Bioinformatics Scientists
Health ScienceO*NET 19-1029.01United States
Conduct research using bioinformatics theory and methods in areas such as pharmaceuticals, medical technology, biotechnology, computational biology, proteomics, computer information science, biology and medical informatics. May design databases and develop algorithms for processing and analyzing genomic information, or other biological information.
- Median annual earnings
- $98,646
- Projected change
- +5.2%
- Typical education
- Doctoral degree or more
- Employment
- 61.7K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
46.2% of the workforce
Growing to 64.88K by 2035
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These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
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The work
What bioinformatics scientists do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Develop new software applications or customize existing applications to meet specific scientific project needs.
- Communicate research results through conference presentations, scientific publications, or project reports.
- Create novel computational approaches and analytical tools as required by research goals.
- Consult with researchers to analyze problems, recommend technology-based solutions, or determine computational strategies.
- Analyze large molecular datasets, such as raw microarray data, genomic sequence data, or proteomics data, for clinical or basic research purposes.
- Keep abreast of new biochemistries, instrumentation, or software by reading scientific literature and attending professional conferences.
- Develop data models and databases.
- Compile data for use in activities, such as gene expression profiling, genome annotation, or structural bioinformatics.
- Design and apply bioinformatics algorithms including unsupervised and supervised machine learning, dynamic programming, or graphic algorithms.
- Manipulate publicly accessible, commercial, or proprietary genomic, proteomic, or post-genomic databases.
- Direct the work of technicians and information technology staff applying bioinformatics tools or applications in areas such as proteomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, or clinical bioinformatics.
- Provide statistical and computational tools for biologically based activities, such as genetic analysis, measurement of gene expression, or gene function determination.
- Create or modify web-based bioinformatics tools.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $59,644
- 25th percentile
- $76,048
- 50th percentile
- $98,646
- 75th percentile
- $128,172
- 90th percentile
- $170,208
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $98,646 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+5.2%average or slower
202561,697 jobs
2035 projected64,880 jobs
3,183 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- Doctoral degree or more
- 46.2%
- Bachelor's degree
- 33.6%
- Master's or Professional degree
- 20.2%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Science
- Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Mathematics
- Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Bioinformatics Scientists464 postings
- 02Bioinformaticians243 postings
- 03Bioinformatics Analysts179 postings
- 04Bioinformatics Specialists57 postings
- 05JavaScript Engineers45 postings
- 06Scientists42 postings
- 07Computational Scientists38 postings
- 08Bioinformatics Research Scientists35 postings
- 09Bioinformatics Research Assistants26 postings
- 10Research Specialists25 postings
- 11Postdoctoral Fellows19 postings
- 12Directors of Bioinformatics17 postings
- 13Principal Scientists17 postings
- 14Bioinformatics Interns16 postings
- 15Computational Biologists16 postings
- 16Research Investigators16 postings
- 17Bioinformatics Researchers15 postings
- 18Postdoctoral Associates10 postings
- 19Scientific Analysts10 postings
- 20Clinical Scientists8 postings
Top employers
- 01St George Tanaq Corporation45 postings
- 02University of Pennsylvania36 postings
- 03Danaher31 postings
- 04Labcorp26 postings
- 05University of Minnesota25 postings
- 06Trustees of University of Pennsylvania23 postings
- 07Exact Sciences21 postings
- 08Mount Sinai Health System21 postings
- 09Washington University in St Louis20 postings
- 10St. Jude Children's Research Hospital19 postings
- 11System One Holdings18 postings
- 12AbbVie17 postings
- 13Herc15 postings
- 14Booz Allen Hamilton14 postings
- 15City of Hope14 postings
- 16Emory University14 postings
- 17Invitro Cell Research14 postings
- 18Roche14 postings
- 19Spectraforce Technologies13 postings
- 20Ssi People13 postings
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