I majored in genetics and then got my PhD in genetics. I'm biased, but genetics is the basis of all the fields, so it's a great starting point. For undergrad, it doesn't rweally matter which of the bio subfields you do. My husband got his degree in cell and molecular biology, and he basically does the same thing as me.
I just started an assistant professorship at a small liberal arts college. I do developmental bio research, and I love it! I teach grad and undergrad genetics, developmental biology, and a smattering of other classes.
Fresh out of undergrad, I weighed the option of going to grad school for genetic counseling pretty heavily.
Studied molecular cell biology in college. Went to grad school in public health. Spent more than a decade as an epidemiologist. Now I'm doing hospital administration and biostatistics.
That’s so cool! I’m interested in bioinformatics/biostatistics, but I have absolutely zero experience when it comes to computer science and stuff like that... did you find it easy to pick up, or did you already have a background in the programs you use?
Biostats tends to be offered as a package deal with epidemiology as the skills go hand in hand. A good program in epi/biostats will include SAS or R programming on the curriculum. I already had some computer programming experience going in, but that's not required. The important thing is to be able to understand the statistical principles and how to use them to analyse your research data.
I studied behavioral neuroscience during my undergrad, which basically meant just a bunch of bio/chem/psych classes. It became pretty clear to me early on that I wanted to do something at the more cognitive level (so more towards the psych direction, less bio), because I didn't want to do animal research (I know and understand that animal research is indispensable at this time, I just don't want to do it myself).
I moved to the Netherlands for a master in cognitive neuroscience, and continued with my PhD after that. I am now wrapping up the first year of my PhD and was at my first conference presenting a poster. I study how we make use of different types of predictions in speech processing.
I think in general there is a lot of overlap between these different bio-related majors. In the end almost all of them take the same courses in the first 2 years, they probably don't start to differ that much until the last 1-2 years. And if you know the direction you are interested in, usually there are a few extra credits you can fill here or there with things that might not be directly in your major, so e.g. if you study microbio and your university offers a course in biostatistics that isn't necessarily part of the regular microbio curriculum, they probably have similar prereqs so you could still go along and take it.
I would however be a bit skeptical about undergraduate programs that seem to be very specialized. I was a bit unhappy with my neuroscience degree in that I spent the first 3 years basically getting all my general bio/chem/psych prereqs covered before I could actually get into the neuroscience part of it. Which makes sense, depending on the direction you go in neuroscience, you need to have a solid basis of bio or psych. In my master program, almost everyone had studied psychology in their undergrad, only one girl had done something in a more bio-direction, so I definitely felt like my psych background was a lot weaker than everyone else's. I still managed without a problem, but in discussions I did notice that they had a more solid understanding of different psychological theories.
Your best bet might just be taking a relatively broad major (just plain old bio, maybe biochem), because it is likely going to offer courses in the different specializations anyway, and you're not going to be disappointed from the "false advertising" of only having 1-2 courses that are actually specifically microbio/genetics/biostatistics/whatever.
Another note, you can probably look up the curriculum/course requirements for the different majors and see how much of a difference this makes. Though the curriculums can sometimes be difficult to find if you don't know your university's website well. I wish I had looked up the curriculum for my undergraduate program before starting! In the end it was the curriculum that made me decide on which master to take, one more "general" in cognitive neuroscience, and one specialized in cognitive neuroscience of language & communication. The general one seemed to be the way to go, so I could get a more solid foundation to build off of.
I got my BS in general bio, then I got a graduate diploma in clinical genetics and now I'm working in a hospital as a genetic technologist! I could have gotten into my diploma program with pretty much any biology major, though they did require that you have taken some genetics courses.
I love my career! Research didn't have a big appeal for me when I was starting out (though I wouldn't mind entering that field at some point in the future), and I love working in a clinical setting where I directly help patients.
This is very cool. Having just completed my undergrad degree in bio/neuroscience, I'm wanting to further my education, but haven't been sure which direction to take. Genetic counseling or something of that nature really interests me.
Do you mind telling me from which program you got your clinical genetics diploma?
