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That's an absolutely incorrect statement. Before switching to programming, I was a research associate. Internships, publications, the whole deal. I would argue that cancer research and the other biomed research my colleagues did was absolutely useful to society. Yet it's no secret that if you want to be financially self sufficient, a B.S. in biology is a horrible way to go about it. Sure, there's private industry, but then a. How useful to society is working for Pfizer, GSK, etc?
b. Is it really a viable option when you have dozens of applicants per job option? People in development are in a great spot in the job market today. Demand outstrips supply, high salaries, etc. That said, do not think that the rest of the world is like that. The world also needs lawyers, researchers, teachers, and a whole list of other jobs, yet those jobs are also well known for having horrible job markets and lots of debt. |
c. Compensation is comparatively low and hours are comparatively long in most biological industries, including, as far as my friends in bio have told me: agriculture, biomedical engineering, and biotechnology.
At least, compensation is low and hours are long compared to other white-collar professions that require a lot of education and training. $40k-$60k per year for an agricultural biologist with an advanced degree (MSc or PhD+postdoc) is roughly what they get at my fiancee's workplace, and they usually work around 60 hours/week (my fiancee is unusual in managing to work only 50-55 most weeks).