How can I find a Lab Technician Job?

[pharmerted]

i need to find a job as a lab technician as soon as possible. what is the best way to go about finding a job as a lab technician? is it easy to find a position as a lab tech? where should i apply or look? thanks!

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[Buckeye(OH)]

If you are at a university, shotgun email as many PI's as you possibly can, assuming you have interest in what they are researching

 

[pharmerted]

If you are at a university, shotgun email as many PI's as you possibly can, assuming you have interest in what they are researching

what is a PI? Can i do the same for biotech/pharmaceutical companies?

 

[biendesalud]

talk to your old professors and have them ask around for you OR find somebody who is doing research in something you are interested in and ask if they have any positions. 99% of them are tight with $$, so good luck getting paid, but that's probably the best approach.

 

[biendesalud]

what is a PI? Can i do the same for biotech/pharmaceutical companies?

Principal Investigator (a.k.a 'the (wo)man')

 

[PineappleGirl]

Go to the personnel websites of all the universities and hospitals in your area and check out their employment opportunities. You can probably get to the personnel website by navigating from the main university/hospital web page.

 

[PineappleGirl]

To further address your question, yes it's fairly easy to get a job as a lab tech. There is usually a lot of turnover because 1.) the pay sucks and 2.) most people just do this as a stepping stone into grad or professional school.

 

[cammy1313]

Try the job board at your alma mater, searching specific companies you're interested in, or www.biospace.com

 

[StLTurboA4]

i need to find a job as a lab technician as soon as possible. what is the best way to go about finding a job as a lab technician? is it easy to find a position as a lab tech? where should i apply or look? thanks!

I sent you a PM. Our lab is looking for a tech to replace me, since I'm leaving for medical school this coming fall.

Anyone else who is interested in the position, send me a PM. The job is located at Washington University in St. Louis.

👍

 

[LGW]

I don't know your location, but check the VA (veteran)hospitals.
You can also check their postings at www.usajobs.com and do an agency search for "Veterans Affairs"
You can actually find a pretty decent paying job as a medical technician if you have a science degree or even better paying with a masters
Hope this helps

 

[JimiThing]

It's really easy to find a job as a lab tech, if you dont mind not getting paid (ie internship). Just email PI's using the subject heading "Free Labor." Put your cover letter in the text of the email, and attach your Resume. You should get a dozen replies within the hour.
If you want to get paid, that's a whole other issue, since there are a slew of foreign graduates willing to come here and work for little more than their work visa, in hopes that they can go to grad school here.
Look at Human Resource pages for colleges in your area, or areas you wouldnt mind moving to. There should be quite a few positions open now, since people leave for the summer, head off to grad school, etc.
If your going to be a Lab Tech, it doesnt really matter what the lab researches, since your duties will revolve around cleaning beakers, etc.
If you want to get a little more involved in the research, look for Research Tech positions. You'd be doing a lot of the grunt work for grad students/post docs (ie running gels, PCR, transfection, etc), but once you get your feet wet the PI might be willing to let you take on your own project (in addition to all the other work you've been doing of course). These pay more, but are harder to get.
You could get a job at a big BioTech firm like Pfizer, just don't expect it to be anything too hands on. (A friend of mine did this one summer and she was in charge of weighing out how much food the mice ate.)

 

[gluon999]

I have interviewed at 3 different places recently for a lab tech/research and development assistant position. I found those listed on monster.com and careerbuilder.com. I already got offered a position at a major company for developing new products.

But most of these are agencies that sub contract you the position. So they end up getting a sizeable chunk of your salary. Even after that, you can still expect to make 30 - 45k a year.

 

[Bigsheed920]

Go to the personnel websites of all the universities and hospitals in your area and check out their employment opportunities. You can probably get to the personnel website by navigating from the main university/hospital web page.

This is the best way.