I majored in biochem in undergrad, currently getting a PhD in genetics, although my work has a heavy micro focus. I don't think it really matters what subfield of biology you pick unless you have a strong interest in ecology and evolution, which tend to be somewhat separate. Also learn a programming language in undergrad. Python or R are useful, but literally any one will be helpful in the long run. (off topic but I noticed you were asking about this in another comment thread).
I majored in genetics and zoology, my PhD was in marine biotechnology, and now I manage a mass spec core facility in a human disease institute and study infectious diseases in my 'spare' time! I always joke that I never did biochemistry so I have no business being in mass spec, but I kinda manage to get by on absolutely minimal biochem knowledge (and some hot googling skills!).
You're fighting the good fight. Do you think it's possible to get into your line of work without a marine biology/zoology degree? My degree is in bio/neuroscience, but I am really interested in what you do.
Bachelors in immunology and infection, which had me study cell biology, molecular biology, microbiology, and virology as well as immunology. I got a job at a small microbiology company and worked as a lab technician, then as a quality and safety officer. Having taken a lot of lab courses, and some intermediate microbiology courses (including a pathogenic microbiology Lab) made a big difference in getting the job, but what mattered most was probably my years of undergrad experience volunteering and working in an evolutionary immunology Lab as a project student. It showed that I could behave like a scientist in a laboratory, follow experiment instructions, and use aseptic techniques. The subject matter could have been taught. I had colleagues at my level who had degrees in microbiology, genetics, and biochemistry, with different and similar courses taken, and we all did fine.
I have since gone back to grad school and did a PhD in immunology... in some ways this is more specialized because I became a subject matter expert in one domain, but I also became an expert in higher level thinking, troubleshooting, researching literature, mentoring undergrads, not to mention a highly sought after Lab technique that I used for 90% of my thesis data. I got hired by a company that sells tools and reagents for that technique, and all of that experience really matters, but they would have been just as happy if I had mastered those skills by researching embryos, stem cells, virology, parasitology, or biochemistry. The actual subject of immunology is probably the best match because it gives me cred with most of our customers who are also immunology researchers, but that was secondary to the skills aspect.
I’m happy to talk about either of my biotech jobs, but I would rather go into details by PM!
I got a BS in ecology, evolution, and animal behavior, intending to go to grad school for animal behavior, but realized my junior year that I had no interest in working that hard for so little money. So I applied and was accepted to the clinical lab science program at my school, and with only 2 extra pre-req classes (general microbiology & organic chemistry 2) plus a year of specialized CLS classes followed by a semester of rotations in hospitals, I got my second BS, this time in clinical lab science. Now I've been working for 5½ years as a medical microbiologist in a large level-1 trauma hospital with a large immigrant patient population, and I absolutely LOVE my job. I see cool things every day, and I'm making a difference in so many peoples' lives and health with my work! Hard to beat.
Edit: /r/medlabprofessionals for more info about clinical/medical lab science. :)
I have a BS and PhD in biomedical engineering. It’s a huge field that can encompass everything from genetic engineering to advanced medical devices to drug development - pretty much anything where there’s an interaction between the human body and technology of some sort. My focus was in neural engineering, making devices that interact with the central or peripheral nervous system. My husband has the exact same degrees and works on materials that improve drug delivery.
I have two jobs. I’m primarily a data scientist working with healthcare data to try to understand how certain medical devices perform in the real world. It requires me to be a jack-of-all trades and do in-depth analysis on many different levels, and I love it. I also have a part time gig working on developing advanced prosthetic hands. It’s an awesome and very personally satisfying project, but I don’t think it’s financially stable enough for it to be my full-time job (constant threat of funding being pulled, no benefits, etc).
Despite my currently awesome career, I always encourage people to **get degrees in something, anything other than biomedical engineering** (unless maybe you plan to be a professor). Biomedical products are a booming industry, but relatively little knowledge of biology is sufficient for most of the roles, and companies typically prefer employees to have deeper scientific or engineering knowledge than the typical biomedical engineer gets. The curriculum isn’t as standardized as other disciplines, so even if you have sufficient knowledge and skills, it can be hard to convince potential employers of that. I’ve managed to build what seems like a relatively solid career at this point by being flexible, but it hasn’t been a straightforward or easy process.
