A career path I would like to follow would be microbiology. With the current advancements of the Human Genome Project, this field promises to be very exciting and revolutionary.
University programs in modern biology may be divided into two categories: organismic biology and molecular/cellular biology. The basic difference between these two categories is their level of focus. The multicellular organism is the center of attraction in the former category, whereas the microbiologist or cellular biologist deals with microbes (bacteria, viruses, and fungi) or with activities within cells of multicellular organisms. The common feature of the various types of micro/cellular biologists is that they usually study living systems that can only be seen with a microscope.
Microbial and cellular biologists often combine the fields of microbiology, cell biology, genetics, chemistry, biochemistry, cellular physiology, physics, ecology, and pathology in their day-to-day work or experiments. Some professional microbiologists focus on findings critical to health, agriculture and environmental sciences, while other cellular biologists focus more on questions of how living systems perform these functions of "life."
To do a degree in microbiology at a typical university I would need to have to have done well in GCSE Maths, physics, chemistry, biology (or combined sciences) and English language, plus three A level subjects, two of which have to be Chemistry and Biology which have been obtained at, at least Grade B.
In colleges and universities, microbial and cellular biologists may teach courses such as medical microbiology, veterinary microbiology, environmental microbiology, public health microbiology, immunology, virology, mycology, microbial/cellular physiology, molecular genetics (genetic engineering, food microbiology, industrial microbiology, biotechnology and an extensive list of other courses. In addition, they teach how to conduct research, and they do research in their individual areas of expertise to expand knowledge and understanding of the evolution and diversity of organisms and how cells perform the necessary biological processes of life.
Although there are career opportunities for microbial and cellular biologists with the baccalaureate degrees, many professionals hold either a masters degree or a Ph.D. For this reason it is advisable that I should give careful consideration to graduate study after completion of the bachelor's degree.
Students who plan to become microbial and cellular biologists earn a degree. All biology majors complete a common core in Principles of Biology, Biology of Plants, Biology of Animals, Microbiology, Genetics, and Ecology.
Many microbiologists and cellular biologists are employed by state and federal agencies or in the private sector such as an animal vaccine supply company, a clinical reference laboratory doing tests for physicians and health departments or a pharmaceutical corporation. Many industries require the expertise of microbiologists to ensure the safety of their products, such as the cosmetics industry, food processors and the dairy industry. Today new directions for cellular biologists include the environmental and pollution control companies and the biotechnology industry. Biotech companies use the advances in molecular or cellular biology to improve agricultural crops, develop new tests for disease agents, develop new forms of drugs, or harness microbes to recycle wastes. Many of the biotech companies utilize skills of genetic engineering to accomplish their corporate goals.
