Science

Career options in this field:
Since genetic engineering is a highly research-oriented field, Ph.D is imperative if you want to climb up the ladder at work. Ph.D graduates usually go on to do their postdoctoral training and join the university as professors or enter the industry as research scientists. Students with just an undergraduate or Masters degree can only work as research assistants or at best as lab managers. They cannot do independent research projects, lead a team of researchers or start their own lab. In short, if you are keen on making a name for yourself in this field, be prepared to do your Ph.D. Genetic Engineering scientists and researchers usually find jobs in the research labs of universities and research institutions. Some even join the R&D section of biotech industries. Students with M.Tech or M.Sc. Degree in Genetic Engineering or Biotechnology with specialisation in Genetic Engineering can find jobs in biotech and pharma companies or join universities as research assistants. Some universities in India also hire M.Tech/M.Sc students as lecturers. Scope in India and abroad
India:
Genetic Engineering is still in the development stage in India. The past few years have seen a significant increase in the allocation of grants and funding for genetic engineering research and development and quite a number of scientific institutions such as the IISERs etc. Have been established by the Indian government. Also, job opportunities are not as high as IT and software fields. Abroad:
USA, UK, Europe, Canada are doing very well in genetic engineering research. USA and UK are at the forefront of research in genetic engineering. If your goal is to pursue groundbreaking research in this field and publish high quality papers and research articles, then your best BET would be pursue your higher studies and find jobs in any one of these countries.

Hi Harshit,
Medical Biotechnology is an emerging sector in India and accounts for nearly 70% of the total revenue of the biotech sectors. The companies that populate this sector could be divided into three broad categories- small startup companies that have indigenously developed biotech products, e. g. , Shantha Biotech and Bharat Biotech, large pharmaceutical firms such as Dr. Reddy Laboratory (DRL), Ranbaxy Laboratories and Wockhardt Ltd., and start-ups, which are all set to emerge as Contract Research Organizations (Cross), mainly working for transnational corporations. The average annual starting salary offered to such postgraduates ranges between INR 15,000 and 20,000 varying based on the candidate's skillset and experience.

I was confused between chemistry and physics, so started a joint course, but eventually qualified, as a chemist and worked in industry on R&D on a chemical plant. I realized that I would have done chemical engineering had I known about it. So, proceeded to study, take exams in chemical engineering and completed a design project for the Institution of Chemical Engineers. I have done work which bridges both fields. Both careers are valid, one is not better than the other. Both have a considerable range of career options which will suit some people more than others. In general, chemical engineering is better paid and more likely to lead to management, but money should not be your main aim. If you love chemistry, you should do chemistry, because there is surprisingly little in chemical engineering. What chemical engineers do is to provide the conditions for chemical or biological reactions to take place by physical processes such as heating, cooling, stirring, bubbling gases through etc. Then they carry out processes such as distillation or filtration to separate and purify the products. Finally they minimize the energy usage of processes, and dangers to people and the environment. It is a very broad subject area. Of course, chemical engineers have to be competent in chemistry and be prepared to learn any chemistry involved in a process. May also deal with complex biological systems and get educated in that area. However, chemical engineering is absolutely not applied chemistry. The degree courses are completely different. If you choose to be a chemist, I would advise a career plan through to Ph.D in order to get a good job in industry. For a chemical engineer, a Masters is pretty much required. A Ph.D is somewhat optional unless you wish to be an academic.