Career
Medical scientists, except epidemiologists
Research the causes of disease and how to treat it.
$103,410
Median pay
+12.6%
Job growth, 2025–35
10,500
Openings a year
Doctoral or professional degree
Typical education
7–8 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Follow strict safety procedures when handling toxic materials to avoid contamination.
- Evaluate effects of drugs, gases, pesticides, parasites, and microorganisms at various levels.
- Plan and direct studies to investigate human or animal disease, preventive methods, and treatments for disease.
- Prepare and analyze organ, tissue, and cell samples to identify toxicity, bacteria, or microorganisms or to study cell structure.
- Conduct research to develop methodologies, instrumentation, and procedures for medical application, analyzing data and presenting findings to the scientific audience and general public.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on ideas & analysis, then objects & tools?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Follow strict safety procedures when handling toxic materials to avoid contamination.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Writing, Science, Speaking, Active Learning.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
7–8 years of education after high school (doctoral or professional degree), for a median of $103,410 a year and 10,500 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- BiologySee the degree →
- Public HealthSee the degree →
- Experimental PsychologySee the degree →
- Biochemistry and Molecular BiologySee the degree →
- NeuroscienceSee the degree →
- AnthropologySee the degree →
- PhysiologySee the degree →
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Geneticists
- Biochemists and Biophysicists$127,410 · +12.3%
- Physicians, Pathologists$312,400 · +4.8%
- Microbiologists$87,990 · +6.2%
- Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.