Virologist

Virologist handles the job-level tasks documented here and it features 21 real tasks to try. The examples explain which results matter most to colleagues and clients. Each one shows where we found it, and comes with an AI prompt you can copy and use straight away.

21evidenced tasks
21ready prompts
9tools of the trade
19-1041.00O*NET-SOC code
12,090hold this job (US, BLS 2025)
$87,220median pay/yr (US)
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What it pays

Government survey numbers — not estimates, not ads.

Half of all Epidemiologists in the U.S. earn more than $87,220 a year — the middle 80% land between $61,270 and $138,800. About 12,090 people in the U.S. do this work. Figures are for the U.S. occupation group “Epidemiologists”. (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).
$87,220typical pay / year
12,090people in this work
$138,800+top 10% earn
₹4.6 lakha year in India (family avg)
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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.

Analysing5

Investigate patterns and causes of disease

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Map recent outbreak cases in the county, merge lab-confirmed case list with patient demographics, run…
Map recent outbreak cases in the county, merge lab-confirmed case list with patient demographics, run descriptive statistics for incidence by age and neighborhood, and produce a one-page report for the public health team.
The tools that do the workESRI ArcGISIBM SPSS Statisticsjob descriptionsO*NETWikipedia

Collect data for research

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Design the study spreadsheet: create a participant log with unique IDs, specimen collection dates, assay…
Design the study spreadsheet: create a participant log with unique IDs, specimen collection dates, assay result fields, and QC flags; share it with the lab coordinator and lock headers to prevent accidental edits.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft Exceljob descriptionsWikipedia

Conduct disease surveillance

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Run routine surveillance for respiratory and enteric viruses across the five sentinel hospitals this week:…
Run routine surveillance for respiratory and enteric viruses across the five sentinel hospitals this week: compile case counts by age and ward, flag clusters exceeding baseline, calculate weekly incidence and test positivity, and draft a one-page summary for the outbreak team by Friday.
The tools that do the workSASjob descriptionsWikipedia

Design and conduct research studies

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Design a prospective cohort study of household transmission for the new variant: specify inclusion criteria,…
Design a prospective cohort study of household transmission for the new variant: specify inclusion criteria, sample size with power calculations, data collection forms, specimen schedule, and a six-month timeline with milestones and budget to circulate to collaborators by next Monday.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsMicrosoft Wordjob descriptionsO*NET
N

Map disease transmission pathways

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Map probable transmission pathways from the five earliest index cases: geocode home and work locations, link…
Map probable transmission pathways from the five earliest index cases: geocode home and work locations, link movements and contact events, produce a transmission chain diagram with timestamps, and deliver a map and one-page narrative to the incident lead by Tuesday morning.
The tools that do the workESRI ArcGISPythonESCOjob descriptions
Get approval1

Develop public health guidelines and policies

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Draft interim public health guidance for schools during the current wave: summarise transmission risks,…
Draft interim public health guidance for schools during the current wave: summarise transmission risks, recommended masking and cohorting thresholds tied to local incidence, testing cadence, and trigger points for escalation, then send the two-page guidance to the education health liaison by Wednesday for stakeholder review.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft Wordjob descriptionsO*NET
The daily work15

Use biological and statistical sciences to understand disease processes

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Design and run an analysis linking viral load, patient demographics, and exposure history to identify…
Design and run an analysis linking viral load, patient demographics, and exposure history to identify transmission patterns and statistically test hypotheses about disease progression, then assemble the results and methods into a draft manuscript for peer review within six weeks.
The tools that do the workPythonIBM SPSS StatisticsWikipedia

Centre their research on origin and causes for illness eruption in humans

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Lead a field and lab investigation to map earliest cases, sequence viral genomes from those patients, compare…
Lead a field and lab investigation to map earliest cases, sequence viral genomes from those patients, compare them to local animal and environmental samples to infer likely sources and timelines, and write an evidence brief for the outbreak response team within ten days.
The tools that do the workESRI ArcGISPythonESCO

Propose risk preventive measures to health policy organisms

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Draft a concise policy memo for the health ministry recommending prioritized preventive measures, with…
Draft a concise policy memo for the health ministry recommending prioritized preventive measures, with quantified risk reductions, implementation costs, and monitoring indicators, and attach an evidence appendix of the statistical analyses supporting each recommendation within two weeks.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordMicrosoft ExcelESCO

Supervise research teams and staff

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Organize weekly lab leads meeting, assign each team member a specific experiment milestone for the quarter,…
Organize weekly lab leads meeting, assign each team member a specific experiment milestone for the quarter, confirm staffing cover for bench work Friday through Sunday, and flag any biosafety training gaps for immediate rectification.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft OutlookMicrosoft Exceljob descriptionsO*NET

Write articles for publication in professional journals.

