Salaries, stats, and schools for your genomics career
By Adrienne Burke
For job prospects, the genomics industry is booming. Top execs are well paid, headhunters are hopping, and new genomics and bioinformatics training programs are proliferating like fruit flies. To get a taste of what the job market is like out there, GT polled six recruitment consultants who specialize in placing life sciences professionals.
We also scanned the Securities and Exchange Commission website to compile a list of top genomics execs’ compensation packages (who’s not curious about this stuff?) and we summarize a list compiled recently by our sister publication, BioInform, of 30 academic bioinformatics training programs. (For more detailed information on those, please visit www.bioinform.com.)
GET PLACED
Genome Technology polled six headhunters who specialize in life sciences and genomics jobs.
Salary ranges for execs in genomics companies:
CEO/COO/President:
$150,000 ¯ $500,000
VP or other senior manager:
$125,000 ¯ $240,000
Director level, R&D leader:
$90,000 ¯ $150,000
Scientist:
$65,000 ¯ $125,000
Systems, technical professional, bioinformatics:
$65,000 ¯ $190,000
Product line or other manager level:
$70,000 ¯ $125,000
Most common reason for job change in genomics:
Opportunity
Money
Technology
Lack of recognition
Lack of capital
Bad management
Placed from outside US:
10-40 percent
Type of company that is biggest source of business for recruiters:
5 out of 6 said genomics (as opposed to biotech, big pharma, agriscience, and technology)
Regions that are the number one source of business for search firms:
3 out of 6 said Northeast
3 out of 6 said West Coast
MidAtlantic was ranked 3rd by 4 firms
Female professionals placed:
15-50 percent
Average age of professionals placed: 38
Typical level of education for genomics industry professionals: PhD
Industry experience:
3 out of 6 headhunters said 50 percent of the professionals they place have a computer science or bioinformatics background
Life sciences recruiters polled by Genome Technology:
• Double-Helix Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Santa Fe, NM: Molly Ryan, president, 505.983.2411 or mollyryan @double-helix.com
• Executive Biosearch Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.: Matt Takahashi, president, 310.378.1217 or [email protected] executivebiosearch.com
• Mankuta Gallagher Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.: Erik Mankuta, president, 954.720.9645
• Neil Michael Group New York, NY: Neil Solomon, president, 212.631.0999 or [email protected] worldnet.att.net
• SR Clarke Fairfax, Va.: Chris Catoggio, VP life sciences, 703.934.4200 x138 or [email protected]
• TechFind Cambridge, Mass.: Amy Lurier, president, 508.647.0111 or [email protected]
GET PAID
How does your salary compare to the top genomics execs? Compensation packages are generous for the top science and technology dogs at the Genome Technology Index companies. But nobody outdoes the Applera chief. CEO Tony White raked in a salary last year of $812,693. In addition, he earned a $1.4 million bonus, $250,000 in “other” compensation, and $14.4 million in “all other” compensation, which included $192,679 for personal use of the Applera jet. Maybe you’d just settle for the airplane time?
Aclara Biosciences
CEO $290,306 (plus $108,750 bonus)
CTO $200,000 (plus $47,500 bonus)
Affymetrix
CEO $370,014 (plus $250,000 bonus)
President $312,560 (plus $200,000 bonus and $94,652 “other”)
Applied Biosystems
President $453,000 (plus $533,012 bonus, and $7,191,180 “all other”)
Aurora Biosciences
CEO $369,312 (plus $169,486 bonus)
Sr. VP Discovery Biology $190,000 (plus $61,370 bonus)
Bruker Daltonics
CEO $114,663 (plus $124,000 bonus)
Managing Director $100,487
Caliper
CEO $379,173 (plus $173,254 bonus)
VP Research $203,952 (plus $29,475 bonus)
Celera
President/CSO $403,632 (plus $358,514 bonus, and $1,556,783 “all other”)
Cepheid
CEO $233,100
CTO $177,405 (plus $53,280 bonus)
Ciphergen
CEO $221,357 (plus $200,000 bonus, $20,838 other)
VP R&D $152,083 (plus $30,233 bonus)
DeCODE
CEO $267,930 (plus $38,864 “other”)
VP R&D $150,000 (plus $50,000 bonus)
Deltagen
CEO $235,000 (plus $82,500 bonus)
CSO $225,000 (plus $56,250 bonus)
Gene Logic
CEO $375,000 (plus $512,500 bonus)
CTO $208,333 (plus $78,000 bonus)
CIO $275,000 (plus $125,000 bonus)
Genomica
CEO $225,000 (plus $67,500 bonus)
Chief Scientist $225,000 (plus $45,000 bonus)
Genomic Solutions
CEO $225,000 (plus $277,450 bonus)
VP Genomics $95,004 (plus $46,000 bonus)
Illumina
CEO $269,716 (plus $82,500 bonus, $56,250 other)
CSO $155,385 (plus $20,000 “other”)
VP Genomics $171,002
Incyte
CEO $341,365 (plus $253,255 bonus)
CSO $234,886 (plus $133,035 bonus)
InforMax
CEO $366,667
CTO $290,000
Invitrogen
CEO $333,375
President, Genomics $255,583
President, Molecular Biology $245,816
Lexicon Genetics