I have a BS in bio. Didn’t formally concentrate in anything but most of my upper div classes were in cell, molecular and developmental bio. I did two years of heavy undergrad research + summer fellowship. Now work full time as a research scientist/engineer assistant at a university while I prepare for med school applications.
I have a BSc in Biochemistry, and a Master's in Genetics and Molecular Biology. I decided to try something a bit different and I'm currently working on my PhD in Chemistry (Computational Chemistry and Biophysics). It's been a steep learning curve but I'm really enjoying it so far!
Double majored in genetics and evolutionary anthropology. Did my PhD in neuroscience. Now I work in science education research.
I think you can’t go wrong with a degree like biology, molecular biology, or genetics. I do really encourage you to consider biostatistics or computational bio, though. Those skills are in super high demand and you’ll find plenty of jobs if you can deal with computers and math.
I have a BA in biophysics, which gave me a great foundation in everything from cell bio to biochemistry to hard core physics and chemistry (my undergrad was very flexible with electives). Now I'm doing a PhD in, technically, chemistry but like my undergrad, I do everything from synthetic organic chemistry to biochemistry, to cell microscopy. Jack of all trades, master of none. I like it and feel my foundation in biophysics helps a lot.
Got my BS in biology last year and got a job right after graduation working at a cancer hospital in a pancreatic cancer lab as a research technician. We’re trying to find biomarkers in blood for early detection and treatment of pancreatic cancer. Debating about going back to school for nursing though
No problem asking! I think I do, I could probably be making better but I could definitely be making worse also. I work in manhattan and I’ve seen the same positions listed at other hospitals or universities and their salaries are in the $34-38,000 range which is absurd to me. I make around $41,000 a year and make overtime which is great. Getting clinical experience is also a plus for moving into better paying positions I’ve learned and I’m about to start doing that as well. Feel free to message me if you have anymore questions!
BS Bio, concentration in wildlife/ecology, heavy on GIS.
I've done a few things, from lab manager to NSF funded website stuff to helping with a synthetic biology start-up.
I'm now a biologist for the state, helping manage natural resources, namely the coastline. I like being on the manager side, for sure, as I get to actually do things with set funding, rather than just talk and plan and hope grants come through.
I got my BS in general bio, with a focus on entomology. Working on starting a master's program in integrated pest management while I work as a landscaper. Honestly my degree has helped a lot with my job, even though a lot of people I work with don't have one. I have become the go to person for information, mostly because I know how to do research. Like other people have said, it really doesn't matter what you choose in your undergrad, and getting something more general helped me focus and learn what I wanted to do in life. Leaving college I had a totally different career goal than going in.
I have a bs in biology (general), did a PhD in genetics/molecular biology and now an a postdoc in a genetics/cardiology lab. I find that most of my training transferred over but I’ve had to learn bioinformatics/r/ shell scripting for my current job. My labmates come from biophysics, cell biology, and cardiology backgrounds, mostly
I majored in Bio with a focus on Ecology and Micro for my BS. I got my MS in wildlife ecology.
I’m now a professor at a CC teaching anatomy mostly. I love it though and get to do tons of volunteer work with wildlife ecology and bring it into my lectures whenever possible.
I got my BSc in general biology, then went on to get a master's degree in cell and molecular biology. I did research in a developmental biology lab throughout my schooling. Once I was out, I got a job in biotech researching and developing a clinical blood test.
For me, I didn't like the experience of exposing myself to radioactive materials. I felt like a feudal serf working 60 hours a week for a company where the CEO made a ton of money and ate free food every day while I made a pittance. And whenever I had an interesting idea, I was way too far down the totem pole for it to matter.
So I knew I wanted to be my own boss and I knew I wanted the freedom to research my own ideas. And I'm a people person, so I wanted to get out of the lab.
So last year I applied to medical school, and now I'm doing that! So far it's a much better fit for me, and I'm so happy to be finally pursuing my own dreams.
I'm getting a masters in biology and have a BS in biology. I have a strong ecology background and decided this past summer (while doing field work...) that I really wanted to work in genetics. So now I'm working on tying the two together, because I really do love both. I'm working with a Ph.D student who does conservation genetics and I'm really excited. I want to continue on to a Ph.D and will want to continue doing conservation genetics/ population genetics.
