A cell biologist is an expert and scientist that focuses on the study of cells and their functions and relationships with biological organisms.
They spend most of their work hours in the laboratory to conduct extensive experiments for their cellular research. They often deal with cell cloning and extraction, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequencing, and other procedures. After the experiments, they must compile the results, analyze the generated data, and present their findings by publishing them through reports, articles, or books.
A great number of cell biologists work in the medical field. But they may also find great employment opportunities in pharmaceutical manufacturing, government offices, and education sectors. An aspiring cell biologist must have a master's degree or a doctorate in cell biology or an equivalent field of specialization. Generally, they have a 9-to-5 work schedule, but they may render additional hours depending on their work volume.
How to Become a Cell Biologist
What is a Cell Biologist
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a Cell Biologist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $31.56 an hour? That's $65,638 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 8% and produce 10,600 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Cell Biologist Do
When it comes to the most important skills required to be a Cell Biologist, we found that a lot of resumes listed 18.6% of Cell Biologists included Molecular Biology, while 13.7% of resumes included Data Analysis, and 10.5% of resumes included Protein. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
How To Become a Cell Biologist
If you're interested in becoming a Cell Biologist, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 68.7% of Cell Biologists have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 18.1% of Cell Biologists have master's degrees. Even though most Cell Biologists have a college degree, it's impossible 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 a Cell Biologist. When we researched the most common majors for a Cell Biologist, we found that they most commonly earn Bachelor's Degree degrees or Master's Degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on Cell Biologist resumes include Doctoral Degree degrees or Associate Degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a Cell Biologist. In fact, many Cell Biologist jobs require experience in a role such as Research Associate. Meanwhile, many Cell Biologists also have previous career experience in roles such as Research Assistant or Teaching Assistant.
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Average Salary for a Cell Biologist
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Cell Biologist Demographics
Cell Biologist Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among Cell Biologists, 58.8% of them are women, while 41.2% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among Cell Biologists is White, which makes up 71.0% of all Cell Biologists.
- The most common foreign language among Cell Biologists is Spanish at 50.0%.
Find the best Cell Biologist job for you
Cell Biologist Jobs You Might Like
- High Paying Cell Biologist Jobs - $105K and Up
- Entry Level Cell Biologist Jobs
- Part Time Cell Biologist Jobs
- Actively Hiring
- No Degree Cell Biologist Jobs
Top Colleges for Cell Biologists
1. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
2. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
3. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
4. Cornell University
Ithaca, NY • Private
5. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
6. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
7. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
8. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
9. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
10. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Find the best Cell Biologist job for you
Cell Biologist Jobs You Might Like
- High Paying Cell Biologist Jobs - $105K and Up
- Entry Level Cell Biologist Jobs
- Part Time Cell Biologist Jobs
- Actively Hiring
- No Degree Cell Biologist Jobs
Online Courses For Cell Biologist That You May Like
The cell is a powerful case study to help us explore the functional logic of living systems. All organisms, from single-celled algae to complex multicellular organisms like us, are made up of cells. In this course, you will learn the how and why of biology by exploring the function of the molecular components of cells, and how these cellular components are organized in a complex hierarchy. This course is designed to explore the fundamentals of cell biology. The overarching goal is for learners...
This is the first cell biology course in a three-part series. Building upon the concepts from biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology from our 7.00x Introductory Biology and 7.05x Biochemistry MOOCs, these cell biology courses transition to a comprehensive discussion of biology at an experimental level. How do we know what we know about cells at a molecular level and how can we use that knowledge to design experiments to test hypotheses in cell biology? Professors Rebecca Lamason and Iain...
You’re acquainted with your DNA, but did you know that your cells synthesize enough DNA during your lifetime to stretch a lightyear in length? How does the cellular machinery accomplish such a feat without making more mistakes than you can survive? Why isn’t the incidence of cancer even higher than it is? And, if the DNA in each and every cell is two meters long, how is this genetic material compacted to fit inside the cell nucleus without becoming a tangled mess? Are you ready to go beyond the...
Top Skills For a Cell Biologist
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 18.6% of Cell Biologists listed Molecular Biology on their resume, but soft skills such as Communication skills and Observation skills are important as well.
Best States For a Cell Biologist
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a Cell Biologist. The best states for people in this position are Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. Cell Biologists make the most in Massachusetts with an average salary of $84,846. Whereas in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, they would average $81,307 and $77,843, respectively. While Cell Biologists would only make an average of $75,730 in Rhode Island, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Massachusetts
$84,846
Avg. Salary
2. Pennsylvania
$81,307
Avg. Salary
3. Alaska
$74,054
Avg. Salary