Transcript Becoming a Geneticist

Agricultural Careers
Geneticist
By: Dr. Frank Flanders and Trisha Rae Stephens
Georgia Agricultural Education Curriculum Office
Georgia Department of Education
June 2005
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Job Duties & Responsibilities
• Conduct experiments and record and analyze the data received.
• Keep detailed notes and write reports related to their studies.
• In a supervisory position, they would be in charge of managing assistants.
• Those that enter a teaching career would give class lectures and speak at
conferences, as well as conduct research experiments.
Qualities and Skills
• Good eyesight and manual dexterity
are needed.
• Ability to spend significant time
working in a laboratory
• Ability to communicate effectively both
orally and in writing.
• May require long periods of sitting or
standing.
• Ability to use computers for lengthy
amounts of time
Salary
Salaries in this field vary widely,
depending on where a geneticist
works and the level of degree they
possess. For example, geneticists
working at a university as a professor
would have a typical academic
salary. Assistant professors make
average salaries in the $50,000 to
$75,000 range while associate
professors make average salaries in
$60,000 to $90,000 range.
Experienced geneticists working in
industry, at biotechnology firms and
pharmaceutical companies, often
have salaries much higher than this,
in the $100,000 to $150,000 range.
Work Environment
• Most work is done indoors in laboratory settings, but at times work in offices,
classrooms or in the field is also required.
• The typical work week is at least 40 hours per week, however project or research
deadlines may at times require them to work extended hours.
Becoming a Geneticist
• To prepare for a career as a Geneticist, students should take collegepreparatory classes in high school with as many science courses as possible.
• Biology, chemistry, physics, botany and zoology are especially important.
• Good communications skills are achieved with English, writing, and speech
courses. Agricultural education classes offer courses in plant and animal
science that will help prepare an individual for a career as a geneticist.
Career Resources
Biotechnology Industry Organization
1625 K Street, N.W., Suite 1100
Washington, D.C. 20006
Internet: http://www.bio.org
Crop Science Society of America
677 South Segoe Road
Madison, WI 53711
Internet: http://www.crops.org
Genetics Society of America
9650 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, MD 20814-3998
Internet: http://www.genetics-gsa.org
American Society of Human Genetics
9650 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, MD 20814
Internet: http://www.ashg.org
*Select "Educational Resources," then "Training
Programs Guide."
Council for Biotechnology Information
P.O. Box 34380
Washington, DC 20043–0380
Internet: http://www.whybiotech.com