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Alumni Profile - Scott and Sherry Siegert
ALUMNI PROFILE
Scott and Sherry Siegert Share an Industry — and a UIC Foundation
When a household includes two accomplished professionals in the pharmaceutical industry, dinner conversations can get pretty informative.
Drs. Scott, PharmD ’06, and Sherry Siegert, PharmD ’09, who married after meeting at UIC Pharmacy, share a specialty in medical affairs. And they continue to share insights and ideas with one another, the couple said.
DR. SHERRY SIEGERT
“She’s an amazing leader,” Sherry said. “And now we’re working together thousands of miles away from UIC.”
Scott earned his BS from Washington State University and completed a DePaul MBA while working post-UIC. He currently leads Neurocrine Biosciences’ Medical Affairs department, which includes Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR), Medical Communications, and the Medical Science Liaison (MSL) teams. Previously, Scott worked as one of the original MSLs at Avanir Pharmaceuticals. Before the Siegerts’ West Coast move, he created the Medical Information department at Ovation Pharmaceuticals.
Partnering with a fellow pharmacy professional can also supercharge your network, Sherry added. “Pharmacy is a small world, but [the network is] very critical. And having your spouse in the same industry really elevates … that network to almost double its size.”
In all that he’s done in his career, Scott said, he’s proudest of launching six drugs for various neuroscience indications, like tardive dyskinesia and infantile spasms, that often lacked existing medications. “These are all areas where patients really suffer, and it’s a rewarding experience to bring them necessary medications to help improve their lives,” he said.
Sherry earned her bachelor’s in biopsychology from UC Santa Barbara, and now directs Medical Strategies and Operations at La Jolla Pharmaceuticals in California, where the Siegerts live. After graduating from UIC, Sherry became the first resident for CVS Caremark Specialty Pharmacy, when the couple still lived in Illinois. She went on to work in patient education at a new group at GlaxoSmithKline, then medical affairs with Astellas Pharma — remotely, after the couple made their 2010 move to California.
Over the course of her career, Sherry said, she’s drawn inspiration from great female leaders, starting at UIC with Drs. Mitzi Wasik and Margaret Byun. Even today, Sherry reports to Dr. Annette Chavez, PharmD ’04 and former faculty member, whom Sherry first knew as a UIC preceptor.
But Scott’s first accomplishments in the academic-pharmacy world, he said, came at UIC, where he had jobs all four years, including working on special projects at the Patient Care Center (PCC) pharmacy for Drs. Rashid Mosavin, Sandra Durley, JoAnn Stubbings and his advisor, Dr. Margaret Byun.
UIC Pharmacy set both Siegerts on a solid foundation, Scott said, preparing them for their careers and awarding both scholarships. To give back, the two created the Siegert Family Scholarship, which has been active for six years and now awards two students annually.
The advantages of studying at UIC went well beyond scholarships, of course. “I’d say the biggest benefit was meeting Sherry in pharmacy school,” Scott said.
“That’s the right answer,” Sherry added. �
