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Scientific writer education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a scientific writer. Scientific writers usually study biology, chemistry, or biochemistry, biophysics, molecular biology. 57% of scientific writers hold a bachelor's degree, and 20% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 197 real scientific writer resumes to see exactly what scientific writer education sections show.
The most common colleges for scientific writers are the University of Washington and the University of Washington.
There are also many online scientific writer courses to help get the education required to be a scientific writer.
What education do you need to become a scientific writer?
What degree do you need to be a scientific writer?
- Bachelor's, 57%
- Master's, 20%
- Doctorate, 19%
- Associate, 3%
- Other Degrees, 1%
What should I major in to become a scientific writer?
- Biology, 21%
- Chemistry, 14%
- Microbiology, 7%
- Other Majors, 50%
Most common colleges for scientific writers
| Scientific writer common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Washington | 7.32% |
| University of California - Davis | 7.32% |
| Fairleigh Dickinson University | 7.32% |
| University of Delaware | 7.32% |
| University of Maryland - College Park | 7.32% |
Best majors for scientific writers
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Biology | 20.8% |
| 2 | Chemistry | 14.4% |
| 3 | Biochemistry, Biophysics, Molecular Biology | 8.0% |
| 4 | Microbiology | 7.2% |
| 5 | Pharmacy | 6.4% |
Best colleges for scientific writers
The best colleges for scientific writers are Columbia University in the City of New York, Johns Hopkins University, and University of Pennsylvania.
A scientific writer with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for scientific writers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become scientific writers.
1. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
In-state tuition
$15,262
Enrollment
30,079
2. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$56,225
Enrollment
19,548
3. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Enrollment
34,564
4. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
5. SUNY Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$9,625
Enrollment
17,407
6. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, MN • Private
In-state tuition
$14,760
Enrollment
31,451
7. Georgetown University
Washington, DC • Private
In-state tuition
$54,104
Enrollment
7,089
8. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,522
Enrollment
13,760
9. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
In-state tuition
$53,740
Enrollment
5,567
10. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
20 best online courses for scientific writers
Advertising disclosure
1. AI for Scientific Research
In the AI for Scientific Research specialization, we'll learn how to use AI in scientific situations to discover trends and patterns within datasets. Course 1 teaches a little bit about the Python language as it relates to data science. We'll share some existing libraries to help analyze your datasets. By the end of the course, you'll apply a classification model to predict the presence or absence of heart disease from a patient's health data. Course 2 covers the complete machine learning...
2. Julia Scientific Programming
This course introduces you to Julia as a first programming language. Julia is a high-level, high-performance dynamic programming language developed specifically for scientific computing. This language will be particularly useful for applications in physics, chemistry, astronomy, engineering, data science, bioinformatics, and many more. You can start programming with Julia within Coursera and it can also be used from the command line, program files, or a Jupyter notebook. Julia is designed to...
3. Certificate Course in Drug Regulatory Affairs (DRA)
Pharma course (NDA, ANDA, CTD, DMF, USFDA, Regulatory strategy, GMP, Clinical Research, Orange Book, Pharmaceuticals)...
4. Pharmaceutical Industry Drug Regulatory Affairs (DRA)
Empowering Professionals in the Pharmaceutical Industry: A Comprehensive Online Course in Drug Regulatory Affairs...
5. Drug Development
The University of California San Diego, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Drug Development course brings you lectures from both faculty and industry experts. With this course, recorded on campus at UCSD, we seek to share our access to top people in the field who bring an unprecedented range of expertise on drug development. In this course you will learn the different stages of clinical development as well as the regulatory including but not limited to, an Investigational New...
6. A Scientific Approach to Innovation Management
How can innovators understand if their idea is worth developing and pursuing? In this course, we lay out a systematic process to make strategic decisions about innovative product or services that will help entrepreneurs, managers and innovators to avoid common pitfalls. We teach students to assess the feasibility of an innovative idea through problem-framing techniques and rigorous data analysis labelled ‘a scientific approach’. The course is highly interactive and includes exercises and...
