What it pays
Government survey numbers — not estimates, not ads.
Half of all Biological Scientists, All Other in the U.S. earn more than $98,920 a year — the middle 80% land between $60,430 and $168,010. About 55,850 people in the U.S. do this work. Figures are for the U.S. occupation group “Biological Scientists, All Other”. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey, published 2025.) In India, Professionals earn about ₹38,298 a month on average — around ₹4.6 lakh a year (government PLFS survey via ILOSTAT, occupation-family figure).
$98,920typical pay / year
55,850people in this work
$168,010+top 10% earn
₹4.6 lakha year in India (family avg)
Think you get this job?Six quick questions on how it really works — with a hint and the reason behind every answer.
Test yourself →The work, task by task
These are the real jobs-to-be-done, not a wish list. Each task shows where we found it, and the prompt underneath is written for that exact task.
Move1
Collect DNA samples
+Create the sampling spreadsheet and chain-of-custody checklist for the cortical tissue DNA collection in the…
Collect DNA samples
+Create the sampling spreadsheet and chain-of-custody checklist for the cortical tissue DNA collection in the cohort, include barcodes, storage temperature and extraction priority, assign samples to lab techs Ahmed and Priya, and export labels and the accession list for the clinic team before Wednesday's collection.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesESCOjob descriptions
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Analysing2
Gather and analyse biological data
+Compile the last three studies' electrophysiology, imaging and genotype files for the learning cohort,…
Gather and analyse biological data
+Compile the last three studies' electrophysiology, imaging and genotype files for the learning cohort, normalise metadata fields, run the pre-specified preprocessing pipeline to extract the agreed features, and produce a summary report of anomalies and effect sizes for Monday's analysis meeting.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesESCOjob descriptions
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Develop and test hypotheses
+Draft two competing mechanistic hypotheses for the synaptic plasticity deficit, list the required datasets…
Develop and test hypotheses
+Draft two competing mechanistic hypotheses for the synaptic plasticity deficit, list the required datasets and the specific analyses to falsify each, pull the available genotype and expression data for the patient set, run the specified tests, and return the results with a recommended next experiment by Friday.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesESCOjob descriptions
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Negotiating1
Collaborate with other scientists
+Assemble the joint analysis plan and a shared working folder that includes contributor roles, timelines and…
Collaborate with other scientists
+Assemble the joint analysis plan and a shared working folder that includes contributor roles, timelines and the combined cleaned dataset, invite Dr. Chen, postdoc Marco and the core facility manager to a workshop next Thursday, and attach the short reproducible workflow they must run before the meeting.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesESCOjob descriptions
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The daily work17
Write reports and scholarly papers
+Draft the results and methods sections for the hippocampal electrophysiology paper, include figures with…
Write reports and scholarly papers
+Draft the results and methods sections for the hippocampal electrophysiology paper, include figures with spike-sorting parameters, report exact sample sizes, list all exclusion criteria, and produce a reference-ready manuscript for submission to Journal of Neuroscience by next Tuesday.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Perform field research in natural habitats
+Prepare the field methods and preliminary observations from last week’s rainforest transect, compile GPS…
Perform field research in natural habitats
+Prepare the field methods and preliminary observations from last week’s rainforest transect, compile GPS tracks, daily observational logs, and camera-trap timestamps, flag gaps in coverage, and produce a permissions-ready field report for the grant officer by Friday.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Track and monitor animal behavior
+Compile the week’s animal behavior dataset from the telemetry collars, produce per-animal ethograms and…
Track and monitor animal behavior
+Compile the week’s animal behavior dataset from the telemetry collars, produce per-animal ethograms and hourly activity plots, annotate anomalous events with video timestamps, and send a summarized report with recommended follow-up for the behaviour lead tomorrow morning.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Dissect carcasses and specimens
+Document the dissection notes and tissue inventory from today’s rodent necropsies, photograph brain regions…
Dissect carcasses and specimens
+Document the dissection notes and tissue inventory from today’s rodent necropsies, photograph brain regions with scale bars, record RNA integrity numbers and freezer locations, and add all entries to the lab specimen register before leaving.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Assess soil, water, and environmental samples
+Analyze the soil and water samples collected this week, report contaminant concentrations with detection…
Assess soil, water, and environmental samples
+Analyze the soil and water samples collected this week, report contaminant concentrations with detection limits, attach QC runs and calibration curves, and produce a methods appendix for the environmental supplement due in ten days.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Design and carry out breeding studies
+Design the breeding protocol for the transgenic colony: specify mating pairs, expected litter sizes,…