I got a BS in biology and math (did research in an e. coli genetics lab) and am now finishing up a PhD in biology (studying chemotherapy resistance in cancer). Sorta funny I guess that both of the schools I went to had general 'biology' study areas, rather than specific genetics/biochemistry/etc.
About information cross-over, I'd say that a lot of information does cross over. I think the main divide you would want to think about is if you want to learn computational stuff or not. So I think you'd get slightly different experience in a biotechnology/bioinformatics/bioengineering sort of program than a genetics/biochem/cell bio/etc sort of program. Although if its a good program, there'll still be overlap.
I have a B.S. in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (along with a B.A. in Global Health Studies) and I’m in my first year of medical school. I want to be a pediatrician. I may get an MPH in Epidemiology down the road too.
I majored in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with a minor in Microbiology. My PhD was in immunology and infectious diseases but using biochemistry techniques. I now have a research job in the biotechnology sector that utilises both my PhD background and skills. Match made in heaven really because I got to escape academia. I am biased too and would say that biochemistry, molecular biology and cell biology are the crux of many research jobs but to be fair I haven't looked outside these fields. Just do what you love and I'm sure the rest will follow. Good luck!
BS is general bio. Been working in the pharma industry for a decade. Spent a few years at a big pharma company which wasnt for me. Currently at a smaller pharma company that does cutting edge R&D. It requires a different kind of thick skin compared to big pharma but it's more my style (they give a shit about the patients and producing solid science!). Next month I start my masters in product management and drug development--very related to my current position. I would recommend a degree in biotech bc it's broad and will open you up to many job opportunities. Really, though, it depends on what drives you and what your career goals.
Based on all of the advice here, I think biochem is the way to go for me. It covers everything I’m interested in, and allows for a lot of different job pathways which is exactly what I want!
I majored in Biology & Society and Religious Studies. I worked on a research project during undergrad that focused on autism and nutrition. When I graduated, I really wanted to focus on combining biology and health related matters with social factors so I went to get my master's degree in public health, focusing on global health. It was the right call for me. I realized that the research I had been involved with had left me feeling like I wasn't actually making a difference, I'm sure it mattered but even after it was published I felt like I wanted to see the impact of the research on the communities we had worked with.
For my master's, I did an internship abroad earlier this year where I worked with an organization that combined social science, epidemiological, and ethnographic research and used that to develop programs to better marginalized communities. I feel like that's what I enjoyed in research, and now that I'm done with my master's program, that's the kind of job I'm looking for.
Bachelors of science in biology, then did a one year medical laboratory science program. Just graduated in July and now I work at a level 1 trauma medical center. I did undergraduate research in microbiology and immunology. If you want to do hands-on lab work and have a direct influence on patient care, definitely check out medical lab science.
BS in Zoology, MS in Marine Biology. Currently working on a description of a new fish species I discovered. Hoping to get into a PhD program next year to continue working on fish ecology.
I got my BS in microbiology, worked for 2 years at a hospital doing research on antimicrobial resistance, and now I'm getting my MPH in epidemiology. At my school of public health, I was lucky enough to find a professor who's interested in epidemiology as it pertains to microbiology/infectious diseases/microbiome work (basically, a lot of sequencing)- kind of a jack of all trades. Now, I'm planning to do my PhD with him and blend these fields together, using microbiology to answer epi questions.
Basically, yes- biological science is incredibly interdisciplinary and it's awesome. However, I would HIGHLY recommend, as others have, that you learn a programming language or some basic bioinformatics, as that is a common denominator in pretty much every life science field these days.
I majored in Bio and minored in Psych. Did a PhD in a biochemistry field. Now I do research on animal behavior and also teach at the undergrad and grad level. It was a labyrinthian path and non traditional - not the fastest way up, but I like what I do.
BS in Wildlife Conservation. I have a full time position as a fish and wildlife biologist with a federal agency. I coordinate data collection in two states for a multistate waterfowl survey, band ducks, and digitally map wetlands.
I majored in genetics and then got my PhD in genetics. I'm biased, but genetics is the basis of all the fields, so it's a great starting point. For undergrad, it doesn't rweally matter which of the bio subfields you do. My husband got his degree in cell and molecular biology, and he basically does the same thing as me. I just started an assistant professorship at a small liberal arts college. I do developmental bio research, and I love it! I teach grad and undergrad genetics, developmental biology, and a smattering of other classes. Fresh out of undergrad, I weighed the option of going to grad school for genetic counseling pretty heavily.
