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Career in Biology or Biotechnology after 12th (PCB)
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This article came out of the realization that hundreds and thousands of students enrolled in Physics, Chemistry and Biology as major subjects in 12th class (High School) remain confused/worried about their future/career. So, I am writing this article to satiate this particular need of yours. I hope it helps in some way to relieve the confusion and worries of emerging students of Biotechnology.

In order to keep it simple, let's go step by step towards this decision making process.

Step 1: Understanding Biotechnology
Before jumping into the field of Biotechnology for pursuing a career, you need to be aware of what this field is all about--it's history, it's evolution, it's branches, it's applications, various industries, and obviously the scope of Biotechnology. Following is a video lecture from CEC UGC which I'm sure will help you in going through this step of understanding Biotechnology. Once you thoroughly watch this video, you will be in a state where you will be able to synchronize your mind with your interests:

(You are suggested to make notes of various branches of Biotechnology which can provide a career opportunity, while you watch this video)



Let's jot down key fields of Biotechnology wherein you can put your steps for a career:
1. Microbiology
2. Agricultural Biotechnology
3. Genetic Engineering
4. Clinical Research
5. Biochemical Engineering
6. Immunology (Biotechnology in fighting/diagnosing disease)
7. Food Biotechnology
8. Veterinary Sciences
9. Biomedical Engineering (artificial organs/synthetic organs/bio-instruments)
10. Bioinformatics (Computational Biology)
11. Marine Biology (Life in oceans)
12. Extra-terrestrial Biology (Life in space)
13. Environmental Biotechnology
14. Nano-Biotechnology (an emerging field with applications in Health Research and Diagnostics)

Step 2: Choosing between ENGINEERING and SCIENCE
Having made your mind about entering the field of Biotechnology with an aim to get into one or two of the above branches for specialization, your next question to yourself should be:
Whether I want to be an Engineering student or a Science student. The basic difference between an Engineering and Science student is that (a) An engineering student goes through a rigorous curriculum of learning all fields of technology along-with the core field of Biotechnology. In other words, as an engineering student, you will be expected to study subjects pertaining to Electrical, Mechanics, Design, Computer programming, Engineering Mathematics etc alongwith the subjects of Biotechnology. There is equal focus on practical knowledge of all the technologies, including your core field. B.Tech/ B.Engg./ M.Tech/ M.Engg. are the degrees that lead to an Engineering student. An engineering degree keeps you open for Non-core jobs as well, considering the fact that you have had enough exposure to all technologies during the degree. (b) A science student on the other hand is focussed more towards the core technology with deep emphasis on theory and practical of your own field only i.e Biotechnology/related subject. More often, a science student is inclined towards theoretical details of all subjects related to his/her degree. Degrees leading to a Science student are BSc/MSc. Getting a non-core job after a science degree is very difficult for the obvious reasons. If you want to become a teacher, then you can choose a Science degree without any hiccup.

Step 3: Choosing the appropriate degree to meet your interests/goals
Having made your mind about your career interest and whether you want to be an engineering student or a science student, the next step is deciding the degree to pursue. Following figure summarizes the various possible degrees that you can opt for. Image is taken from the Article: Career Oriented Courses in Life Science and Biotechnology published on www.BiotechStudents.com.

[Image: careeroriented_lifeSc..png]
Step 4: Choosing the College/Entrance Exam
The next step towards your career decision should be: Choosing the college / Entrance exam you want to go for. This decision is greatly dependent upon your academic performance in 12th exams. Reason being the fact that, most of the "Good" colleges in India have stringent cut-offs in terms of 12th marks. So, it's advisable that one remains diligent and prolific in 11th and 12th standard. In fact, your performance in 12th standard has a profound impact on your eligibility for JOBS and HIGHER STUDIES later in your career.
Following is a list of competitive exams and colleges one can opt for a degee in Biotechnology:
  • AIIMS Biotechnology Entrance Exam
  • JEE (For colleges across the country): and for all IITs
  • Combined Biotechnology Entrance Examination (CBEEE)
  • Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University Common Entrance Test
  • University Of Rajasthan , Jaipur: PET and JEE
  • Punjab University, Chandigarh : JEE
  • GNDU, Amritsar : JEE and own entrance test
  • University of Kerala
  • Bharathiar University
  • Jamia Milia Islamia
  • Bhartiya Vidyapeeth Pune
  • Bansthali
  • Visverswaraih Technological University, Karnataka
  • Various colleges of Delhi University
  • Thapar University
  • IIIT Hyderabad (JEE, Own test)
  • Gulbarga University, Jnana ganga
  • Aligarh Muslim University
  • Osmania University
  • Annamalai University
  • NITs (JEE)
  • BHU
  • Goa University Biotechnology Entrance Examination
  • J.N.C.S.R (Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research)
  • J.N.T.U (Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University)
  • M.K.U (Madurai Kamaraj University
  • University of Hyderabad
  • Sastra University
  • University of Kashmir
  • Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology
  • RGPV
  • Khalsa College Chandigarh
  • DCE
  • All India Pre-Veterinary Test AIPVT 2015

All these colleges offer undergraduate and post-graduate courses. Many of these offer seats on first come first serve basis as well. Some of the colleges like DU have stringent cut-offs for 12th marks.

I hope these suggestions will help you in making a wise decision for a career in Biotechnology right from the beginning.



If there is any other information needed, do let me know.


All the best

Sunil
Sunil Nagpal
MS(Research) Scholar, IIT Delhi (Alumnus)
Advisor for the Biotech Students portal (BiotechStudents.com)
Computational Researcher in BioSciences at a leading MNC


Suggested Reads:
Top Biotech Companies | Top places to work
Indian Biotech Companies and Job Openings
Aiming a PhD in Top Grad School? | These are the Important Points to Consider
Careers in Biotechnology | A list of various Options
Biotechnology Competitive Exams in India
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Messages In This Thread
Career in Biology or Biotechnology after 12th (PCB) - by SunilNagpal - 03-22-2015, 09:52 PM
Biotechnology - by Tanya verma - 10-28-2015, 04:55 PM
RE: Biotechnology - by SunilNagpal - 11-02-2015, 09:27 PM
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