Science plays an important role in all our lives. It creates new knowledge, improves education, and increases the quality of our lives. If you like the idea of exploring the world around you and making new discoveries, then you should consider becoming a scientist. If you decide to become a scientist, you could end up working in either the public or private sector. Scientists work in a wide range of settings, including chemical and pharmaceutical companies, research institutes, universities, food and drink manufacturers, hospitals, and environmental agencies.
As part of their job, scientists plan and carry out experiments and then record and analyze the data. They typically specialize in a particular field, such as geoscience, meteorology, or pharmacology. It is crucial that scientists follow the scientific method as a means of ensuring their results are accurate.
Research scientists need a bachelor's degree in a closely related field for most positions. Usually, a master's degree or a PhD is preferred.
Medical scientists conduct research aimed at improving overall human health. They often use clinical trials and other investigative methods to reach their findings.
Medical scientists typically have a Ph.D., usually in biology or a related life science. Some medical scientists get a medical degree instead of a Ph.D., but prefer doing research to practicing as a physician.
EducationStudents planning careers as medical scientists typically pursue a bachelor’s degree in biology, chemistry, or a related field. Undergraduate students benefit from taking a broad range of classes, including life sciences, physical sciences, and math. Students also typically take courses that develop communication and writing skills, because they must learn to write grants effectively and publish research findings.
After students have completed their undergraduate studies, they typically enter Ph.D. programs. Dual-degree programs are available that pair a Ph.D. with a range of specialized medical degrees. A few degree programs that are commonly paired with Ph.D. studies are Medical Doctor (M.D.), Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.), Doctor of Dental Medicine (D.M.D.), and Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.). Whereas Ph.D. studies focus on research methods, such as project design and data interpretation, students in dual-degree programs learn both the clinical skills needed to be a physician and the research skills needed to be a scientist.
Graduate programs emphasize both laboratory work and original research. These programs offer prospective medical scientists the opportunity to develop their experiments and, sometimes, to supervise undergraduates. Ph.D. programs culminate in a thesis that the candidate presents before a committee of professors. Students may specialize in a particular field, such as gerontology, neurology, or cancer.
Those who go to medical school spend most of the first 2 years in labs and classrooms, taking courses such as anatomy, biochemistry, physiology, pharmacology, psychology, microbiology, pathology, medical ethics, and medical law. They also learn how to record medical histories, examine patients, and diagnose illnesses. They may be required to participate in residency programs, meeting the same requirements that physicians and surgeons have to fulfill.
Medical scientists often continue their education with postdoctoral work. Postdoctoral work provides additional and more independent lab experience, including experience in specific processes and techniques such as gene splicing, which is transferable to other research projects.
Licenses, Certifications, and RegistrationsMedical scientists primarily conduct research and typically do not need licenses or certifications. However, those who administer drugs, gene therapy, or otherwise practice medicine on patients in clinical trials or a private practice need a license to practice as a physician.
Important QualitiesCommunication skills. Communication is critical, because medical scientists must be able to explain their conclusions. In addition, medical scientists write grant proposals, because grants often are required to fund their research.
Critical-thinking skills. Medical scientists must use their expertise to determine the best method for solving a specific research question.
Data-analysis skills. Medical scientists use statistical techniques, so that they can properly quantify and analyze health research questions.
Decisionmaking skills. Medical scientists must determine what research questions to ask, how best to investigate the questions, and what data will best answer the questions.
Observation skills. Medical scientists conduct experiments that require precise observation of samples and other health data. Any mistake could lead to inconclusive or misleading results.
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In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of Consultant you might progress to a role such as Supervisor eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title Quality Assurance Director.
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Build a professional scientist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 12+ resume templates to create your scientist resume.
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At Zippia, we went through countless Scientist resumes and compiled some information about how to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Scientist Resume Examples And TemplatesAnd if you’re looking for a job, here are the five top employers hiring now:
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Scientist templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Scientist resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
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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, 9.8% of Scientists listed Procedures on their resume, but soft skills such as Communication skills and Observation skills are important as well.
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a Scientist. The best states for people in this position are California, Tennessee, Nevada, and Hawaii. Scientists make the most in California with an average salary of $127,468. Whereas in Tennessee and Nevada, they would average $105,022 and $104,538, respectively. While Scientists would only make an average of $100,545 in Hawaii, 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. California
$127,468
Avg. Salary
2. Rhode Island
$99,422
Avg. Salary
3. New Jersey
$94,373
Avg. Salary
We've made finding a great employer to work for easy by doing the hard work for you. We looked into employers that employ Scientists and discovered their number of Scientist opportunities and average salary. Through our research, we concluded that Amazon was the best, especially with an average salary of $122,856. Battelle follows up with an average salary of $123,374, and then comes Microsoft with an average of $168,441. In addition, we know most people would rather work from home. So instead of having to change careers, we identified the best employers for remote work as a Scientist. The employers include Salesforce, Pfizer, and Sutter Health
Paul Badger Ph.D.
Department Head of Science, Associate Professor, & Science Laboratory Safety Coordinator, Robert Morris University
Some of the best companies to work for are companies or industries with a long history of research and development in the general field of biology. Explicitly speaking, companies associated with the healthcare industry, life sciences, or environmental sciences usually hire graduates with degrees in science fields.
Those jobs are relatively secure with opportunities for advancement over the long term. Another occupation with potential for growth that traditionally hires biology graduates in the field of forensic science. The demand for qualified biology educators has been relatively steady over the years and offers another lot where biology graduates may find employment. Science is the driver for innovation in many areas, from technology to healthcare to agriculture, and design in these areas can lead to market growth and job creation. Show more
No, not anyone can be a scientist. To be a scientist requires rigorous schooling and extensive research experience. In fact, more than 95% of scientists have a Ph.D., which requires at least 8 to 10 years of college.
It takes about 8 to 10 years to become a scientist. Depending on the chosen scientific field, a doctorate degree is most often required. To become a scientist usually requires a PhD. in your field, and extensive lab experience.
The qualifications needed to become a scientist are extensive schooling and research experience within your given field of study. It takes most scientists between 10 to 12 years to become a scientist. A four-year bachelor's degree, however, may be sufficient for some entry-level scientist positions.
A famous scientist today is Jane Goodall. Jane Goodall is a British primatologist known as the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees. She has studied social and family interactions with wild chimps for over 55 years.
The most famous scientist is Albert Einstein. While there are many famous scientists, Albert Einstein is considered one of the greatest revolutionary scientists the world has ever known.