If I did a MSc in Biochem or PhD in something bio-related, will I get a job?

[hydrogen4]

I'm a biology undergrad with a 2.75 OMSAS GPA. (75% cGPA on transcript)

 

I will potentially be able to do a MSc in biochem soon.

 

1. I was wondering however.. what kind of employment opportunities will I get here or in states with Msc?

 

2. People have been saying I have to do PhD to get a decent job or profession. Is this true?

 

All of you are in research, can you shed some light?

 

Also, are there even any examinations one must do in Masters or PhD programs? (I know there are course based masters, but nothing further than this)

 

Thank You!

[Falling]

From what I understand, most graduate programs, particularly those in the life sciences, will not prepare you well for a career outside of academia. Careers in academia seem very harsh and only 10-15% of PhDs get tenure track positions.

 

Something like an MPH with an internship will be a better bet for finding work.

[thehockeykid]

try bioinformatics, i think the statistics skills are transferable.

[McMarauder]

You may not get too much helpful information on this forum as a lot of people here are gunning for professional school and have not looked into the job industry. I did co-op in undergrad so hopefully what I'm going to tell you will be helpful.

 

One of my placements was with a small biotech company developing assays for cancer. It was essentially a glorified academic lab, but everything was MUCH more organised..almost excessively organised? All the research associates there had at least a Master's degree and said you couldn't get a job like that without the Master's. A few of my friends who did MSc ended up working as Medical Writers in health care communications, and they landed the jobs just prior to defending their master's. From what I've been told, having the MSc made the job hunt easier, but it's still not a guarantee.

 

http://www.antibodycommunications.com/career.html is an example of a healthcare communications company. I was interviewed there for a co-op position. Essentially, this company is hired by pharmaceutical companies to produce literature that doctors can give to their patients. (those pamphlets you get from the doctor/pharmacist).

 

You could look into other specialised Master's programs, such as MBiotech, and Master's of Management of Innovation (MMI) at UofT Mississauga. MMI is kinda like business school for people with a science background. My friend did MMI, which included an Internship at a major pharmaceutical company, which ultimately lead to a full time job. It's more on the Health Economics side of things. I'm aware that there are pharmaceutical companies that hire directly from the MBiotech program.

 

There's a ton more options out there. A lot of people do go through the traditional MSc route, but that may not help your career as much. What are you interested in?