 Research Careers
Numerous fields of basic science and molecular medicine contribute to human health research. Each of these fields is rooted in the sciences of biology, chemistry, or physics and all are critical to the advancement of human health and modern medicine. Biomedical research requires collaborative and multidisciplinary teams comprised of multiple specialists with education beyond the four-year college degree. Most biomedical researchers hold a doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) degree, representing the highest level of formal study or research an institution can bestow in a scientific discipline. Ph.D. programs at universities and medical schools can take between four to eight years to finish, with a mean number of years to completion in the US of seven years. After receiving a Ph.D. degree, scientists pursue professional training through an additional two to five years of postdoctoral fellowships in order to gain experience and further specialize in their chosen field.
- Anatomy: The identification and description of body structures in living things. Gross anatomy typically refers to the study of human body structures large enough to be seen without magnification, while other forms of anatomy look to smaller structures.
- Biochemistry: The study of the chemistry of life, or the chemical substances and processes that occur within all living organisms.
- Bioinformatics / Computational Biology: The application of tools for data analysis, and the development of mathematical methods and models to study the organization and evolution of genes and genomes, macromolecular structure and dynamics, comparative evolutionary genomics, structure analysis, and evidence-based predictions.
- Biophysics: The application of principles and methods from physics to solve biological problems or analyze biological processes and structures.
- Cell biology: The analysis of cells as the fundamental units of living things.
- Genetics: The focus on heredity, particularly genes, their functions, and how they are transmitted from parents to offspring. Molecular genetics concerns molecules in cells that store genetic information.
- Immunology: The study of all aspects of the immune system including its structure and function, innate and acquired immunity, and disorders of the immune system.
- Microbiology: The study of the structure, function, and classification of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, molds, fungi, algae, and protozoans, and their effects on other living organisms.
- Molecular biology: The study of the molecular basis for biological processes, particularly as they involve proteins, nucleic acids, enzymes, and the transfer of genetic information.
- Neuroscience: The analysis of the central and peripheral nervous system of biological organisms.
- Pharmacology: The investigation of the effects drugs and other bioactive substances, particularly in the analysis of their therapeutic endpoints and mechanisms.
- Physiology: The examination of how living things and their cells, tissues, and systems function.
- Toxicology: The investigation of the effects drugs and other bioactive substances, particularly in the analysis of their toxic endpoints and mechanisms.
Many medical researchers, particularly those who perform clinical research, are physicians with doctor of medicine (M.D.) degrees. The M.D. degree is a professional degree that along with additional training and state licensure permits individuals to treat patients. To conduct research that includes human subjects, an MD must be part of the research team. A relatively small number of researchers hold both Ph.D. and M.D. degrees, these “physician-scientists” trained in both clinical medicine and a biomedical research discipline practice clinical medicine while also supervising their own research group.
Other professionals from fields such as dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, computer science, and public health also conduct biomedical research. These members of a research team usually hold professional or graduate degrees, such as the doctor of dental surgery (D.D.S.) degree for dentists, doctor of veterinary medicine (D.V.M) degree for veterinarians, or the doctor of pharmacy (Pharm.D.) for clinical pharmacists. Others hold master’s degrees such as masters in public health (M.P.H.).
Many more laboratory professionals and staff choose not to pursue a PhD or MD, and apply their training at the B.S. or M.S. level to assisting principle investigators (PI’s), and often manage research projects within a PI’s laboratory or a pharmaceutical or biotechnology company. Professionals from fields as diverse as engineering, statistics, information technology, social work, and the social sciences also take part in medical research, as do some individuals with business or humanities backgrounds.
|