Bioinformatics Technicians: Career Profile
Apply principles and methods of bioinformatics to assist scientists in areas such as pharmaceuticals, medical technology, biotechnology, computational biology, proteomics, computer information science, biology and medical informatics. Apply bioinformatics tools to visualize, analyze, manipulate or interpret molecular data. May build and maintain databases for processing and analyzing genomic or other biological information.
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What Tasks Do Bioinformatics Technicians Perform?
The day-to-day responsibilities of bioinformatics technicians include:
- Analyze or manipulate bioinformatics data using software packages, statistical applications, or data mining techniques.
- Extend existing software programs, web-based interactive tools, or database queries as sequence management and analysis needs evolve.
- Maintain awareness of new and emerging computational methods and technologies.
- Conduct quality analyses of data inputs and resulting analyses or predictions.
- Enter or retrieve information from structural databases, protein sequence motif databases, mutation databases, genomic databases or gene expression databases.
- Develop or maintain applications that process biologically based data into searchable databases for purposes of analysis, calculation, or presentation.
- Confer with researchers, clinicians, or information technology staff to determine data needs and programming requirements and to provide assistance with database-related research activities.
- Participate in the preparation of reports or scientific publications.
Skills and Knowledge
Successful bioinformatics technicians combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Top Skills
The competencies that matter most in this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Core Knowledge
Types of Bioinformatics Technicians Jobs
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- Bioinformatics Analyst
- Bioinformatics Research Technician
- Bioinformatics Specialist
- Bioinformatics Technician
- Biometrics Technician
- Biotechnician
- Data Analyst
- Data Technician
How Many Bioinformatics Technicians Are There?
There are about 445,011 bioinformatics technicians working in the United States today. This occupation is expected to decline by -2.4% over the projection horizon.
How Much Do Bioinformatics Technicians Make?
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $121,896 |
| Hourly median | $58.60 |
| 10th percentile | $83,237 |
| 25th percentile | $102,566 |
| 75th percentile | $141,226 |
| 90th percentile | $160,556 |
Compensation varies based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| California | $175,170 |
| District of Columbia | $100,740 |
| North Carolina | $98,010 |
| Arizona | $92,500 |
| Massachusetts | $89,150 |
| New York | $87,010 |
| Illinois | $78,790 |
| Texas | $74,560 |
| Alaska | $73,990 |
| Washington | $69,690 |
| Michigan | $66,130 |
| Tennessee | $63,190 |
| Indiana | $59,840 |
| New Jersey | $58,780 |
| Pennsylvania | $53,580 |
| Virginia | $52,440 |
| Iowa | $46,970 |
| South Carolina | $45,970 |
| Maryland | $41,680 |
| Georgia | $36,190 |
Top-Paying U.S. Regions
Compensation for bioinformatics technicians differ across the country. Top regions by median wage:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Far Western US | $104,850 | 17.5% | 2.90 |
| New England | $89,150 | 0.8% | 0.31 |
| Southwest | $79,942 | 2.7% | 0.22 |
| Great Lakes | $78,206 | 54.6% | 10.38 |
| Middle Atlantic | $60,632 | 9.0% | 0.69 |
| Southeast | $57,298 | 14.1% | 1.53 |
| Plains States | $46,970 | 1.3% | 0.95 |
Where the Jobs Cluster
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $186,360 | 130 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | DC | $100,740 | 270 |
| Raleigh-Cary, NC | NC | $98,990 | |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | GA | $90,700 | 30 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | MA | $89,150 | 30 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | NY | $82,910 | 100 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | IL | $78,910 | 1,530 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $69,690 | 350 |
Which Industries Hire Bioinformatics Technicians
The largest employers of bioinformatics technicians are concentrated in the following sectors:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 1,540 | $77,910 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 460 | $73,960 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 280 | $78,870 |
| Educational Services | 280 | $77,130 |
| Manufacturing | 190 | $79,810 |
| Finance and Insurance | 110 | $66,560 |
| Other Services (except Public Administration) | 100 | $78,840 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 90 | $73,420 |
Below are examples of industries where bioinformatics technicians work:
Tools and Technology
- File versioning software: Apache Subversion SVN (hot technology)
- Development environment software: C (hot technology)
- Object or component oriented development software: C++ (hot technology)
- File versioning software: Git (hot technology)
- Web platform development software: Hypertext markup language HTML (hot technology)
- Analytical or scientific software: IBM SPSS Statistics (hot technology)
- Enterprise application integration software: Jenkins CI (hot technology)
- Operating system software: Linux (hot technology)
- Data base user interface and query software: Microsoft Access (hot technology)
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
- Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
Work Environment
The on-the-job environment of bioinformatics technicians tends to involve the following characteristics:
- Spend Time Sitting
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
Getting Started in This Career
Entry-level bioinformatics technicians positions require a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education. This career aligns with Considerable Preparation Needed (Job Zone 4), signaling the level of preparation typically expected.
Related Careers
Similar Occupations
- Natural Sciences Managers (Supplemental)
- Computer and Information Research Scientists (Supplemental)
- Database Administrators (Primary-Long)
- Database Architects (Primary-Short)
- Geographic Information Systems Technologists and Technicians (Supplemental)
- Statisticians (Supplemental)
- Biostatisticians (Supplemental)
- Data Scientists (Primary-Short)
Top Programs to Study For This Career
Students preparing for bioinformatics technicians often complete programs in:
Mathematics and Statistics
8 programs across 3 majors
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
4 programs across 4 majors
- Computational Science
- Mathematics & Computer Science
- Mathematical Economics
- Mathematics and Atmospheric/Oceanic Science
Biological and Biomedical Sciences
2 programs across 1 majors
About the Data
This profile draws on the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 15-2099.01 (Mathematical Science Occupations, All Other).
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