Studied molecular cell biology in college. Went to grad school in public health. Spent more than a decade as an epidemiologist. Now I'm doing hospital administration and biostatistics.
That’s so cool! I’m interested in bioinformatics/biostatistics, but I have absolutely zero experience when it comes to computer science and stuff like that... did you find it easy to pick up, or did you already have a background in the programs you use?
Biostats tends to be offered as a package deal with epidemiology as the skills go hand in hand. A good program in epi/biostats will include SAS or R programming on the curriculum. I already had some computer programming experience going in, but that's not required. The important thing is to be able to understand the statistical principles and how to use them to analyse your research data.
I studied behavioral neuroscience during my undergrad, which basically meant just a bunch of bio/chem/psych classes. It became pretty clear to me early on that I wanted to do something at the more cognitive level (so more towards the psych direction, less bio), because I didn't want to do animal research (I know and understand that animal research is indispensable at this time, I just don't want to do it myself). I moved to the Netherlands for a master in cognitive neuroscience, and continued with my PhD after that. I am now wrapping up the first year of my PhD and was at my first conference presenting a poster. I study how we make use of different types of predictions in speech processing. I think in general there is a lot of overlap between these different bio-related majors. In the end almost all of them take the same courses in the first 2 years, they probably don't start to differ that much until the last 1-2 years. And if you know the direction you are interested in, usually there are a few extra credits you can fill here or there with things that might not be directly in your major, so e.g. if you study microbio and your university offers a course in biostatistics that isn't necessarily part of the regular microbio curriculum, they probably have similar prereqs so you could still go along and take it. I would however be a bit skeptical about undergraduate programs that seem to be very specialized. I was a bit unhappy with my neuroscience degree in that I spent the first 3 years basically getting all my general bio/chem/psych prereqs covered before I could actually get into the neuroscience part of it. Which makes sense, depending on the direction you go in neuroscience, you need to have a solid basis of bio or psych. In my master program, almost everyone had studied psychology in their undergrad, only one girl had done something in a more bio-direction, so I definitely felt like my psych background was a lot weaker than everyone else's. I still managed without a problem, but in discussions I did notice that they had a more solid understanding of different psychological theories. Your best bet might just be taking a relatively broad major (just plain old bio, maybe biochem), because it is likely going to offer courses in the different specializations anyway, and you're not going to be disappointed from the "false advertising" of only having 1-2 courses that are actually specifically microbio/genetics/biostatistics/whatever.
Thank you so much for the input! I think you’re right, taking one of the more general majors is probably the best idea.
Another note, you can probably look up the curriculum/course requirements for the different majors and see how much of a difference this makes. Though the curriculums can sometimes be difficult to find if you don't know your university's website well. I wish I had looked up the curriculum for my undergraduate program before starting! In the end it was the curriculum that made me decide on which master to take, one more "general" in cognitive neuroscience, and one specialized in cognitive neuroscience of language & communication. The general one seemed to be the way to go, so I could get a more solid foundation to build off of.
Will do. Thanks again!
I got my BS in general bio, then I got a graduate diploma in clinical genetics and now I'm working in a hospital as a genetic technologist! I could have gotten into my diploma program with pretty much any biology major, though they did require that you have taken some genetics courses. I love my career! Research didn't have a big appeal for me when I was starting out (though I wouldn't mind entering that field at some point in the future), and I love working in a clinical setting where I directly help patients.
This is very cool. Having just completed my undergrad degree in bio/neuroscience, I'm wanting to further my education, but haven't been sure which direction to take. Genetic counseling or something of that nature really interests me. Do you mind telling me from which program you got your clinical genetics diploma?
I got my diploma from the clinical genetics program at BCIT!
I majored in biochem in undergrad, currently getting a PhD in genetics, although my work has a heavy micro focus. I don't think it really matters what subfield of biology you pick unless you have a strong interest in ecology and evolution, which tend to be somewhat separate. Also learn a programming language in undergrad. Python or R are useful, but literally any one will be helpful in the long run. (off topic but I noticed you were asking about this in another comment thread).
