Microbiologist
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
A Microbiologist studies microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi and parasites. Collects samples and grows cultures; isolates and classifies microorganisms and studies their structure, growth and development; monitors the effect of microorganisms on other organisms and the environment.
Job Outlook
There were 302 Microbiologist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 5688 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Microbiologist industry, which includes the Microbiologist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:
Salary
Many new Microbiologist jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $77,176.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $75,386.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Microbiologist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $65,605.
Education and Experience
Posted Microbiologist jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 7.14% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 72.42% |
| Master's Degree | 20.39% |
| Doctoral Degree | 12.27% |
| Other | 4.64% |
Posted Microbiologist jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 56.83% |
| 3 to 5 years | 33.41% |
| 6 to 8 years | 7.25% |
| 9+ years | 2.51% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Microbiologist positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Quality Control (37.15%)
- Communication (27.95%)
- Research (23.47%)
- Management (22.71%)
- Operations (20.78%)
- Investigation (19.74%)
- Detail Oriented (16.81%)
- Troubleshooting (Problem Solving) (16.1%)
- Writing (15.73%)
- Problem Solving (14.49%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Good Manufacturing Practices (31.26%)
- Bacteriology (5.9%)
- Microbiology (90.24%)
- Microbiological Testing (18.93%)
- Environmental Monitoring (21.92%)
- Medical Microbiology (4.68%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Sterilization (7.6%)
- Infection (1.4%)
- Pathology (2.7%)
- Housekeeping (4.43%)
- Biochemical Assays (16.57%)
- Auditing (10.98%)
- Asepsis (18.53%)
- Infectious Diseases (5.53%)
- Quality Management Systems (7.58%)
- Laboratory Techniques (9.96%)
- Corrective And Preventive Action (CAPA) (9.33%)
- Clinical Laboratory Science (11.38%)
- Reagent (7.78%)
- Medical Laboratory (16.17%)
- Laboratory Procedures (11.92%)
- Biochemistry (16.88%)
- Laboratory Experience (17.98%)
- Biology (47.34%)
- Laboratory Information Management Systems (10.23%)
- Laboratory Testing (15.46%)
- Project Management (5.55%)
- Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) (14.15%)
- Standard Operating Procedure (15.3%)
- Data Analysis (9.83%)
- Immunology (8.93%)
- Pharmaceuticals (15.21%)
- Polymerase Chain Reaction (12.16%)
- Virology (5.84%)
- Laboratory Equipment (19.18%)
- Chemistry (21.96%)
- Analytical Testing (4.94%)
- Infection Control (2.1%)
- Molecular Biology (12.94%)
- Risk Analysis (3.1%)
- Validation Protocols (3.9%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Endotoxin Testing (5.19%)
- Bioburden Testing (13.28%)
- Sterility (3.67%)
- Gram Staining (4.46%)
Salary Boosting Skills
A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.
- Bioburden Testing (36.91%)
- Microbiological Testing (52.6%)
- Environmental Monitoring (60.92%)
- Sterility (10.19%)
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Microbiologist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Quality Control Microbiologist
- Clinical Laboratory Scientist
- Research Microbiologist
- Microbiology Supervisor
- Director of Microbiology
- Medical Laboratory Scientist
- Microbiology Specialist
- Lead Microbiologist
- Clinical Microbiologist
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Biological Technician
- Microbiology Medical Technologist
- Laboratory Manager
- Clinical Laboratory Technician
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Microbiologist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- Actalent (345)
- Eurofins (146)
- The Judge Group (93)
- Kelly Services (80)
- University of California (55)
- Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (49)
- Abbott Laboratories (47)
- Thermo Fisher Scientific (44)
- Agricultural Research Service (44)
- University of Pennsylvania (43)
North Carolina
- Actalent (83)
- Duke University (35)
- Zachary Piper Solutions (17)
- Eli Lilly (15)
- Pfizer (10)
- System One (8)
- K&A Recruiting (7)
- Azzur Group (6)
- Tyson Foods (4)
- Alcami Corporation (4)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.