 

[pharmerted]

It's really easy to find a job as a lab tech, if you dont mind not getting paid (ie internship). Just email PI's using the subject heading "Free Labor." Put your cover letter in the text of the email, and attach your Resume. You should get a dozen replies within the hour.
If you want to get paid, that's a whole other issue, since there are a slew of foreign graduates willing to come here and work for little more than their work visa, in hopes that they can go to grad school here.
Look at Human Resource pages for colleges in your area, or areas you wouldnt mind moving to. There should be quite a few positions open now, since people leave for the summer, head off to grad school, etc.
If your going to be a Lab Tech, it doesnt really matter what the lab researches, since your duties will revolve around cleaning beakers, etc.
If you want to get a little more involved in the research, look for Research Tech positions. You'd be doing a lot of the grunt work for grad students/post docs (ie running gels, PCR, transfection, etc), but once you get your feet wet the PI might be willing to let you take on your own project (in addition to all the other work you've been doing of course). These pay more, but are harder to get.
You could get a job at a big BioTech firm like Pfizer, just don't expect it to be anything too hands on. (A friend of mine did this one summer and she was in charge of weighing out how much food the mice ate.)

I was kind of hoping to get a lab tech position at a biotech/pharma company (since that is my field of interest) over a university setting. Of course, i would still take a job in a university setting, too though.

But yes, i'm looking for a paid gig, preferably $10 and up (I'd really prefer $12-$17!!) and 30+ hours a week.

How long will the entire process take if i start now? I have one problemo. I am a career switcher, so my undergrad degree is in economics. I have taken chem, o. chem, biology, anatomy, physiology, biochem, microbiology, physics and the requisite labs. I don't have hands on exp with PCR, gel electrophoresis, etc. Will i still be able to get a lab tech job? Thanks!

 

[PineappleGirl]

I have one problemo. I am a career switcher, so my undergrad degree is in economics. I have taken chem, o. chem, biology, anatomy, physiology, biochem, microbiology, physics and the requisite labs. I don't have hands on exp with PCR, gel electrophoresis, etc. Will i still be able to get a lab tech job? Thanks!

Yes, this is a problemo. I have the same problemo. It sucks. I have a degree in history and French and while I've taken a lot of science classes, this does not seem to matter. They want bio and chem majors. I think it may have something to do too with the automated personnel websites a lot of universities and hospitals use where if the applicant's major is not bio or chem specifically, the application gets trashed. I've applied for countless jobs but have not heard anything back. I think the second they see the humanities major they think, um, no. The only luck I have had getting my foot in the door is through networking with people I've met in my day job (totally not medically related) who know people at the hospital. Do you have any profs who have contacts with people in labs? Friends of the family? This may be your best bet because it doesn't appear like they like people who are not your typical bio or chem majors. Sucks, yeah.

 

[pharmerted]

i've looked under hospital and university sites, what are they listed under? Do they list as "lab technician" or lab assistant? at a hospital, which category are they listed under? i saw 213 job openings and none listed as "lab tech".

 

[PineappleGirl]

i've looked under hospital and university sites, what are they listed under? Do they list as "lab technician" or lab assistant? at a hospital, which category are they listed under? i saw 213 job openings and none listed as "lab tech".

Most of the ones I see are located under "research support" and are called "laboratory assistant" or "research technician" or "lab technician". Some of the "research assistant" jobs are also more like lab tech jobs.
Hope this helps.

 

[Kasey]

I was a post-bacc with an undergrad degree in music. After I did my pre-reqs + biochem, micro and molecular I got a job as a lab tech. I had no hands on experience other than classwork/labs. Granted it pays pretty poorly (if money's your thing you shouldn't be looking at lab tech positions!), but I love my boss and am really happy with my job (lots of independence, get to do some pretty cool stuff, lots of learning opps) and will be sad to leave it for school in August, but happy to be going to school! BUt around here they're always looking for people to hire. I just applied through the hospital website (I work in a research lab within a hospital) which asked for class work, grades, experience, ets. and got a couple of interview offers and went on the most interesting one and was hired the next day.

So I guess what I'd recommend (as it worked for me) is to look at the job websites of research hospitals and start applying and it shouldn't be too hard to find a job as was previously mentioned!

Most of the ones I see are located under "research support" and are called "laboratory assistant" or "research technician" or "lab technician". Some of the "research assistant" jobs are also more like lab tech jobs.
Hope this helps.

 

[laraM]

MemoricalCare has laboratory technology careers available. They have 5 locations in California.

 

[gettheleadout]

MemoricalCare has laboratory technology careers available. They have 5 locations in California.

I don't know if you really didn't notice that the thread was 6 years old or if you're just advertising for them...either way least useful bump ever 👎

 

[RookTookIt]

Lately, my lab has been advertising its lab tech positions on CraigsList. We've filled two spots that way this year. Also, there's a lot of tech turnover, especially in the next few months, so keep checking.

