<p>I like genetics, and would like to be a genetic engineer/researcher, but it seems as though research careers are down the tubes (except for pharmacology). What do you suggest I do instead? Become a computer scientist (programmer/software engineer), since that will be at least kind of close as to what I would do as a researcher? Become an engineer (I would most likely pick electrical) because they also use method's similar to a researchers? Become a pharmacist, since it still has to do with science? Become a genetic counselor? Become an accountant because that has the best career prospects? What should I do?</p>
<p>Also, don’t suggest being a doctor, because I can’t deal with weird smells or organs. Also, while I was good with the different names of bones and everything, I did horrible on the nervous system in anatomy. Maybe I’d be okay with dentistry. But that is extremely hard to get into. I just don’t know what I want to do anymore…</p>
<p>Basically, it seems like you’re just scrambling around for anything that might have good employment prospects. There’s nothing wrong with being job-oriented, especially in today’s economy or if you expect to have a lot of college debt, but it might not work to choose a field if it’s not something you’ll like.</p>
<p>Are you still in high school or have you started college yet? What types of schools are you looking at? What state are you from?</p>
<p>Remember, College is not a vocational school. Yes, we do expect to be employed afterwards, but that’s not the principle behind it. Not all research based careers are going down the tube. Research will always be needed in order for advancement, and if that research becomes fruitful, it means new products and services, which equal more profit. Nobody will ever turn down a chance for more money. If you want to go into genetic engineering, why not choose Biomedical Enginnering, with an emphasis in Tissue Engineering. Accounting has decent prospects, but will you enjoy it? There’s a economics book that I’ve read, The Price of Everything, by Russell Roberts, Republican of course. In the book, the main character states there are two reasons to take a job, If it provides monetary happiness, but also if it provides non-monetary happiness. Just making a lot of money doesn’t make you happy. What happens if that job causes unhappiness and instability outside of your work life? Think long and hard, then make a decision.</p>
<p>I am in my senior year of high school, and have already applied to and was accepted at two small catholic colleges. The one I plan on going to is St. Bonaventure University. I want to major in bioinformatics so I can go on to grad school and eventually become a genetic researcher/engineer. However, the bio people on these thread have made me increasingly more worried with their agonized pleas, which can be summed up best in a meme: “I used to be interested in biology like you, but then I took a real world to my dreams.” Basically, these people majored in bio because they were generally interested in it, but then they were screwed over when they tried to find a job in the real world. I don’t want to find myself working my butt off for a degree only to find out its worthless and that I might as well have majored in bull**** with minimal work and a better social life.</p>
<p>I also have dreams of eventually having a family, but I would feel like the most irresponsible mother in the world if I didn’t have a good enough income to raise them first. I don’t want to be filthy rich; I would be happy with a job that provides 60-80k after tax. And I also want to spend time in the community helping others and of course with my family. Is that too much to ask of a job? It seems like it in today’s economy…</p>
<p>I think you’ll receive a good education in that program. Having skills in both biology and math/cs will open up a lot of options for graduate study, whether they’re in a basic research field, an applied research field, or professional school in a non-bioscience field.</p>
<p>Joy, remember, when you get married, you are not the only one providing financial support. You will have a husband, who is also providing financial support. The question you are going to have to ask is, Are you going to be an individual, or are you going to let what other people say dictate your actions. For example, people in finance, while their work is pretty much boring, are working 100+ hours a week(Investment banking). Little time for a social life there, and full of stress. You get what you put in. Hard work gives reward, especially in this competitive economy. I know many people who majored in the Arts(Art, Art History, Music, and other related fields) are working as baristas for a little more than minimum wage, but those that chose to major in the harder fields, science, engineering, mathematics, are doing well. So many people want a job that pays benefits like social security, and healthcare, but the reality of the fact is, the social security taxes that you pay are NOT going into your plan, but into the plan of the elderly, and retiring workers. Forget jobs with benefits. You take your hard earned money, and invest in a mutual fund and provide your own retirement fund and kids education. You buy your own health plan(if they offer a barebones plan with the option of buying other additions if you need them, get that one, as it’s cheaper in the long run) What I’m trying to say is work hard, and make your own path. Don’t let people who are disgruntled dictate YOUR path, because then YOU will be unhappy. I’d be happy making 40k, running tests all day, rather than crunching numbers into an excel sheet all day. I’m currently a consultant and going to school as a chem major. Consulting while I make decent money, I undergo alot of stress. Business plans to write up, mediating between my company and agencies like the IRS and SBA, coming up with marketing solutions. My chem labs are actually a release for me, as I enjoy it.</p>
<p>Checkout the jobs at this company and their requirements for these positions. You may like what you see.</p>
<p>[Jobs</a> | Knome](<a href=“http://www.knome.com/company/jobs/]Jobs”>http://www.knome.com/company/jobs/)</p>
