Job Overview
Biotech Sales Jobs

Overview

According to the University of Minnesota- Mayo Clinic Minnesota Partnership for Biotechnology and Medical Genomics, “Biotechnology is a collection of technologies that capitalize on the attributes of cells, such as their manufacturing capabilities, and out biological molecules, such as DNA and proteins to work for us.” It is the manipulation of biological organisms to make products that benefit human beings. Biotechnology contributes to such diverse areas as food production, waste disposal, mining, and medicine.

Biotechnology also referred to as “Biotech,” is a rapidly growing industry. It uses living organisms or derivatives of organisms to develop products and processes. These processes have been utilized for thousands of years and have become more prevalent in the last 25 years.

Biotech companies that focus on healthcare usually have several departments: research and development, clinical research, quality control, business development. There are many specialties within biotechnology including biopharmaceuticals, drug discovery, genomics, microbiology and molecular biology. A sales job in biotechnology can offer those with unique science backgrounds the opportunity to utilized their science training in a business development role or marketing setting.

Training and Education

A biotech sales job requires a bachelor’s degree and experience in the life sciences. Most sales positions require at least 1-2 years of successful sales (sometimes pharmaceutical or laboratory research preferred). Strong knowledge base of company products, life science research, biotechnology research is essential.

Opportunities

If you are interested in biotech sales employment opportunities, please click on our Job Opportunities page to browse our current job opportunities.

Salary

Base salaries on these types of positions vary greatly. Base salaries range from $40,000 to $80,000 range depending on experience. Again, commissions can vary greatly and can take the successful salesperson’s income to over a $100,000 a year.

Job Outlook

There are over 1500 biotechnology companies in the United States today offering jobs in biotech sales. The industry has grown tremendously since 1992. Biotech companies range from small start-up companies to Fortune 500’s. Sales representatives specializing in this area will continue to be in demand.