Overrated Career: Medical Scientist

December 11, 2008 RSS Feed Print

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The Appeal: It's exciting to think you'll have a life of problem-solving and fascinating experiments that will help humankind live longer and healthier. Then there's the prestige: It feels good to tell people you're a medical scientist.

The Reality: You may have a better chance of winning the lottery than of making a significant medical discovery. First, you must have superlative undergraduate science and math grades and GRE scores to get into a first-tier science Ph.D. program, plus the ability and perseverance to complete it and, usually, a postdoctoral fellowship. Even if you do all that, the odds of landing a good research job are modest. Even more discouraging, only a small percentage of medical researchers make even one significant discovery in their entire lifetime.

Then there's the quality of life. Typically, you spend most of your 60-to-70-hour workweek alone in a lab or at your desk, with little people contact. And the pay? According to MIT faculty member Philip Greenspun, "Adjusted for IQ, quantitative skills, and working hours, jobs in science are the lowest paid in the United States.... [You spend] 10 years banging your head against an equation-filled blackboard in hopes of landing a $35,000/year post-doc job," with the prospect, in a couple of years, of getting that rare $70,000-a-year job as a tenure-track professor or a somewhat-less-rare position at a pharmaceutical company.

An Alternative: Medical librarian. Most people choose to become medical researchers because they enjoy solving science puzzles that could lead to medical discoveries. Your chances of doing that are probably greater as a medical librarian because, whether you're employed at a university, a hospital, or a pharmaceutical company, you're solving lots of people's problems daily by unearthing the resources they need. Bonus: Each request exposes you to some new aspect of medicine, whereas a researcher generally plows away at similar things for years. And the training is shorter and easier to complete: A career in medical librarianship requires only a master's in library science. Plus, it's an under-the-radar career, so you'll have less competition for job openings.

Learn more: Medical Library Association.

Tags:: research,; careers,; medicine

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It is a messed up system. People who actually make the society function are no longer valued. Forget the money, they are now being mocked by society BECAUSE they are not valued. This is ridiculuous. I looked at all of these "overrated careers" on this idiotic news page, and apparently all the careers that a society should value all "over-rated." I wander what's an under-rated career? The facts that these careers are considered over-rated means that this COUNTRY as a whole is becoming overrated. America is in decline. They should title their "careers that are overrated" feature as "The Decline of the Greatest Society in History."
I am with you scientists, physicians, paramedics, teachers, college professors/instructors and all the others whose careers are "overrated," I thank you for all your work, and for contributing to the safety and dvancement of society.

George of NY 11:43AM July 17, 2010

How tragic that in our society we value super models, and celebrities more so than educators, scientists, police officers, and healthcare personnel.
Back when i was a Paramedic in NYC i encountered the best and worst of humanity. We were frequently placed in physical, mental, and emotionally high risk situations in order to save or otherwise help our fellow human beings.
It was a low paying job at the time and still is when you consider the danger and "sacrifice" involved.
An acquaintance of mine, on the other hand, who worked in a safe, and comfortable work environment made anywhere from 5-30K in ONE DAY.
She was a Model who averaged a monthly income was around 15-20K for just a few days of work. In a year she cleared 6 figures even with an "unemployment" lapse of 2-3 months. She was offered the world by men and companies simply because she was beautiful.
It didn't matter that she was not very intelligent or that she never attended college and barely made it through high school. It didn't matter that she was egotistical, self absorbed and wouldn't lift a finger to help someone.
The only thing that mattered was her beauty.
Now at the age of 44 she is "retired". Having earned so much money during her teens through her 30's there is no need for her to ever work again- anywhere.
She married a wealthy stockbroker who manages her money since she has no idea how to do it herself. (lets hope he doesn't met a "younger model" and walk out of the marriage with all the money). She has, in her life, made 0 difference in the life of another human being.
Here I sit, in my 40's and unable to retire (though i wouldn't want to at this age anyway) and looking into another career change.
Ironically, years ago, i used to be envious of her but not anymore. Now i kind of feel sorry for her- though financially secure she is broke in so many other ways.
I, on the other hand, have always had a "purpose" my whole life and have had so many amazing experiences in the course of fulfilling that purpose. Though i am not financially rich, i am rich in ways that truly matter and are much more meaningful.
I have the essentials --- a wonderful home, a healthy family, the desire, health and strength to continue working in ways that will positively impact the lives of others
I don't want for anything and prefer to have few material possessions (much less cleaning involved).
It's so important for people to stop wanting less of what they don't have and to start appreciating more what they do have. Try it and believe me you will start seeing the world in an entirely different way.
Live for today, anticipate and prepare for tomorrow but don't become so fearful of not having a million $ in your 401k.
As long as you're healthy there's no reason why you can't work into your 70's and 80's. My grandparents did and loved every minute of it!
Their secret?:
1. They had a purpose
2. They loved what they did for a living.

JackieNeutron of TX 4:45PM June 05, 2010

I have been either training for, or working as, a medical researcher for the last 20 plus years. Through a mixture of luck and determination, I have my own lab, a faculty appointment, some degree of autonomy (I am working from home today because I felt like it), government funding in an extremely competitive environment and (I like to think) the respect of my peers. My days are mostly interesting, challenging and, while I also need to attend to administration and less exciting aspects of running a research lab (like ethics applications, biosafety documentation and meetings etc.), on balance this a wonderful career. The only, but major, problem is the lack of a (financial) light at the end of the tunnel.
My lab is government funded. None of the competitive funds I have attracted with my research ideas and output go toward my salary, which is instead fixed at a standardized level by my university employer. There is no link between my income and my success as a researcher (other than a baseline achievement level required to keep my job) and so no incentive to work harder or smarter than my peers. Having achieved a BSc, MSc, PhD, two postdoctoral fellowships and competitive research funds and several awards, in my retirement I can look forward to a one bedroom flat somewhere in the cheapest end of the city for my partner and I. We make so little money between us that that we are both seriously considering leaving jobs we enjoy to address the financial realities of our retirement. Neither of us want this, but we may have little choice if we are aiming for financial security into our 80s or longer.
There is something fundamentally wrong with a system that denies successful scientists the opportunity to live and retire in a manner that reflects their high level qualifications, hard work and achievements. Now if I'd given the whole research game a miss in my 20s and become, say, a plumber....

Dr Dogorman 1:37PM January 12, 2010