Research is not bound to the four corners of the library nor the confines of an office. People doing research also need to spend hours in the laboratory. This is where they test out samples or cultivate organisms. Laboratories are used for a variety of activities, such as the aforementioned research. It is also used to analyze specimens, investigate patient symptoms, and checking contaminants. Through all of these, analytical laboratory technicians are there to assist you.
Analytical Laboratory Technicians handle the equipment in the laboratory. They ensure that these equipment are managed properly by only turning them on when appropriate, cleaning them regularly and making sure that they get enough rest period from usage. Aside from that, they also conduct activities related to analysis, such as reading and analyzing laboratory results. They present these results in an easy-to-understand way before handing them off to the requestor.
In pursuing this job, you need to be updated on the latest happenings in the field. You should also be passionate about research and learning.
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an analytical laboratory technician. For example, did you know that they make an average of $20.97 an hour? That's $43,624 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 2% and produce 1,200 job opportunities across the U.S.
There are certain skills that many analytical laboratory technicians have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed ability to use technology, observation skills and time-management skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be an analytical laboratory technician, we found that a lot of resumes listed 7.4% of analytical laboratory technicians included lab equipment, while 7.0% of resumes included raw materials, and 5.8% of resumes included analytical lab. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the analytical laboratory technician job title. But what industry to start with? Most analytical laboratory technicians actually find jobs in the manufacturing and retail industries.
If you're interested in becoming an analytical laboratory technician, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 63.2% of analytical laboratory technicians have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 9.2% of analytical laboratory technicians have master's degrees. Even though most analytical laboratory technicians have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become an analytical laboratory technician. When we researched the most common majors for an analytical laboratory technician, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or associate degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on analytical laboratory technician resumes include master's degree degrees or high school diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become an analytical laboratory technician. In fact, many analytical laboratory technician jobs require experience in a role such as laboratory technician. Meanwhile, many analytical laboratory technicians also have previous career experience in roles such as laboratory assistant or quality control technician.