Careers in Life Science

Life science is a vast discipline, that entails numerous job opportunities. Biology being the main subject, is diversified to many new branches, that have also gained considerable importance today, owing to good growth prospects.

Medical science and technology have been combined together to give a boost to the life science sector. Making a career in academics, although has remained the prime goal of many, the younger generation is looking forward to step in the corporate sector.

A thorough knowledge about the broad divisions of life science is much-needed before taking any career decision. As already said before, that life science is large sector, therefore, you should have a sound knowledge regarding the disciplines that are most likely to have a bright future. You can opt for a subject in which you are interested and make a progress accordingly. The table below shall let you know the major divisions.

• Botany
• Zoology
• Medical science
• Veterinary science
• Paleontology
• Bioinformatics
• Biomedical research
• Molecular Biology
• Biotechnology
• Genetics
• Epidemiology
• Microbiology
• Biochemistry

• Toxicology
• Forensics
• Tissue culture
• Pharmaceutics
• Biophysics
• Food biology
• Marine biology
• Oncology
• Immunology
• Biostatistics
• Agricultural science
• Environmental science
• Biochemical engineering

Getting a job in any discipline of life science becomes easier when you have a master degree with you. You should always try to gain hands-on experience through special trainings and upgrade your knowledge with advanced courses. Pharmaceutical companies, biotech farms, breweries and research labs hire freshers and experienced candidates, both in a large-scale. Get the details from the next content.

Career growth in academics is tremendous when you have a higher degree in any stream of life science. Those who have studied the core subjects of life science, like botany and zoology can step in the line of teaching. After completion of masters, you can appear for PhD entrance exams to pursue research from a well recognized university.

You can reach the top most position in academics as well as in corporate sector, once you do doctorate or post doctorate. The hot jobs in academics include the following:

• Teacher/lecturer/professor
• Jr/Sr. Research scientist
• Research associate
• Dean/Head of the Department

Becoming a doctor is the dream of many. For this, you need to take up the medical entrance examination to get admission in a reputed medical school. Health sector is the highest recruiting sector and getting a job with a degree in life science is not a big deal.

The demand of doctors is always high in any health care unit. You can also look for the allied services and administrative jobs in health care unit. Studying life science is a boon to you when you are keen to join the health care sector. Pathology labs have ample job opportunities for those who have studied pathology and immunology.

They also hire people having experience in oncology, toxicology and other specialized areas. Have a quick look at the life science jobs in health care sectors.

• Doctors/Nurses/Technician
• Lab superintendent
• Administrative officer
• Medical transcriptionist/coder
• Scientific writer
• Medical representative

Those who have studied forensic science can make an excellent carrier in this field. The profile depends upon your degree, experience. You can expect a well paying position in federal and state run laboratories that deal with crime. Learning different techniques to analyze samples, preparing reports and presenting them before courts is highly absorbing.

You can also search jobs in forensic labs if you studied toxicology and drugs. You will either be working independently or in teams. In any case the experience will be great. Forensic science career entails the following jobs.

• Medical Examiner
• Crime laboratory analyst
• Psychological profiling
• Forensic engineer

• Drug tester
• Forensic entomologist
• Forensic toxicologist
• Forensic Nurse

The corporate sector comprises biotech companies, clinical research companies, tissue culture farms, breweries, pharmaceutical companies and other types of companies that deal with different techniques of microbiology, immunology and recombinant DNA technology.

If you have studied the specialized and technical subjects of life science, then your prospect of getting a job in the corporate sector is definitely high. You can study biochemical engineering, biomedical engineering and pharmacy to get a job easily.

Many aspiring students are combining management with life science to add an edge to their entrepreneurial skills. This becomes a necessity when one looks forward to open his own company. The hot jobs in the corporate sector are listed here.

• Quality analyst/head
• Agricultural scientist
• Clinical research scientist
• Clinical trials head
• Pharmaceutical engineer
• Operations manager
• Marketing executive/manager
• Production head
• R & D scientist

• Biostatistician
• Bioinformatician
• Marine Biologist
• Biochemist
• Wildlife conservationist
• Embryologist
• Nutritionist
• Environment conservationist

The list provided on careers in life science, although not a comprehensive one, has sorted out the best jobs in life science sector. We would suggest you to go for higher studies to reach the top-notch position. Explore the fields thoroughly before choosing a career path.

To be precise, life science would give you a bright future only when you are dedicated enough to achieve you goal.