Perhaps you’re technically minded with an interest in understanding living things and have already considered embarking on a career in the field of biotechnology. While basing your career choice on innate abilities and interests is a good starting point, there are a number of other things worth considering as well. You should also think about whether there will be jobs in your field in the future and other life goals that may depend on the size of your paycheck.
Unless you’re planning on earning a doctorate or professional degree to become a biochemist or biophysicist—professions that earned a median annual wage of 102,270 in 2021 and have an anticipated job growth of 15% between 2021 and 2031—you may want to rethink that biotechnology career and refocus your innate technical abilities on a career in computer science. Here’s why.
Key Takeaways
- Ambitious college students can expect both the biotech and computer science/IT industries to be lucrative career paths after graduation, but which one is best?
- Personal preference will be a large factor, as biotech and computer science come with vastly different types of training, experiences, and curricula.
- The new field of bioinformatics may be an opportunity to blend biosciences with information technology and software development.
Biotechnology Career Outlook
The field of biotechnology utilizes both cellular and biomolecular processes in developing technology aimed at improving the quality of life and creating a safer, healthier planet. As such, a career in biotechnology will require a degree with coursework in biochemistry, biosystems, bio-engineering, tissue-engineering, and both cellular and molecular biology. With this core focus, there may be a number of specific occupations open to you upon completing your bachelor’s degree, including biomedical engineer, food scientist, soil and plant scientist, forensic science technician, or medical and clinical laboratory technologist.
Here are 13 biotech-related occupations available to those with a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and either less than five years or no work experience. Statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on the median annual wage, job openings due to growth and replacements needs, and total percentage change in employment show how these 13 occupations stack up. Here they are:
Median Annual Wage (2021):
- mean = $78,340
- median = $74,142
Employment Change (2021-2031):
- mean = 12.67%
Job Openings due to Growth and Replacement Needs (2021-2031):
- sum total = 71,400
The pay may sound attractive considering that the median annual wage for all occupations in 2021 was only $45,760. However, this includes all occupations, even those with no minimum university or college degree required for employment. Further, the employment change for all occupations over the 2021-2031 period is 5.3% which puts biotechnology-related careers well above the average for all occupations. Before making a decision, let’s compare the computer science career path, outline below.
Computer Science Career Outlook
A bachelor’s degree in computer science could easily set one up for a number of possible careers, including a computer systems or information security analyst, computer programmer, software developer, or an operations research analyst. Using nine computer science related occupations, we collected the same statistics as we did for the biotech-related careers. Here they are:
Median Annual Wage (2021):
- mean = $99,857
- median = $96,710
Employment Change (2021-2031):
- mean = 12.17%
Job Openings due to Growth and Replacement Needs (2021-2031):
- sum total = 298,400
The Bottom Line
The numbers say it all, and while you may be willing to sacrifice the extra pay for working at a career that more closely aligns with your interests, the fact that there will be 227,000 more job openings in computer science-related careers over the 10-year period should at least cause some serious reflection.
Working in a field that aligns with your interests is ideal, but if there aren’t jobs in your field it won’t matter what your interests are. However, there may be some hope in the emerging field of bioinformatics, which uses computers to acquire, store and analyze biological data offering exciting new ways of looking at living organisms and the life process. Shifting technical inclinations towards pursuing a major in computer science and satisfying your interest in studying living things by minoring in biology may allow you to land a fulfilling career with growth potential and a rewarding salary to pursue other life goals.