BIOCHEMISTS

POSSIBLE CAREER AREAS

Laboratory/bench work (Research, development, investigation, analysis). 

Employer Sectors:

•	Industry (eg pharmaceutical including research (biotechnology) companies; medical disposables; toiletries, brewing/beverages; food/dairy products; detergents; pest control)
•	Government Depts (eg Forensic Science Service; Ministry of Defence; DEFRA; HSE)
•	NHS (clinical scientists; biomedical scientists; medical technical officers)
•	Research Councils (eg Medical, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences)
•	Research institutes (eg cancer research, heart disease)
•	Technical consultancies (eg toxicology, environment, public health)
•	Universities (research assistants; research technicians (PhD?))

Research support and services (eg information science; patents work; medical/technical writing; clinical research and data management; drug registration; clinical compliance; pharmacovigilance; bioinformatics).

Employer sectors:

•	Industry (eg pharma incl. research (biotech) companies; medical disposables; toiletries);
•	research institutes;
•	chartered patent agents;
•	contract research companies (especially for clinical research, data management, and drugs registration).

Technical commercial work (selling; marketing; buying)

Employer Sectors:

•	Industry (pharma; medical disposables; laboratory equipment/consumables): 
•	Agencies (sales).

Production Management

Employer Sector:

•	Industry (pharma; personal care products; brewing/beverages; food including dairy products)

Science publishing and journalism (abstracting; writing; editing; designing):

Employer Sectors:

•	Book / journal publishers;
•	Newspapers;
•	Learned societies and professional associations;
•	Research associations and institutes.

Advisory / public protection work:

Employer Sectors:

•	Local Authorities (trading standards officers; environmental health officers + technical officers);
•	Health and Safety Executive (health and safety inspectors);
•	Industry (health physicists).

Health care practice including complementary medicine (eg medicine; dentistry; nursing; physiotherapy; dietetics; homeopathy; osteopathy…)

Science teaching:

Employer Sectors:

•	Schools
•	Further education colleges
•	Universities

Investment analysis (eg pharma and related industries)

Employer Sector:

•	City institutions.

Intellectual property law:

Employer Sector:

•	Manufacturing industry (pharma etc)
•	Firms of solicitors.

Careers open to all graduates but which have proved popular with bioscientists:

Accountancy;Administration (Civil Service);
Advertising;
Armed services;
Banking (retail and investment;
Broadcasting;
Computing and IT;
Distribution/logistics;
Financial management;
Insurance;
Journalism;
Law;
Marketing;
Management consultancy,
Personnel management (HR);
Police;
Production management;
Public relations;
Publishing;
Purchasing;
Retail store management; 
Sales;
Self-employment;
School teaching (primary);
Social work;