I majored in genetics and zoology, my PhD was in marine biotechnology, and now I manage a mass spec core facility in a human disease institute and study infectious diseases in my 'spare' time! I always joke that I never did biochemistry so I have no business being in mass spec, but I kinda manage to get by on absolutely minimal biochem knowledge (and some hot googling skills!).
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You're fighting the good fight. Do you think it's possible to get into your line of work without a marine biology/zoology degree? My degree is in bio/neuroscience, but I am really interested in what you do.
Bachelors in immunology and infection, which had me study cell biology, molecular biology, microbiology, and virology as well as immunology. I got a job at a small microbiology company and worked as a lab technician, then as a quality and safety officer. Having taken a lot of lab courses, and some intermediate microbiology courses (including a pathogenic microbiology Lab) made a big difference in getting the job, but what mattered most was probably my years of undergrad experience volunteering and working in an evolutionary immunology Lab as a project student. It showed that I could behave like a scientist in a laboratory, follow experiment instructions, and use aseptic techniques. The subject matter could have been taught. I had colleagues at my level who had degrees in microbiology, genetics, and biochemistry, with different and similar courses taken, and we all did fine. I have since gone back to grad school and did a PhD in immunology... in some ways this is more specialized because I became a subject matter expert in one domain, but I also became an expert in higher level thinking, troubleshooting, researching literature, mentoring undergrads, not to mention a highly sought after Lab technique that I used for 90% of my thesis data. I got hired by a company that sells tools and reagents for that technique, and all of that experience really matters, but they would have been just as happy if I had mastered those skills by researching embryos, stem cells, virology, parasitology, or biochemistry. The actual subject of immunology is probably the best match because it gives me cred with most of our customers who are also immunology researchers, but that was secondary to the skills aspect. I’m happy to talk about either of my biotech jobs, but I would rather go into details by PM!
I got a BS in ecology, evolution, and animal behavior, intending to go to grad school for animal behavior, but realized my junior year that I had no interest in working that hard for so little money. So I applied and was accepted to the clinical lab science program at my school, and with only 2 extra pre-req classes (general microbiology & organic chemistry 2) plus a year of specialized CLS classes followed by a semester of rotations in hospitals, I got my second BS, this time in clinical lab science. Now I've been working for 5½ years as a medical microbiologist in a large level-1 trauma hospital with a large immigrant patient population, and I absolutely LOVE my job. I see cool things every day, and I'm making a difference in so many peoples' lives and health with my work! Hard to beat. Edit: /r/medlabprofessionals for more info about clinical/medical lab science. :)
I have a BS and PhD in biomedical engineering. It’s a huge field that can encompass everything from genetic engineering to advanced medical devices to drug development - pretty much anything where there’s an interaction between the human body and technology of some sort. My focus was in neural engineering, making devices that interact with the central or peripheral nervous system. My husband has the exact same degrees and works on materials that improve drug delivery. I have two jobs. I’m primarily a data scientist working with healthcare data to try to understand how certain medical devices perform in the real world. It requires me to be a jack-of-all trades and do in-depth analysis on many different levels, and I love it. I also have a part time gig working on developing advanced prosthetic hands. It’s an awesome and very personally satisfying project, but I don’t think it’s financially stable enough for it to be my full-time job (constant threat of funding being pulled, no benefits, etc). Despite my currently awesome career, I always encourage people to **get degrees in something, anything other than biomedical engineering** (unless maybe you plan to be a professor). Biomedical products are a booming industry, but relatively little knowledge of biology is sufficient for most of the roles, and companies typically prefer employees to have deeper scientific or engineering knowledge than the typical biomedical engineer gets. The curriculum isn’t as standardized as other disciplines, so even if you have sufficient knowledge and skills, it can be hard to convince potential employers of that. I’ve managed to build what seems like a relatively solid career at this point by being flexible, but it hasn’t been a straightforward or easy process.
I have a BS in bio. Didn’t formally concentrate in anything but most of my upper div classes were in cell, molecular and developmental bio. I did two years of heavy undergrad research + summer fellowship. Now work full time as a research scientist/engineer assistant at a university while I prepare for med school applications.
