Gratitude Professor or partner? Luc Jansen’s switch from science to law

But another year came and went, and Jansen was still studying biology. Unsure what career outcomes looked like with a biology degree, he took up a second academic track: law. For Jansen, simultaneously completing two master’s degrees—one in biology and another in law—meant he would have to make a difficult career decision in the near future.

“I was actively deciding what career path to take when I came to Salk in 2003,” recalls Jansen. “I wound up at the Institute through a series of connections—I knew a Dutch professor in New York City, who knew Jan Karlseder was at Salk doing his postdoctoral research, who suggested I join the lab of Andrew Dillin, an assistant professor at the time.”

Jansen got the chance to work alongside Dillin for six months. One day, Jansen took a risk and asked Dillin to connect him with Salk’s legal office to get their perspective on other career trajectories. While this could have been received as noncommittal or even rude, Dillin enthusiastically pushed Jansen to explore the option—a memory that has stuck with Jansen for 20 years as a reflection of the encouraging and collaborative nature of Salk scientists.

As his time at Salk came to an end, Jansen felt warmly about his experiences and the people he had met—but he still had another career track to try out, so he rotated in a law office next.

When he thought about a future in academia, Jansen contemplated funding insecurity and the potential need to relocate based on available academic opportunities. When he thought about a future in law, he saw stability and a more controllable trajectory. So he officially committed to law. “Though if someone had offered me a full professorship at Salk in that moment, I would have certainly taken that road instead,” Jansen says with a laugh.

After finishing his biology and law degrees in the Netherlands, Jansen went to Columbia University to complete law school. He attempted to hold on to some of his scientific background by studying patent law, hopeful that he could work in biotechnology helping scientists license their discoveries. But he eventually switched to corporate law.

“I’m doing private equity fund formation now, which generally has nothing to do with science,” says Jansen. “But thinking outside of the box, finding new ways to do things, collaborating with others—these are all scientific skills that are translatable to the legal field. And now I have unique legal skills that can help me give back to Salk and support the incredibly impressive scientists and research happening there.”

Two years ago, Jansen transferred to McDermott Will & Emery LLP as a partner in its corporate group. Despite the many twists and turns along his path to “Big Law,” Jansen is happy with where he landed in the end. His office at One Vanderbilt is a landmark in New York City, which he is excited to share with Salk faculty after recently reconnecting with some familiar faces.

In April 2024, Jansen helped host what he hopes to be the first in a series of Salk events in New York. Surrounded by a view of the city’s skyscrapers, Professor Reuben Shaw shared his science with an East Coast audience. Jansen’s colleagues learned about genetics and cell metabolism and how studying these fundamental processes can help us one day treat or prevent diseases like cancer and diabetes.

Events like this help the Institute connect with leaders in different cities and industries and inform them about the importance of continued investment in basic research, which explores the fundamental principles of life. Jansen personally loves the challenge of communicating how exciting and life-changing basic biology research can be and hopes that this will translate into donations and collaborations with Salk in the future.

“I love Salk science because it’s basic,” says Jansen. “Basic science touches everything—if your findings are fundamental enough, everything connects. Everything has translational potential.”