<p>Personally, I think most of those bio majors who can’t find jobs have a very narrow range of jobs they want to do. They likely had a narrow area of interest in biology and thought they could get a job in it, but found the market to be as limited as their interests. If you are genuinely interested in biology(i.e. you like many aspects of it, not just one or two specialized areas), and you would be willing to do many different types of jobs in various areas of biology, then I think you would not run into the kind of issue they have.</p>
<p>Also, $60-80K/year might be possible in some careers with a certain level or experience or perhaps an advanced degree, but I would not expect plan on having that. Like scientificmind said, if you start a family, your spouse may be able to contribute income. I would also avoid looking at your choice of career based on the amount of money you make. In my experience, the happiest people are those that enjoy the job they do, not those that work constantly doing a job they don’t love their job just to make more money. There is more to life than money, such as your family and your own interests and fulfillment. I have friends who grew up perfectly happy and were raised in families making well under $60K/year. </p>
<p>On a final note, if you want to go to graduate school to study genetics, I would recommend a broader undergraduate degree such as biology or biochemistry. A broader degree will give you more flexibility than a more specialized undergraduate degree when it comes to graduate school or a job out of undergrad, especially if you decide you want to pursue a different aspect of the biological sciences.</p>
<p>According to [Center</a> on Education and the Workforce -](<a href=“http://cew.georgetown.edu/whatsitworth/]Center”>What’s It Worth?: The Economic Value of College Majors - CEW Georgetown) , it is worth noting that there is some variation in the career prospects of various subareas of biology, although none appears to be really great in this respect.</p>
<p>If you like genetics and genetic engineering study plant and microbial genetics. I couldn’t recommend tissue engineering at all. How many viable tissue engineering companies can anyone on this forum name? TE company after TE company has failed because the regulatory hurdles that they have to overcome are many times insurmountable. When you take exogenous tissue and implant it into a human, the FDA is going to heavily, heavily scrutinize such proposals. TE, at this stage, is probably more suitable for academic environments, however, how many academic positions are really available? If professor x graduates 5 graduates, and those 5 graduates graduate 5 students, and so on and so forth, at some point there simply won’t be enough academic opnenings available. </p>
<p>What about engineering plants to produce biofuels? That could be quite promising in the future as we fall even further off the cliff of peak oil and the funding for biofuels will be massive in the future as economies won’t be able to afford regular oil anymore. A new fungus from the amazon has been found that can chew up plastics:</p>
<p>[Biodegradation</a> of Polyester Polyurethane by Endophytic Fungi](<a href=“http://aem.asm.org/content/77/17/6076]Biodegradation”>http://aem.asm.org/content/77/17/6076)</p>
<p>Can you imagine if you were some smart bioengineer that could isolate the enzyme responsible and engineer it so that it breaks down plastics into a biofuel? Now that would be a tremendous contribution to society that would probably face much less regulation than most TE projects.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your answers. I was going to study a straight genetics degree,mbut there were no schools nearby that offered genetics and fit my taste for size. So, I went for bioinformatics, hearing that it was close to genetics and that the math and programming components of it made it valuable. </p>
<p>" ‘Also, $60-80K/year might be possible in some careers with a certain level or experience or perhaps an advanced degree, but I would not expect plan on having that’ "</p>
<p>Then what is the point of going to college? Why should I spend money to get a degree that pays as much as a job a high school grad can get? Btw I am going for my masters, not sure abou the PhD.</p>
<p>" ’ If you are genuinely interested in biology(i.e. you like many aspects of it, not just one or two specialized areas), and you would be willing to do many different types of jobs in various areas of biology, then I think you would not run into the kind of issue they have’ "</p>
<p>I like most aspects of biology. I like plants (and taking them apart), I like cell bio, I like biochem, I like genetics (my favorite), I like microbio, I like evolution,and I like animal behavior. But human/animal anatomy and physiology are a pain in my rear end. I hate the sight of organs because it brings up that nasty formaldehyde smell. I would never, ever want to work in tissue engineering. It is a pain. Should I be worried?</p>
<p>Abou the bioengineering thing: I actually thought about agricultural engineering for a while. Part of me wants to go into it now since it seems pretty cool and has a greater chance of me getting a job outside a restaurant, but it is too late to apply to schools that have that major.</p>
<p>I meant that you should not be expecting that straight out of college with a bachelor’s. My understanding is that people with a master’s can command $60k out of school and $80k with a PhD, but it is only around $30-40k for someone with just a bachelor’s. This is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ page about biological scientists as an example:</p>
<p>“According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, beginning salary offers in July 2009 averaged $33,254 a year for bachelor’s degree recipients in biological and life sciences.”</p>
<p>[Biological</a> Scientists](<a href=“http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos047.htm]Biological”>http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos047.htm)</p>
<p>If all you want out of a job is money, then there are likely easier, quicker routes to a higher paying job. I simply don’t want you to think that you to think that everyone walking out of college with a bio sci degree can get a job making $60-$80k a year. It is unrealistic. Just something to think about. It seems that a lot of people have ideas of glory and a romanticized view of certain fields or think they will make tons of money, but the reality is not always so nice. One should consider that in order for there to be an average wage, some people make more than the average and some less, and one could end up on the lower end or the middle rather than the upper end. Just something to keep in mind.</p>