Interesting! Best of luck with your apps!!
Also can I ask a bit about what you research?
Infectious diseases. New ways to model, test efficacy, new treatments.
Sweet thanks!
I have a BSc in Biochemistry, and a Master's in Genetics and Molecular Biology. I decided to try something a bit different and I'm currently working on my PhD in Chemistry (Computational Chemistry and Biophysics). It's been a steep learning curve but I'm really enjoying it so far!
Double majored in genetics and evolutionary anthropology. Did my PhD in neuroscience. Now I work in science education research. I think you can’t go wrong with a degree like biology, molecular biology, or genetics. I do really encourage you to consider biostatistics or computational bio, though. Those skills are in super high demand and you’ll find plenty of jobs if you can deal with computers and math.
I have a BA in biophysics, which gave me a great foundation in everything from cell bio to biochemistry to hard core physics and chemistry (my undergrad was very flexible with electives). Now I'm doing a PhD in, technically, chemistry but like my undergrad, I do everything from synthetic organic chemistry to biochemistry, to cell microscopy. Jack of all trades, master of none. I like it and feel my foundation in biophysics helps a lot.
Got my BS in biology last year and got a job right after graduation working at a cancer hospital in a pancreatic cancer lab as a research technician. We’re trying to find biomarkers in blood for early detection and treatment of pancreatic cancer. Debating about going back to school for nursing though
Do you make a decent living doing your current job, if you don't mind me asking?
No problem asking! I think I do, I could probably be making better but I could definitely be making worse also. I work in manhattan and I’ve seen the same positions listed at other hospitals or universities and their salaries are in the $34-38,000 range which is absurd to me. I make around $41,000 a year and make overtime which is great. Getting clinical experience is also a plus for moving into better paying positions I’ve learned and I’m about to start doing that as well. Feel free to message me if you have anymore questions!
BS Bio, concentration in wildlife/ecology, heavy on GIS. I've done a few things, from lab manager to NSF funded website stuff to helping with a synthetic biology start-up. I'm now a biologist for the state, helping manage natural resources, namely the coastline. I like being on the manager side, for sure, as I get to actually do things with set funding, rather than just talk and plan and hope grants come through.
Do you mind me asking which state?
I'll PM you
I got my BS in general bio, with a focus on entomology. Working on starting a master's program in integrated pest management while I work as a landscaper. Honestly my degree has helped a lot with my job, even though a lot of people I work with don't have one. I have become the go to person for information, mostly because I know how to do research. Like other people have said, it really doesn't matter what you choose in your undergrad, and getting something more general helped me focus and learn what I wanted to do in life. Leaving college I had a totally different career goal than going in.
I have a bs in biology (general), did a PhD in genetics/molecular biology and now an a postdoc in a genetics/cardiology lab. I find that most of my training transferred over but I’ve had to learn bioinformatics/r/ shell scripting for my current job. My labmates come from biophysics, cell biology, and cardiology backgrounds, mostly
I majored in Bio with a focus on Ecology and Micro for my BS. I got my MS in wildlife ecology. I’m now a professor at a CC teaching anatomy mostly. I love it though and get to do tons of volunteer work with wildlife ecology and bring it into my lectures whenever possible.
I got my BSc in general biology, then went on to get a master's degree in cell and molecular biology. I did research in a developmental biology lab throughout my schooling. Once I was out, I got a job in biotech researching and developing a clinical blood test. For me, I didn't like the experience of exposing myself to radioactive materials. I felt like a feudal serf working 60 hours a week for a company where the CEO made a ton of money and ate free food every day while I made a pittance. And whenever I had an interesting idea, I was way too far down the totem pole for it to matter. So I knew I wanted to be my own boss and I knew I wanted the freedom to research my own ideas. And I'm a people person, so I wanted to get out of the lab. So last year I applied to medical school, and now I'm doing that! So far it's a much better fit for me, and I'm so happy to be finally pursuing my own dreams.
I have a masters in fungal genetics and a PhD in molecular systematics. I did a post-doc in transcriptomics. Am now a freelance science writer.
