Sunday, April 22, 2007

Picking a Career in Biotechnology

If you find yourself drawn to the science field and you enjoy technology as well, you may be interested in a career in the biotechnology field. This field is amazingly diverse, and there are a variety of different career opportunities that you can choose from. Before you decide that you really do want a career in the biotechnology field, you may want to learn more about the field and what it has to offer you and what the requirements are, as well as the financial outlook as well.

Various Career Options

Within the biotechnology field there are a myriad of career options for you to consider. You may want a career as a biological scientist that explores and discovers new things in the biotechnology field, there are also researchers as well within the field who do experiments and in depth research. Another career you may want to consider within this field is a career as a medical scientist. You will use biotechnology to make new medical discoveries and learn more about the body, disease, and even possible cures for known diseases as well. Food scientists and agricultural scientists are also careers that are available in the biotechnology field, if you enjoy working with food or agriculture.

Becoming a chemist is another option in this field as well. Pharmacists are also considered to be a part of the biotechnology field, and in this field you will deal with medications, controlling them, filling prescription requests, and in some cases you may even work in the development of new drugs as well. Some other types of careers within this field include biotechnology engineers, science technicians, management analysts, and textile industry jobs as well.

Education Required

While the education in the biotechnology field is quite varied depending on the actual job, most of these fields will require that you have a Ph.D. in your field. Some basic jobs that include teaching or more simple research may only require that you have a Master's degree in your field. For those who are not participating in any amount of research, some companies will hire those who only have a bachelor's degree in their field. If you are considering getting involved in a field in biotechnology, you will want to make sure that you take classes in mathematics, biology, and chemistry as well, since each of these types of classes will be very important. Some of these careers may also require that you past certain state certification tests as well.

Biotechnology Salaries

Just as the education required is quite diverse, the amount of money that can be made in this field is diverse and dependent upon your specific career within the field. As a general rule, pharmacists can earn between $60,000 and $100,000 each year, depending on their experience and where they work as well. Biological scientists usually will make between $40,000 and $110,000, with most of them making around $65,000 a year. If you decide to become a medical scientist you will probably start out making about $35,000, but with more experience you can expect to make between $45,000 and $75,000. Those who are employed as chemists will generally make between $40,000 and $90,00 annually.

Great Employment Opportunities

After you get the needed education for your field, you will no doubt be looking for quality employers. When you are looking for a job, you want to make sure that you find companies that will offer you competitive wages as well as great benefits when you work for them. There are a variety of companies to choose from, but your choice of company can have a great deal of impact on your career. If you are looking for a biotechnology job in the United States, some of the best companies to work for include the Federal Government, Merck, ICON Clinical Research, and PharmAscent. For those who live in Canada or want to work in Canada, some great companies to consider working for include Patheon Inc., Ventana Clinical Research Corporation, Labopharm Inc., and Axela Biosensors Inc. Once you find a great company to work for, you can focus on advancing in your chosen career in the biotechnology field.

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