medical scientist or lab tech?

Question

im a 2nd yr student doing biomedical course in dublin.
its 5 yr long course and involves a lot of hard works and all.
but these days i hear people saying it's over for all medical scientists and they r jst tech and all sort of things.

is there no vision after this course?
would it be better to change the course or stick to it?

Answer 1

I was faced with the same dilemma when I was in school, either becoming a research scientist of a lab tech. Let me say up front, neither course will make you a boatload of money. However, if I had to do it all over again I would stay in school as long as I could.

I gave the same advice to my niece who wanted to drop out and become a hair dresser. She decided to stay in school and eventually earned a Masters. She now does something she loves and has no regrets.

If you drop out now you will never know what could have been had you stayed in school. Its a decision you will live with for the next 40-50 years of your working life. Stay in school as long as you can, maintain good grades and have fun. You never know what opportunities might arise and if they don't you could always drop out and become a tech at any time.

Good luck to you.

Answer 2

Lab Techies don't get that well paid, whereas medical scientist does. However, how about a compromise and look into Forensics. I have seen lots of jobs and a good degree is what they are looking for. Not that badly paid either. I'd finish the course and put everything you have into it and finish with as good a mark as you can. If you think you can do the course then go for it. Something I had been looking at was Marine Biology, there are a few courses about, I think Bangor Uni runs them, was a Welsh Uni from memory. Goo lock.

Answer 3

1.What do you do on a typical day at work? I work in a medical laboratory and test patient samples for various disease markers. This is done with various techniques, electrophoresis, western blots, spectrophotometry, microscopy, nephelomety and paperwork / computer work 2.What do you like most about your job? Least? the people I work with 3.What route did you take to become employed in your field? i gained a bsc and started as a junior then went onto post graduate studies 4.What are the prospects for the future of this career? people will always be sick 5.In what ways do you use math in your job? calculating various constituents, usually on a standard curve, most of this is done on a computer 6.What advice might you give to a student studying your field? learn the basic techniques, you always need to know how to do something manually and be as diverse as possible 7. What is your title? biomedical scientist 8. Do you work for a hospital, or smaller practice? hospital 9. What is something about your job that most people don't know? it gets boring after a while even if it sounds interesting

Answer 4

i've been a medical laboratory technologist for 20 years in the u.s., and have never rued my decision. i'm not rich, but i have all i need and most of what i want. i just love the work i do. i have remained a generalist, choosing not to specialize. many of my associates have gone into management and consulting positions, but i like the bench work involved. there's always something interesting going on. i'm happy and content, and can't think of anything else i'd rather do, except perhaps become a jeweler when i retire.

Answer 5

You will do fine, if possible get some concentration in one area, like microbiology or dna technology that will give you wider options than just a clinical lab.