Thinking "out of the box " is an important concept for all students studying in Advance Level Science stream, selecting a profession which would have excellent career opportunities, availability of recession free jobs, nationally and internationally with adequate remuneration and excellent working environment while developing your career to great heights. One opportunity that you could pursue is the BIOTECHNOLOGY. FAQs , (Frequently Ask Questions ) of this subject as follows:

Dr Kithsiri Edirisinghe

What is BIOTECHNOLOGY? : BIOTECHNOLOGY is a field of "applied biology" that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses on modifying living organisms according to human purposes for the betterment of human race. "Applied biology" is the practical biology, using the science for practical purpose, "going beyond the borders" of books and laboratories. This is an interesting field, where you have the chance to be nominated for Nobel prize for innovation , hence motivating you and this is the difference in BIOTECHNOLOGY .

What is the Industry application of BIOTECHNOLOGY? It is far from the image of a scientist in a white coat, it is a multi - disciplinary subject involving a wide variety of distinct areas and they are follows:

1. Healthcare & Medicine; Modern BIOTECHNOLGY finds promising applications in investigation, treatment , rehabilitation and prevention of diseases. Pharmaceutical, medical, diagnostic and medical interventions are highlights of this area. In Pharmaceutical industry, the BIOTECHNOLOGY invention involves in the production, testing (including clinical trails) of the drug and related devices manufacturing process. Microbiological interventions, testing and treatment methods used in medicine are included here. Furthermore, in Medicine genetic testing for clinical and forensic purposes, organizing genetically engineered vaccines, immune diagnostic Kits for early detection of diseases and antibiotics sensitivity are some of the key industry value additions, where BIOTECHNOLOGY is the driving force for the evolution of medicine and healthcare services. If not for BIOTECHNOLOGIST the human race will get extricated due to the inability to counteract the new challenges in the healthcare and Medicine fields.

2. Agriculture : Invention and the development of crop varieties with higher yields, great resistance to stresses and higher nutritional value. This is very important since the world is already facing a food crisis.

3. Animal Husbandry: Development of improved breed of animals with higher milk production, higher animal productivity and with other desirable characteristic, animal feed etc.

4. Food industry :
BIOTECHNOLOGICAL methods are used in the production , processing and preservation of food and related products.

5. General Industry: Extraction of metals by using microbes and this has made many mechanical interventions in the production industry by using bacteria, fungus and other related microbes.

6. Energy Sector : Production tissue cultured biomass, biogas production.

7. Environmental sciences: Microbiological intervention in the waste management , environmental preservation and prevention of disaster mitigation
Is it a growing industry and the remunerations for BIOTECHNOLOGIST?: The BIOTECHNOLOGY industry continues to flourish nationwide, not only are the total number of biotechnology companies increasing, but employment in the biotechnology field continues to grow as well. Most biotechnology companies are young companies developing their first products and depend on investor capital for survival. According to BioWorld, biotechnology attracted more than $24.8 billion in financing in 2007 and raised more than $100 billion in the five-year span of 2003-2007. : According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor statics, biotechnologists averaged an annual salary of $50,000 ( approximately Rs. 5.5 million) in May 2008.

What are the Career Opportunities? : The Career options related to the Biotech Industry extend to universities, medical schools and government labs along with pharmaceutical companies, chemical, agriculture and allied industries. Every well-established Biotech Unit comprises several divisions that carry out different functions. Table 1 :

Area of work Description
Research & Development: Research and Development is the chief component of BIOTECHNOLOGY . You can become a Scientific Director, Scientist, Research Associate, Research Assistant, Bioinformatics Scientist/Engineer, Bioinformatics Analyst/Programmer, Molecular Modeler, Facility Manager/Supervisor (Animal Sciences), Veterinarian, Lab Assistant.

Operations: Biomedical technician, Process Development Manager, Process Development Technician, Manufacturing Manager/Manufacturing Technician, Manufacturing Instrumentation / Calibration Technician, Purchasing Agent/Buyer, Facilities Manager, Toxicologist & Environmental Engineers.
Quality: Quality control or quality assurance jobs in biotech are done in the laboratories. In quality control the policies and procedures of organizations are kept in mind. Testing, stability, timely development, quality problems etc are checked. Candidate with experience can be Quality Control (QC) Manager/Supervisor, QC Analyst, Quality Assurance Manager/Supervisor, Quality Assurance (QA) Documentation Specialist and Validation Manager.

Clinical Research: Clinical research is the main thing behind any job in biotechnology. You can become Clinical Research Manager, Biostatistician, Clinical Data Manager/Associate, Manager of Regulatory Affairs or Medical Affairs Director. Biotech Pharmaceutical Jobs: Clinical pharmacist, clinical researcher, pharmaceutical representatives, process engineer, quality control manager. This career in biotech is very lucrative but you must have a desire to discover new things that are beneficial for humans & environment.

Administration and Academics: Biotechnology facilities lecturers and professors in Universities and colleges What are the pathways to become professional BIOTECHNOLOGIST? There are Diplomas, Degrees and postgraduate courses and these courses equip graduates with the knowledge and technical skills for work in the biotechnology industry. The pathways are as follows:

1. The Diplomas: Diploma in Biotechnology and Laboratory sciences is a good start to get an insight to the industry since these programmes have an industry placement, hence the chances of obtaining a job outcome. Australian and British pathway programmes are available in Sri Lanka and the IT extends from 1.5 years to 2 years.

2. Associate degrees and BSc degrees: These courses are the common choice of core units generally included in microbiology, molecular genetics, and biochemistry and biotechnology techniques. Australian, British, American programmes will yield a higher job outcome and pathway programmes through diploma programmes in Biotechnology would dramatically reduce the cost of training and the job outcome. Generally these programmes would extend up to 3 years and in addition to the technical subjects the candidates need to complete the business and innovation studies, and undertake biotechnology research and commercialization training in the third year.

3. Postgraduate programmes: Upon completion of the graduate studies the professionals could opt for Master's and then Doctorate programmes specializing on the area of focus.

Source: Dr Kithsiri Edirisinghe, MBBS, MSc, MD
( Medical Administration) Cert. IV TAA Australia.
Managing Director, International Institute of Health Sciences (IIHS) , email: kithsiri@iihsciences.com