CEO$270,833 (plus $175,812 bonus, $78,824 “other”)
President Genomics $206,250 (plus $47,953 bonus)
Luminex
CEO $275,000 (plus $75,000 bonus)
VP, Instruments $190,000 (plus $30,000 bonus)
VP, Scientific Affairs $190,000 (plus $30,000 bonus)
VP, Clinical Affairs $190,000 (plus $30,000 bonus)
Lynx
CEO $262,571
VP, IP $191,538
Molecular Devices
CEO $325,000 (plus $195,000 bonus)
Nanogen
CEO $336,000 (plus $295,000 bonus)
Sr. VP and GM $250,000 (plus $92,000 bonus)
Orchid
CEO $350,000 (plus $326,250 bonus, $35,000 other)
Rosetta
CEO $202,813 (plus $3,094 “other”)
Sr. VP R&D $165,577 (plus $105,623 “other”)
Sequenom
CEO $265,883 (plus $110,000 bonus)
CSO $246,250 (plus $46,000 bonus)
Third Wave
CEO $255,000 (plus $80,000 bonus)
Sr. VP R&D $154,500 (plus $28,800 bonus)
Transgenomic
CEO $132,425
Variagenics
CEO $294,808 (plus $96,250 bonus)
VP Research $210,000 (plus $42,000 bonus)
VP Diagnostic & Process Dev’t $174,769 (plus $35,000 bonus)
Source: SEC, 2000 data
GET SCHOOLED
Stanford University was the first in the US to offer graduate study in biomedical informatics. Today, at least 30 schools offer either PhD, MS, or BS studies in bioinformatics and related fields. The list here was compiled by BioInform. For further details and contact information for each program, see BioInform’s July 30, 2001 issue at www.bioinform.com
Baylor College of Medicine
PhD in structural and computational biology and molecular biophysics
www.bcm.tmc.edu/scbmb/
Boston University
MS and PhD in bioinformatics
bioinformatics.bu.edu/
Carnegie Mellon
BS in biological sciences/computer science; MS in computational biology; PhD through Merck computational biology and chemistry program
www.bio.cmu.edu/Programs/Undergraduate/ compbio.html
George Mason University
PhD in computational sciences and informatics; MNPS with bioinformatics track
www.krasnow.gmu.edu/bioinformatics/ bioinf_desc.html
Georgia Tech
MS in bioinformatics; PhD in biology with emphasis in bioinformatics
www.biology.gatech.edu/bioinformatics/
Indiana University
BS in informatics with bioinformatics cognate; MS in bioinformatics
informatics.indiana.edu/iub/index.htm
Iowa State University
MS, PhD in bioinformatics and computational biology
www.bcb.iastate.edu/
Medical College of Wisconsin/Marquette U
MS in bioinformatics
brc.mcw.edu/ap/announcements/initial.html
NJ Institute of Technology
MS in computational biology; PhD in biology/computational biology track
www.njit.edu/catalog/graduate/00Spring/11.htm
North Carolina State
MS and PhD in bioinformatics
bioinformatics.ncsu.edu
Northeastern University
MS in bioinformatics and computational biology
www.bioinformatics.neu.edu
Northern Illinois University
MS certificate of graduate study in bioinformatics
www.bios.niu.edu/bioinformatics/
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
BS in bioinformatics and molecular biology; graduate certificate in bioinformatics; MS in applied science with concentration in bioinformatics; MS in information technology with bioinformatics application area
www.rpi.edu/dept/bio/info/bioinformatics.html
Rutgers University
PhD in quantitative biology
cmb.rutgers.edu/
Stanford University
MS and PhD in biomedical informatics
smi-web.stanford.edu/academics/index.html
University of Albany
PhD in comparative functional genomics
www.albany.edu/wwwres/genomics/academic/
University of California, Los Angeles
MS and PhD in bioinformatics
www.bioinformatics.ucla.edu/
University of California, San Diego
PhD in bioinformatics
www-ogsr.ucsd.edu/bioinformatics/description.htm
University of California, San Francisco
MS and PhD in biological and medical informatics
www.mis.ucsf.edu/
University of California, Santa Cruz
BS in bioinformatics
www.cse.ucsc.edu/research/compbio/
University of Memphis
MS in bioinformatics; PhD in computer science with bioinformatics track
www.msci.memphis.edu/~giri/bio.html
University of Nebraska, Omaha
MS and PhD in pathology and microbiology with specialty track in bioinformatics
www.isqa.unomaha.edu/bioinformatics/
University of Pennsylvania
BS, MS and PhD programs in bioinformatics
www.pcbi.upenn.edu/
University of Pittsburgh
MS and PhD in biomedical informatics
www.cbmi.upmc.edu/training_program/ training.htm
University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
BS and MS in bioinformatics
www.usip.edu/bioinformatics/
University of Southern California
MS in computational molecular biology
www-hto.usc.edu/
University of Texas at El Paso
MS in bioinformatics
www.utepbioinformatics.edu
University of Washington
PhD in computational molecular biology
bozeman.genome.wshington.edu/compbio
Virginia Tech
(Virginia Bioinformatics Institute)
PhD in bioinformatics
graduate.bioinformatics.vt.edu/
Washington University, St. Louis
PhD in computational biology
dbbs.wustl.edu/programs/computational.html
Source: www.Bioinform.com.