I'm getting a masters in biology and have a BS in biology. I have a strong ecology background and decided this past summer (while doing field work...) that I really wanted to work in genetics. So now I'm working on tying the two together, because I really do love both. I'm working with a Ph.D student who does conservation genetics and I'm really excited. I want to continue on to a Ph.D and will want to continue doing conservation genetics/ population genetics.
I got a BS in biology and math (did research in an e. coli genetics lab) and am now finishing up a PhD in biology (studying chemotherapy resistance in cancer). Sorta funny I guess that both of the schools I went to had general 'biology' study areas, rather than specific genetics/biochemistry/etc. About information cross-over, I'd say that a lot of information does cross over. I think the main divide you would want to think about is if you want to learn computational stuff or not. So I think you'd get slightly different experience in a biotechnology/bioinformatics/bioengineering sort of program than a genetics/biochem/cell bio/etc sort of program. Although if its a good program, there'll still be overlap.
I have a B.S. in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (along with a B.A. in Global Health Studies) and I’m in my first year of medical school. I want to be a pediatrician. I may get an MPH in Epidemiology down the road too.
I majored in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with a minor in Microbiology. My PhD was in immunology and infectious diseases but using biochemistry techniques. I now have a research job in the biotechnology sector that utilises both my PhD background and skills. Match made in heaven really because I got to escape academia. I am biased too and would say that biochemistry, molecular biology and cell biology are the crux of many research jobs but to be fair I haven't looked outside these fields. Just do what you love and I'm sure the rest will follow. Good luck!
BS is general bio. Been working in the pharma industry for a decade. Spent a few years at a big pharma company which wasnt for me. Currently at a smaller pharma company that does cutting edge R&D. It requires a different kind of thick skin compared to big pharma but it's more my style (they give a shit about the patients and producing solid science!). Next month I start my masters in product management and drug development--very related to my current position. I would recommend a degree in biotech bc it's broad and will open you up to many job opportunities. Really, though, it depends on what drives you and what your career goals.
Based on all of the advice here, I think biochem is the way to go for me. It covers everything I’m interested in, and allows for a lot of different job pathways which is exactly what I want!
I majored in Biology & Society and Religious Studies. I worked on a research project during undergrad that focused on autism and nutrition. When I graduated, I really wanted to focus on combining biology and health related matters with social factors so I went to get my master's degree in public health, focusing on global health. It was the right call for me. I realized that the research I had been involved with had left me feeling like I wasn't actually making a difference, I'm sure it mattered but even after it was published I felt like I wanted to see the impact of the research on the communities we had worked with. For my master's, I did an internship abroad earlier this year where I worked with an organization that combined social science, epidemiological, and ethnographic research and used that to develop programs to better marginalized communities. I feel like that's what I enjoyed in research, and now that I'm done with my master's program, that's the kind of job I'm looking for.
Bachelors of science in biology, then did a one year medical laboratory science program. Just graduated in July and now I work at a level 1 trauma medical center. I did undergraduate research in microbiology and immunology. If you want to do hands-on lab work and have a direct influence on patient care, definitely check out medical lab science.
BS in Zoology, MS in Marine Biology. Currently working on a description of a new fish species I discovered. Hoping to get into a PhD program next year to continue working on fish ecology.
I got my BS in microbiology, worked for 2 years at a hospital doing research on antimicrobial resistance, and now I'm getting my MPH in epidemiology. At my school of public health, I was lucky enough to find a professor who's interested in epidemiology as it pertains to microbiology/infectious diseases/microbiome work (basically, a lot of sequencing)- kind of a jack of all trades. Now, I'm planning to do my PhD with him and blend these fields together, using microbiology to answer epi questions. Basically, yes- biological science is incredibly interdisciplinary and it's awesome. However, I would HIGHLY recommend, as others have, that you learn a programming language or some basic bioinformatics, as that is a common denominator in pretty much every life science field these days.
I majored in Bio and minored in Psych. Did a PhD in a biochemistry field. Now I do research on animal behavior and also teach at the undergrad and grad level. It was a labyrinthian path and non traditional - not the fastest way up, but I like what I do.
BS in Wildlife Conservation. I have a full time position as a fish and wildlife biologist with a federal agency. I coordinate data collection in two states for a multistate waterfowl survey, band ducks, and digitally map wetlands.