It has been said that what physics was to the 20th century, biology will be to the 21st century. If so, the most exciting industries in which to be involved today are biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. The potential applications for biotechnology are vast, and biotechnology jobs can thus be found in many different fields, including agriculture, food science and processing, medicine, bioinformatics and environmental industries such as biofuels.

Many of the most financially rewarding biotech jobs are in the pharmaceutical industry. When applying for pharmaceutical sales jobs, a background in sales or marketing is often more useful to a prospective applicant than clinical research experience. Qualifications for other pharmaceutical jobs such as regulatory affairs managers or clinical research associates typically involve a B.S. or B.A. degree and related industry experience. Of course not all pharma jobs are in sales, R&D or manufacturing at a pharmaceutical company. Expected higher-than-average growth in retail and hospital pharmacist and pharmacy technician jobs will provide excellent career prospects over the next decade.