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What are useful skills for people studying biology?
I will soon be studying biology in college and would like to know if there are important skills that can help me be successful in careers in the field. #science #biology #career #help
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Madison’s Answer
I studied biology and had a career in biology research for 4 years after I finished my bachelors degree. Biology is such a huge field, I don't think there is any one skill that will help for all possible careers.
For me personally, I wanted to do theoretical genetics research, so I learned how to do computer programming along with biology. But if you want to go into medicine, or into animal biology, or any other different career, you might need totally different skills.
I had a lot of colleagues who did animal and plant biology. They used a lot of different skills, including outdoors/survival skills for going into the jungle looking for different species of animal. One of my colleagues had to get a special license for driving a huge truck so that they could go past hills and mountains to remote places to find plants that grew far away from any civilization.
I also had colleagues who did genetics work. They had to learn how to safely handle chemicals and carefully follow directions in the lab in order to learn about the genetics of animals, plants, or even microscopic bacteria.
My advice is to take a lot of "lab" hands-on classes if you can. Maybe even try some different biology internships. It can take years to gain these skills, so it's more important to try them all and find the ones you are good at / are fun for you before you commit to a career that relies on them.
For me personally, I wanted to do theoretical genetics research, so I learned how to do computer programming along with biology. But if you want to go into medicine, or into animal biology, or any other different career, you might need totally different skills.
I had a lot of colleagues who did animal and plant biology. They used a lot of different skills, including outdoors/survival skills for going into the jungle looking for different species of animal. One of my colleagues had to get a special license for driving a huge truck so that they could go past hills and mountains to remote places to find plants that grew far away from any civilization.
I also had colleagues who did genetics work. They had to learn how to safely handle chemicals and carefully follow directions in the lab in order to learn about the genetics of animals, plants, or even microscopic bacteria.
My advice is to take a lot of "lab" hands-on classes if you can. Maybe even try some different biology internships. It can take years to gain these skills, so it's more important to try them all and find the ones you are good at / are fun for you before you commit to a career that relies on them.
Updated
Miranda’s Answer
Never be afraid to ask questions. I also suggest taking advantage of lab classes, office hours, and teaching assistants. They can be incredibly useful. I also recommend getting any and all books and tools. This includes biological models, workbooks, and suggested material by your professors.
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Padraig’s Answer
Research skills! Everybody leaves the thesis/dissertation to the last moment. A great thing to do would be to spend time as you go through your studies to build your knowledge of quantitative and qualitative research methods, tools and processes.
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Cynthia’s Answer
Keep curiosity.Reading scientific journals can help you to explore more about the research topics and areas that you may be interested in. According to your interesting topics, find the opportunity to join the lab classes and become a lab assistant. From there, you can learn the skills of research, hypothesis, and methodology. Then, go deep with those you’re passionate about and you’re good at. You will find your own way.