How To Become A Senior Bioinformatics Scientist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a senior bioinformatics scientist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Betsy Smith

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a senior bioinformatics scientist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $50.4 an hour? That's $104,838 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 17% and produce 20,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a senior bioinformatics scientist?

Dr. Betsy Smith

Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Elmira College

I would advise students just graduating to be flexible and open-minded in their job search. Chemistry is a challenging major, and students who succeed in it have learned how to learn, so they shouldn't assume that pure chemistry is the only thing they can do. One growing field is biomedical research, and chemistry majors are often qualified for jobs in that area. If you have other strengths, like writing, there are often jobs that can combine them as a technical writer or work for a science journal. There are jobs out there that might be perfect for you that you haven't heard of until you see an ad for it, so be open to different possibilities.

ScoreSenior Bioinformatics ScientistUS Average

Salary

7.7

Avg. Salary $104,838

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.3

Growth rate 17%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.15%

Asian 32.90%

Black or African American 6.30%

Hispanic or Latino 9.52%

Unknown 4.08%

White 47.05%

Gender

female 13.73%

male 86.27%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

6.3

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.8

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.7

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a senior bioinformatics scientist

Explore senior bioinformatics scientist education requirements

Most common senior bioinformatics scientist degrees

Doctorate

41.5 %

Bachelor's

39.0 %

Master's

19.5 %

Start to develop specific senior bioinformatics scientist skills

Skills	Percentages
Python	16.33%
Next-Generation Sequencing	14.85%
Data Analysis	11.17%
Visualization	9.34%
Computational Biology	7.00%

Complete relevant senior bioinformatics scientist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior bioinformatics scientists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a senior bioinformatics scientist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior bioinformatics scientist resumes.

Research senior bioinformatics scientist duties and responsibilities

Manage pediatric dose development project, technology transfer project and alternate API supplier qualification project on budget and on schedule
Design the NGS base cancer diagnostics report.
Assume responsibility for programming, using Perl and CGI and shell scripting.
Develop and validate ELISA assays necessary for providing information for PK/PD analysis.

Apply for senior bioinformatics scientist jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a senior bioinformatics scientist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

Average senior bioinformatics scientist salary

The average senior bioinformatics scientist salary in the United States is $104,838 per year or $50 per hour. Senior bioinformatics scientist salaries range between $66,000 and $164,000 per year.

Average senior bioinformatics scientist salary

$104,838 Yearly

$50.40 hourly

How do senior bioinformatics scientists rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Senior bioinformatics scientist reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2023

Pros

it is fun and kind of reminds be of being a child

What is a senior bioinformatics scientist and how to become one

What general advice would you give to a senior bioinformatics scientist?

Key steps to become a senior bioinformatics scientist

Explore senior bioinformatics scientist education requirements

Most common senior bioinformatics scientist degrees

Start to develop specific senior bioinformatics scientist skills

Complete relevant senior bioinformatics scientist training and internships

Research senior bioinformatics scientist duties and responsibilities

Apply for senior bioinformatics scientist jobs

How did you land your first senior bioinformatics scientist job

Average senior bioinformatics scientist salary

How do senior bioinformatics scientists rate their job?

Senior bioinformatics scientist reviews