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Draft the manuscript reporting our neutralization assay results, integrate final Kaplan–Meier and regression…
Draft the manuscript reporting our neutralization assay results, integrate final Kaplan–Meier and regression tables, get coauthor edits from Maria and Dr. Chen by next Wednesday, and prepare submission-ready figures and cover letter.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordMicrosoft ExcelO*NET

Identify and analyze public health issues related to foodborne parasitic diseases and their impact on public policies, scientific studies, or surveys.

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Compile surveillance data on foodborne parasitic outbreaks, run prevalence comparisons across regions,…
Compile surveillance data on foodborne parasitic outbreaks, run prevalence comparisons across regions, summarise policy impacts for the public health brief, and recommend three evidence-based interventions for the ministry.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsESRI ArcGISO*NET

Teach principles of medicine and medical and laboratory procedures to physicians, residents, students, and technicians.

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Design the next month’s practical sessions teaching specimen handling and PCR workflows, produce a one-page…
Design the next month’s practical sessions teaching specimen handling and PCR workflows, produce a one-page competency checklist for residents, schedule hands-on slots with lab techs, and confirm competency sign-off criteria with Dr. Patel.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft WordO*NET

Prepare and analyze samples to study effects of drugs, gases, pesticides, or microorganisms on cell structure and tissue.

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Prepare the protocol for processing tissue and cell samples to test antiviral compounds, list reagents and QC…
Prepare the protocol for processing tissue and cell samples to test antiviral compounds, list reagents and QC steps, assign sample runs to Jenna and Omar next Tuesday, and document acceptance criteria for assay readouts.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordMicrosoft ExcelO*NET

Conduct surveys and interview community members

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Draft the household survey instrument and interview guide for community transmission study, arrange training…
Draft the household survey instrument and interview guide for community transmission study, arrange training for field interviewers Friday, assign sampling clusters to Rafael and Amina, and prepare the respondent consent script in local language.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Wordjob descriptions

Write grant proposals for research funding

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Draft a 6–page research grant that argues for funding a prospective study of viral persistence in…
Draft a 6–page research grant that argues for funding a prospective study of viral persistence in immunocompromised adults, include aims, significance, a 24‑month timeline with milestones, a $420,000 budget justification, and two collaborator biosketches — deliver by next Thursday for internal review.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordMicrosoft Exceljob descriptions

Identify risk factors for disease

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Compile and model clinic and lab data to identify host and exposure risk factors for severe disease, run…
Compile and model clinic and lab data to identify host and exposure risk factors for severe disease, run multivariable regressions adjusting for age, comorbidity and vaccination status, then summarise top five modifiable factors in a two‑page memo for the public health team by Friday.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsStructured query language SQLWikipedia

Design epidemiological studies

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Design a cohort study protocol to estimate incidence and transmission of the new strain: define…
Design a cohort study protocol to estimate incidence and transmission of the new strain: define inclusion/exclusion, sample size to detect a hazard ratio of 1.5 at 80% power, sampling schedule, laboratory assays, and data flow between sites — complete protocol draft for ethics submission in ten days.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordMicrosoft ExcelWikipedia

Interpret research results

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Interpret the latest trial and surveillance analyses: review primary and secondary endpoints, assess effect…
Interpret the latest trial and surveillance analyses: review primary and secondary endpoints, assess effect sizes, confidence intervals and assumptions, note potential biases and implications for practice, then produce a concise interpretation memo for the lab director by Monday.
The tools that do the workSASWikipedia

Assist in systematic reviews of research

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Screen the literature, extract study characteristics and outcome data, run pooled meta‑analyses where…
Screen the literature, extract study characteristics and outcome data, run pooled meta‑analyses where appropriate, assess study quality and heterogeneity, and produce a PRISMA‑style evidence table and one‑page summary for the review lead in two weeks.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft ExcelPythonWikipedia

Compare treatment effects in clinical trials

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Compare treatment arms across completed trials: harmonise endpoints, perform intent‑to‑treat and per‑protocol…
Compare treatment arms across completed trials: harmonise endpoints, perform intent‑to‑treat and per‑protocol analyses, compute relative risk, NNT and subgroup interactions, then draft a results brief for the clinical trials committee before the next meeting on Tuesday.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsMicrosoft ExcelWikipedia

Says who?

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The logs, files & records this job keeps

Shared with other careers — the same record means something different in each.

Related careers

Same family of work — each with its own tasks and prompts.

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