Design and carry out breeding studies
+Design the breeding protocol for the transgenic colony: specify mating pairs, expected litter sizes, genotyping schedule, animal welfare checks, and a timeline for cohort generation, then circulate the protocol to the animal facility manager and PI by Wednesday noon.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Report on their findings
+Write a concise results memo for the lab meeting summarising our experiment: state the hypothesis, list…
Report on their findings
+Write a concise results memo for the lab meeting summarising our experiment: state the hypothesis, list methods and sample sizes, present the main statistical outcomes with p values and effect sizes, note anomalies and one clear next experiment.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesESCO
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Discover data patterns
+Run an exploratory search across our dataset to identify recurring spike patterns and correlated gene…
Discover data patterns
+Run an exploratory search across our dataset to identify recurring spike patterns and correlated gene expression modules, rank the top three candidate patterns by frequency and effect size, and write a short note suggesting possible biological mechanisms to validate.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesESCO
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Perform data analysis
+Perform the full analysis pipeline on the latest cohort: clean and normalise the raw signals, run the…
Perform data analysis
+Perform the full analysis pipeline on the latest cohort: clean and normalise the raw signals, run the predefined statistical tests, produce figures for mean traces and a table of cohort-level statistics, and export the analysis log and results file.
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Use databases
+Query the lab database for all recordings from mice aged 8–12 weeks with genotype X, return the matched…
Use databases
+Query the lab database for all recordings from mice aged 8–12 weeks with genotype X, return the matched metadata and file paths, flag missing metadata fields, and prepare a downloadable bundle of the raw files and a manifest.
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Study disease progression in tissues
+Compare gene expression and histology from my Alzheimer cohort across Braak stages, flag transcripts and…
Study disease progression in tissues
+Compare gene expression and histology from my Alzheimer cohort across Braak stages, flag transcripts and pathways that change monotonically with pathology, and produce a ranked table with effect sizes, adjusted p values, and sample counts by tissue region within two days.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Research effects of drugs and chemicals
+Test analgesic and excitotoxic compounds on our hippocampal neuron dataset, extract dose–response signatures,…
Research effects of drugs and chemicals
+Test analgesic and excitotoxic compounds on our hippocampal neuron dataset, extract dose–response signatures, identify consistent upregulated and downregulated pathways, and deliver a summary CSV of candidate mechanisms and recommended follow-up assays by Friday.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Develop new crop varieties
+Search the neural development expression atlas for alleles linked to drought tolerance traits,…
Develop new crop varieties
+Search the neural development expression atlas for alleles linked to drought tolerance traits, cross-reference those loci with our candidate regulatory networks from cortical organoids, and return prioritized gene targets and marker assays for breeding trials within five days.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Monitor pollution and radioactivity levels
+Aggregate longitudinal sensor and tissue assay records around the coastal monitoring sites, detect persistent…
Monitor pollution and radioactivity levels
+Aggregate longitudinal sensor and tissue assay records around the coastal monitoring sites, detect persistent increases in radionuclide-related transcripts or stress markers, map hotspots by GPS, and produce an alert list of sites needing field resampling within 48 hours.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Present findings at conferences
+Assemble the figures for the conference talk: volcano plots for our synaptic proteomics, a regional…
Present findings at conferences
+Assemble the figures for the conference talk: volcano plots for our synaptic proteomics, a regional expression heatmap, and a concise methods table; export publication-quality images and a two-slide summary for the poster session by Tuesday morning.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Evaluate environmental impact on organisms
+Compare transcriptomic and physiological data from exposed and control populations, quantify effect sizes for…
Evaluate environmental impact on organisms
+Compare transcriptomic and physiological data from exposed and control populations, quantify effect sizes for development, reproduction, and neural markers, and deliver a reproducible report with statistical models and raw data links for the environmental impact assessment in one week.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesjob descriptions
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Bioinformatics databases
+Enter the MRI-derived connectivity matrices, behavioral scores, and preprocessing notes into the…
Bioinformatics databases
+Enter the MRI-derived connectivity matrices, behavioral scores, and preprocessing notes into the bioinformatics databases under Subject Cohort A, mark any datasets with motion artefacts, and ask Priya for re-scan approvals by Wednesday.
The tools that do the workbioinformatics databasesO*NET
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Built on public evidence: O*NET®, ESCO, Wikipedia, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, ILOSTAT. All sources & licenses