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Science and Research | Molecular Biologist

Molecular Biologist

What Does a Professional in this Career Do?

A Molecular Biologist studies plant and animal life and conducts research to understand molecular and biochemical processes. May teach molecular biology or specialize in clinical research, gene sequencing, medical research and treatment, pharmaceutical, biotechnology or plant research. Directs research experiments and staff, operates specialized equipment and analyzes and reports research results.

Job Outlook

There were 32 Molecular Biologist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 1309 in the United States.

In combination with other careers in the Biologist industry, which includes the Molecular Biologist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:

Salary

Many new Molecular Biologist 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 $90,540.

State

The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $90,540.

Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Molecular Biologist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $72,113.

Education and Experience

Posted Molecular Biologist 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 LevelPercentage
Associate's Degree0%
Bachelor's Degree47.44%
Master's Degree33.69%
Doctoral Degree38.73%
Other2.67%

Posted Molecular Biologist 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 ExperiencePercentage
0 to 2 years47.38%
3 to 5 years42.13%
6 to 8 years5.74%
9+ years4.75%

Skills

Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Molecular Biologist 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.

  • Research (52.02%)
  • Communication (45.23%)
  • Writing (31.09%)
  • Problem Solving (21.16%)
  • Troubleshooting (Problem Solving) (18.03%)
  • Teaching (15.81%)
  • Detail Oriented (15.2%)
  • English Language (13.67%)
  • Management (13.14%)
  • Presentations (13.06%)

Defining Skills

A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.

  • Molecular Biology (87.31%)
  • Cell Biology (28.47%)
  • Biochemical Assays (30.53%)
  • Biochemistry (35.21%)
  • Cell Cultures (21.33%)
  • Biology (63.28%)
  • Data Analysis (19.43%)
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction (30.53%)

Necessary Skills

A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.

  • Workflow Management (8.64%)
  • Genome Editing (7.06%)
  • Protein Expression (5%)
  • Laboratory Experience (12.77%)
  • Laboratory Equipment (9.2%)
  • Biotechnology (9.52%)
  • Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) (3.97%)
  • Virology (7.22%)
  • Proteomics (3.25%)
  • Nucleic Acids (7.77%)
  • Antibodies (2.93%)
  • Asepsis (7.3%)
  • Quality Management Systems (0.95%)
  • Automation (16.97%)
  • Medical Research (1.19%)
  • Molecular Cloning (10.39%)
  • Chemistry (16.65%)
  • DNA Sequencing (14.35%)
  • Immunology (12.21%)
  • Flow Cytometry (8.49%)
  • Reagent (5.23%)
  • Python (Programming Language) (3.73%)
  • Drug Discovery (3.89%)
  • Standard Operating Procedure (5.79%)
  • R (Programming Language) (4.76%)
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent (ELISA) Assay (9.99%)
  • Life Sciences (5.71%)
  • Bacterial Cultures (4.92%)
  • Genetics (11.34%)
  • Genomics (6.98%)
  • Western Blot (8.09%)
  • Molecular And Cellular Biology (6.26%)
  • Microbiology (16.57%)
  • Research Experiences (6.82%)
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reactions (17.68%)
  • MRNAs (4.2%)
  • Next-Generation Sequencing (8.88%)
  • Viruses (3.25%)
  • Synthetic Biology (3.01%)
  • Ribonucleic Acid Sequencing (15.38%)
  • Mammalian Cell Cultures (7.14%)

Distinguishing Skills

A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.

  • Geneious (Bioinformatics Software) (2.62%)
  • Primer Design (2.93%)

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.

  • Primer Design (100%)

Alternative Job Titles

Sometimes employers post jobs with Molecular Biologist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:

  • Molecular Biology Intern
  • Scientist
  • Postdoctoral Fellow
  • Associate Scientist
  • Postdoctoral Associate
  • Biologist
  • Molecular Sales Specialist
  • Staff Scientist
  • 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.

Common Employers

Here are the employers that have posted the most Molecular Biologist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.

United States

  • University of California (56)
  • Actalent (36)
  • Thermo Fisher Scientific (36)
  • Bayer (25)
  • Pennsylvania State University (24)
  • Eurofins (20)
  • Agricultural Research Service (17)
  • United States Department of Agriculture (15)
  • Momentum Staffing Group (12)
  • Bureau Veritas (12)

North Carolina

  • Actalent (2)
  • University of North Carolina (2)
  • Cone Health (2)
  • Labcorp (2)
  • Greene Resources (2)
  • North Carolina State University (2)
  • Bioagilytix (2)
  • Pvd (1)
  • Sunrise Systems (1)
  • United Therapeutics Corporation (1)

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!