7. Pharma Drug Regulatory Affairs Certificate Course - DRA 2023
DRA, Orange book, USFDA, e CTD, CTD, INDA, NDA, ANDA, DMF, ICH, Software Demo, RA Jobs, Quiz, Pharma Skills, Updated 2023...
8. Master Python programming by solving scientific projects
Learn scientific coding in Python from a warm-blooded scientist. Each video includes hands-on solved practice problems!...
9. Uncertainty and Research
This course teaches the fundamentals of scientific research. We approach the research process as a means of systematically reducing uncertainty and demonstrate how conducting a scientific investigation can be posed as an exercise in Bayesian uncertainty quantification. We begin by exploring the scientific landscape to understand the different types of research, where they are conducted, how they are supported, and why each of these types of research is important. We then formalize scientific...
10. Practical Regulatory Affairs 2020 - US FDA Medical Devices
A practical course discussing the US FDA Medical Device regulations for real-world situations...
11. Medical Writing for Healthcare Professionals
Launch your scientific and medical writing career today. Learn from an experienced medical writer!...
12. 15 Errors in Scientific Writing & How to Fix Them
For people with current or future careers in academia, medical writing, medical editing, copyediting, or copywriting...
13. Learn API Technical Writing 2: REST for Writers
API Documentation 2: Teaches technical writers how to document REST. No programming experience required...
14. Certificate Course in Clinical Research (CCCR)
A Clinical Research Course-ICH-GCP E6(R2), Clinical Trials, Essential Documents, Sponsor, Investigator, Pharmaceuticals...
15. Learn API Technical Writing: JSON and XML for Writers
API Documentation 1: Teaches technical writers how to document structured data. No programming experience required...
16. Technical Writing: How to Write API Software Documentation
A framework for writing software documentation for an API as a technical writer, using Postman or Swagger UI...
17. The Art of API Documentation
API Documentation 3: Teaches technical writers how to write API overview material, tutorials, etc...
18. Investigative Journalism
How to find hidden sources. How to look for documents and people...
19. The Simplest Guide to Clinical Trials Data Analysis with SAS
Step into the world of Pharmaceutical industry Clinical Trials Clinical Research Biostatistics Clinical SAS SAS...
20. Clinical Research for beginners
The Art of Publishing - Master Pub Med, Study design, Biostatistics, Journal choice, Manuscript writing & Referencing...
Top 10 most affordable universities for scientific writers
The most affordable schools for scientific writers are University of Florida, hunter college of the city university of new york, and california state university - long beach.
If the best universities for scientific writers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for scientific writers.
1. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
2. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
3. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
4. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,410
Cost of attendance
20,456
5. Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,656
Cost of attendance
21,623
6. California State University - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,749
Cost of attendance
14,823
7. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
8. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Cost of attendance
25,527
9. University of Central Florida
Orlando, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,368
Cost of attendance
21,034
10. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,556
Cost of attendance
19,434
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for scientific writers
The hardest universities for scientific writers to get into are Columbia University in the City of New York, Johns Hopkins University, and University of Pennsylvania.
Some great schools for scientific writers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for scientific writers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
2. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
3. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
4. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
5. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
6. Georgetown University
Washington, DC • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,456
7. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
8. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
9. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
Admissions rate
9%
SAT average
1,516
10. Cornell University
Ithaca, NY • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,471
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for scientific writers
The easiest schools for scientific writers to get into are Barry University, d'youville college, and mount saint mary's university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a scientific writer without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for scientific writers.
1. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
2. D'Youville College
Buffalo, NY • Private
Admissions rate
100%
SAT average
1,072
3. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
4. Cardinal Stritch University
Milwaukee, WI • Private
Admissions rate
71%
SAT average
1,035
5. Saint Joseph's College of Maine
Standish, ME • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,069
6. Our Lady of the Lake University
San Antonio, TX • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
1,002
7. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
8. Kean University
Union, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
86%
SAT average
991
9. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
10. William Paterson University of New Jersey
Wayne, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
994
Average scientific writer salary by education level
| Scientific writer education level | Scientific writer salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $105,087 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $105,879 |
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025