dishes, and I was thinking, "They were always set out there when I was in class." (Laughter) I fortunately remembered what an autoclave was. The thing I failed to do was to work in a laboratory.

You have opportunities here to do independent study with professors. That's also the beginning of a network because people are always calling me. To give you an example, Disneyworld called me because they want a water microbiologist down there, and I was able to refer someone from my lab. So if you want a career in any aspect of biology, start with getting lab experience. Get those skills so that when you walk into your first job you don't have to look it up in a book, but you can say, "I can do that." Even if you are going to be doing things that you haven't necessarily done, you at least have experience in a lab and you know how to work in one. That also gives you your first recommendation for a job because you already had a real job.



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