The world of life sciences is intriguing, vast, and highly skilled. Here’s what you should know about how life scientists impact university research.
The study of life itself was one of the first sciences we humans ever invented. We want to know what makes us sick, what makes us better, what can enhance our physical performance, and what things hinder our daily lives. The role of the life scientist is to investigate life, from the microorganisms on the soles of our feet to the undiscovered species of marine life at the bottom of the ocean – life science is one of the final frontiers of research.
What Type of Research does a Life Scientist Do?
The type of research your local friendly life scientist does will depend on their area of expertise. Life science is a huge portion of science. It relates to everything from botany to biology and all the studies of life in between. This variety is what makes them so invaluable to universities. When your organisation thrives on grants and funding issued to pursue the course of research, a good team of life scientists can carry the entire department.
Some types of research a life scientist might conduct in a university setting include:
- Biochemistry and body structural research into the mechanics of the way the human body works
- Specific disease research, for example, cancer research
- Genetics and hereditary disease research
- Immunology or the research of new vaccines
- Microbiology and the research of new diseases such as covid-19
- Stem cell research
- Neurobiology and the study of brain chemistry for better understanding of mental illness.
In case you are wondering, these are all areas of expertise which life scientists study in MIT. This represents the biology apart alone, so you get a good picture of the scope of research involved through the life sciences.
Where to Recruit for Life Science Positions?
If you are running an organisation dependant on life scientists, you may need a routine partner for finding and filling your positions. You can recruit for life science jobs through the Hays website, where professional skills-matching is a specialty. You can also recruit for life science positions within your company or advertise through social media channels. However, using a dedicated job placement site allows you to browse the CVs of potential candidates and invite them for interviews from there.
How Much do you Pay Life Science Researchers?
Life science researchers are the same as any other type of research scientist. No matter what their area of expertise is, the starting salary will fit the PhD level of study they have to endure to become a life scientist. This usually means £30k+ starting salaries with advancement options up to £80,000. Life science research is particularly useful to universities since they can conduct studies in association with, or under sponsorship of, private companies. For example, vape firms researching how much less harmful to the human body that vaping is to smoking.