<p>I know you say you want a masters, but a lot of people end up dropping out of graduate programs for a great many reasons. I think you should consider these things when making a choice of degree, though I don’t know you and I could be telling you things you already have considered or about which you simply don’t care. Best of luck with you search for a major and in your studies!</p>
<p>In fact a lot of biology graduates get jobs that don’t require a degree at all. Most of the jobs are permatemp 15-20 per hour and most biologists and chemists even with an advanced degree will need a career change to even get a job with benefits and a middle class salary.</p>
<p>@ABC: I actually did not know that people drop out of graduate programs. Why? I know that I can’t get a good job with a bachelor’s; but I keep hearing that you can get a good job with a grad degree in bioinfo. </p>
<p>@shoe: I know that. Hence why I am going into bioinformatics, not biology. I don’t want to fall into that trap, or the post-doc trap for that matter. I am hoping my programming experience will give me a leg up on a job. </p>
<p>My mom keeps making a big deal about me going into college for something I want to do, since she always wanted to be a teacher but got pushed into nursing by her mom. However, there is still a lot of pressure on me to be “successful”. I was never sure what I wanted to do. I still am not sure what I really want to do; hence the multi-faceted major.</p>
<p>The bioinformatics positions that I’ve seen in Boston/Cambridge generally want a Masters though they may consider a BS. So going for a grad program would be a good idea, particularly if it’s a one-year program.</p>
<p>The reasons why people drop out of grad programs are greatly varied and are often individual and personal. Some simply weren’t prepared for what is required, others overestimated their interest in a field of study, and others might not have realized what grad school actually is or what one does in grad school. Others end up with issues of the time it may take to complete their research and/or thesis/dissertation. Some people experience issues with funding that cause extensions of their time in grad school. This leads some to leave as the time commitment no longer fits their goals or desires. Some people end up with family issues that may range from illness, loss of loved ones, or the desire to start a family and be able to devote themselves full time to raising their children. Some people simply change their mind about what they want to do with their lives. Undergrad is typically 4 years, and adding grad school makes one’s college education quite long. It can mean that one is not out of school until one’s late 20’s or even early 30’s, especially given that most people graduate from undergrad around 22, a master’s is often 2-3 years in long, and a PhD can easily be 4-6 or even 10 years more, depending on the subject (I am told that anthropology PhDs can often take 10 years to complete). Some people find that once in grad school, they are dissatisfied with the idea of being in school so long. There are TONS more reasons why people drop out, but I think these are probably some of the more typical/common ones. If there are any people on here who dropped out of grad program, they may leave a response here about their particular reasons. Thousands of people drop out of graduate programs every year. However, many stick with it, and many absolutely love it! Here is one individual’s story of why they dropped out of a grad program that came up in a cursory Google search. It may not be quite applicable to you individually, but it does illustrate one person’s experince and reason for dropping out.</p>
<p>[I</a> Was a Grad School Dropout - DivineCaroline](<a href=“http://www.divinecaroline.com/22282/25122-grad-school-dropout]I”>http://www.divinecaroline.com/22282/25122-grad-school-dropout)</p>
<p>Don’t let this talk of dropouts discourage you, though; just bear in mind that a lot of people change their minds at many stages of school and life in general and do so for many different reasons, some of which may not be at the front of you mind right now. Everyone has been in that situation, and usually is many times in life! Factoring in some room for change is good in a plan for the future. That is the reason for my recommendation that you pursue a broader degree rather than a more specialized one. Should you change your mind later in life, a broader degree is easier to apply to different things than is a more highly specialized one. Sometimes specialized degrees are more limiting than more general ones, and electives often allow one to mimic another degree while pursuing something that is less specialized (say, getting a chemistry degree while taking extra biology courses to meet the requirements for medical school or getting a degree in marine science but taking elective biochem courses to be prepared for a graduate biochemistry program that focuses on marine life/ecosystems, or something like that). This is really more important with regard to the difference between what employers see and what grad schools see. Grad schools will know what classes you have taken making the title of your degree less important, while an employer sees the title of your degree and will not see what class you have taken. A specialized degree helps get specialized jobs, but takes a bit more work to market to an employer for a job that is not that specialization. Additionally, a more general degree will prepare you for more different grad programs than will a more specialized degree. If you really want to do bioinformatics, go for it!!! Just keep these things in mind.</p>
"Checkout the jobs at this company and their requirements for these positions. You may like what you see.
Jobs | Knome"
What jobs? This company employs less than 50 people and is not currently seeking more. That’s not very promising.
Have you considered Genetic counseling? It requires a Master’s degree.
http://explorehealthcareers.org/en/Career/53/Genetic_Counselor