Biotechnologist

As a biotechnologist, your day to day duties will depend on your specialism.

In environmental biotechnology, you could:

• clean polluted land or water using micro-organisms and plants
• develop alternative sources of energy, like biodiesel
• make environmentally friendly raw materials, like biodegradable plastics

In industrial biotechnology, you could:

• clone and create enzymes for use in manufacturing food and drink
• improve animal feed
• modify crops to increase productivity and resistance to pests

In medical biotechnology and biotherapeutics, you could:

• study human genetics, antibodies, viruses, plants, fungi and bacteria
• develop therapies and vaccines to tackle the causes of disease
• produce medicines using techniques like cell culture and genetic modification

• knowledge of biology
• knowledge of chemistry including the safe use and disposal of chemicals
• maths knowledge
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• analytical thinking skills
• excellent verbal communication skills
• the ability to work well with others
• to be flexible and open to change
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

You can get into this job through:

• a university course
• an apprenticeship
• working towards this role

With experience, you could move into areas like:

• project or departmental management
• science communications
• quality assurance
• bioinformatics and data analysis
• freelance consultancy or scientific advisory work
• biotechnology policy and ethics