ATCC reviews

Little opportunity for advancement. No opportunities for professional development. Bonuses and pay rises are small. Communciation is seriously lacking.

There are several, and the scathing reviews here are all pretty accurate. First and foremost the pay is absolutely atrocious for the jobs here that require a college education in biological sciences (a STEM field, mind you). You are probably going to have to either live with your parents or have several roommates just to afford to live in the DC metro region where the main campus is located. You could be working here for years as a Biologist and make less money than you would with a job that doesn't require a degree. Career's here are not transparent as far as receiving promotions, bonuses, or new projects, as most of the decisions are made by admin on a "business need", whatever that means. All of the really fun and exciting stuff at ATCC, such as finding novel cell lines to harvest and procure, are done by a small number of people that you will never see or hear from. Also, it is frowned upon to try to explore new projects or ideas if you're an associate or a biologist working here. There is virtually no investment in novel technologies at this company due to the "change is bad" culture, for example they are just now starting to do Next Gen Sequencing when this has been available since the mid 2000's. They just sunk a TON of money into a new admin wing for people who have jobs that can be done 100% from home. Enjoy that big empty space when it is completed! All of these factors, as well as the lack of communication between admin and the people who actually do the benchwork in the labs, is why people typically stay here for a few years and leave to find better paying jobs in biotech elsewhere. Every single day I worked here I would hear someone complain about their job and how much they hated it, but they couldn't do anything about it for financial reasons or because they had too many family obligations to find a new job.