In Q2 2025, the Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences sector sustained its upward trajectory, fueled by continued innovation, investment, and global demand.
North America remained at the forefront of biotech breakthroughs and cell and gene therapy development. Europe saw strong growth in clinical research and digital health adoption, while the APAC region further solidified its position as a leading hub for pharmaceutical manufacturing, R&D outsourcing, and emerging health technologies.
The below map breaks down the number of professionals working in the industry, with the top 5 locations in each global region included:
To further break down this assessment of talent pools and hiring trends, we have used data from LinkedIn Talent Insights (based on the past 12 months) to provide a comprehensive analysis of the global market.
North America
- 4,762,162 professionals on LinkedIn within this talent pool (a -1.4% decrease compared to 1 year ago)
- 452,934 changed companies in the past 12 months
- 68,416 full-time open job posts advertised
Data based on job postings and professionals based in this region indicates that hiring demand is very high – meaning this talent pool in North America is very hard to hire. The inferred gender diversity is an almost even split (49% female and 51% male) and data also shows that professionals in this region are most likely to switch jobs after 2.2 years at their current company.
Top locations for talent in this region are New York City Metropolitan Area (367,479), Greater Boston (206,892), Los Angeles Metropolitan Area (200,918), San Francisco Bay Area (183,133) and Greater Philadelphia (153,534). We can also see 3 ‘hidden gem’ locations where the supply of professionals is high relative to hiring demand – Mexico City Metropolitan Area (152,951), Greater Toronto Area (88,749) and Atlanta Metropolitan Area (82,198).
The top schools producing this talent are:
- Penn State University – 24,965 professionals
- University of Phoenix – 21,018 professionals
- Rutgers University – 20,924 professionals
- Purdue University – 20,054 professionals
- Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México – 19,134 professionals
Europe
- 3,936,861 professionals on LinkedIn within this talent pool (a -2% decrease compared to 1 year ago)
- 441,775 changed companies in the past 12 months
- 52,581 full-time open job posts advertised
Data based on job postings and professionals based in this region indicates that hiring demand is very high – meaning this talent pool in Europe is very hard to hire. The inferred gender diversity is an even split (50% female and 50% male) and data also shows that professionals in this region are most likely to switch jobs after 1.9 years at their current company.
Top locations for talent in this region are Greater Paris Metropolitan Region (172,531), London Area (122,474), Ireland (98,251), Greater Madrid Metropolitan Area (86,554) and Greater Milan Metropolitan Area (84,968). We can also see 3 ‘hidden gem’ locations where the supply of professionals is high relative to hiring demand – Greater Madrid, Copenhagen and Copenhagen Metropolitan Area (83,556).
The top schools producing this talent are:
- Universitat de Barcelona – 20,660 professionals
- Københavns Universitet, University of Copenhagen – 20,230 professionals
- Università degli Studi di Milano – 17,468 professionals
- Universidad Complutense de Madrid – 17,257 professionals
- DTU, Technical University of Denmark – 13,568 professionals
APAC
- 5,143,520 professionals on LinkedIn within this talent pool (a -4% decrease compared to 1 year ago)
- 487,596 changed companies in the past 12 months
- 64,855 full-time open job posts advertised
Data based on job postings and professionals based in this region indicates that hiring demand is moderate – meaning this talent pool in APAC is moderately easy to hire. The inferred gender diversity leans towards male professionals (32% female and 68% male) and data also shows that professionals in this region are most likely to switch jobs after 1.6 years at their current company.
Top locations for talent in this region are Mumbai Metropolitan Region (248,762), Pakistan (215,751), Greater Delhi Area (182,726), Greater Hyderabad Area (177,845) and Guangdong, China (154,092). We can also see 3 ‘hidden gem’ locations where the supply of professionals is high relative to hiring demand – Pakistan, Delhi and Guangdong.
The top schools producing this talent are:
- University of Mumbai – 24,170 professionals
- Savitribai Phule Pune University – 21,880 professionals
- Delhi University – 12,435 professionals
- Karachi University – 10,423 professionals
- National University of Singapore – 10,262 professionals
Latin America
- 2,632,628 professionals on LinkedIn within this talent pool (a -4% decrease compared to 1 year ago)
- 302,254 changed companies in the past 12 months
- 10,579 full-time open job posts advertised
Data based on job postings and professionals based in this region indicates that hiring demand is low – meaning this talent pool in Latin America is easy to hire. The inferred gender diversity is a relatively even split (52% female and 48% male) and data also shows that professionals in this region are most likely to switch jobs after 1.8 years at their current company.
Top locations for talent in this region are Colombia (239,556), Greater São Paulo Area (230,064), Mexico City Metropolitan Area (152,951), Greater Buenos Aires (130,771) and Chile (108,138). We can also see 3 ‘hidden gem’ locations where the supply of professionals is high relative to hiring demand – Colombia, Chile and Peru (93,471).
The top schools producing this talent are:
- University of Buenos Aires – 27,153 professionals
- FGV, Fundação Getulio Vargas – 27,029 professionals
- Universidade Paulista – 23,637 professionals
- Estácio – 23,349 professionals
- Anhanguera Educacional – 19,073 professionals
Middle East & Africa
- 1,572,246 professionals on LinkedIn within this talent pool (a -7% decrease compared to 1 year ago)
- 170,381 changed companies in the past 12 months
- 2,861 full-time open job posts advertised
Data based on job postings and professionals based in this region indicates that hiring demand is low – meaning this talent pool in the Middle East and Africa is easy to hire. The inferred gender diversity sways towards males (35% female and 65% male) and data also shows that professionals in this region are most likely to switch jobs after 1.4 years at their current company.
Top locations for talent in this region are Egypt (217,921), Saudi Arabia (141,931), United Arab Emirates (98,744), Iran (91,391) and Nigeria (87,078). We can also see 3 ‘hidden gem’ locations where the supply of professionals is high relative to hiring demand – Iran, Nigeria and Algeria (58,009).
The top schools producing this talent are:
- Anadolu University – 21,945 professionals
- Cairo University – 14,871 professionals
- Ain Shams University – 11,372 professionals
- Alexandria University – 10,597 professionals
- Istanbul University – 10,587 professionals