 

[fletch575]

I work as a lab tech right now at a top 20 university,

Yes the pay sucks ~25K per year before taxes, and yes it's easy to get a job.

The other posters were correct when they said go to the schools website and job postings section. If they are anything like where I work, your resume will be posted on a large database for each department you applied to and then the PI's who need somebody will interview a number of applicants that they select from the database. They'll generally ask for a resume and your transcript (unofficial is OK). Remember to apply for positions you are capable of doing not what you think you can do/qualified to do.

Last note, be prepared to work 40+ hours a week, make your time there worth it (i.e. get on some papers, make good impressions, letters)

 

[notjustalabtech]

I am currently a lab tech and am looking for new jobs. I found this blog article to very informative and helpful: http://www.yeahscience.org/2013/06/so-youre-recent-grad-looking-for-career.html

 

[DrEnderW]

Career services from your school if they have one, emailing PI's from research labs and schools around where you live, LinkedIn, and ask previous professors if they know people that are looking.

There will be lots of turnover soon as people will be leaving to start grad school or med school (myself included thank god).

Expect something in the low $30k range if you're in a major city. Make sure it's a place that treats you as a legitimate researcher and throws you on pubs.

 

[hunterjumper14]

Yes, this is a problemo. I have the same problemo. It sucks. I have a degree in history and French and while I've taken a lot of science classes, this does not seem to matter. They want bio and chem majors. I think it may have something to do too with the automated personnel websites a lot of universities and hospitals use where if the applicant's major is not bio or chem specifically, the application gets trashed. I've applied for countless jobs but have not heard anything back. I think the second they see the humanities major they think, um, no. The only luck I have had getting my foot in the door is through networking with people I've met in my day job (totally not medically related) who know people at the hospital. Do you have any profs who have contacts with people in labs? Friends of the family? This may be your best bet because it doesn't appear like they like people who are not your typical bio or chem majors. Sucks, yeah.

This is totally true. I am a career changer and even though I have a boatload of unpaid research experience, I got auto-rejected from every job I applied to online (sometimes within mere minutes). I would start by volunteering and keep your eyes and ears open for positions that open up. It's tough, I understand 🙁

 

[yehhhboiii]

This is totally true. I am a career changer and even though I have a boatload of unpaid research experience, I got auto-rejected from every job I applied to online (sometimes within mere minutes). I would start by volunteering and keep your eyes and ears open for positions that open up. It's tough, I understand 🙁

that's probably because the people who look at those things are from HR and those people are *****s. you have to talk to professors themselves or lab managers at the very least

 

[Double A]

+1 for shotgun emailing PIs. I found it difficult to find a lab tech position for my year off. If you don't have location restrictions you might have an easier time.

You can go to the sites of the schools in the area and search the faculty list of the departments you're interested in. Each faculty member page should have their research interests and contact information.

 

[chemsmith]

the question is not how, but why?

 

[CnsCrit]

Getting a technician job depends on a lot of factors and what you want in a job. It may be hard to find a lab job for only a year. If your actually doing experiments all day and want to have some independence, then it just takes a while to get trained, get acquainted, and learn the experiments. It takes a lot of investment on the part of whoever is training you, and there's more incentive to hire someone who can commit to two years. It depends on the particular job, but its something to consider. If you want to work at a competitive place like, say the Broad Institute--there will be a lot of qualified people applying that are willing to work 2 years.

The only other big thing, just like any other career is that the PI is going to value experience. You want a job in a cell biology lab--do you have experience cloning? cell culture? fluoresence microscopy? That will make you competitive. If you want a job doing something that you have no experience in but just sounds cool to you, thats fine, but just try to spin what you've done in a way that adds unique value to that position.

The last and maybe most important thing to do is just express a lot of interest. Its good to apply to as many jobs as possible to increase your chances, but try to really learn something about the lab your applying to. Look up the lab website and recent papers and when you write your cover letter/email/etc, let them know that you have read about their work and are interested. This is easiest to do when...your actually interested in the project

 

[TheShaker]

that's probably because the people who look at those things are from HR and those people are *****s. you have to talk to professors themselves or lab managers at the very least

A useful tip that I got when applying for lab jobs where you can't get in contact with the actual lab people is to include as many of the buzzwords on the job description as possible on your resume. They don't really know what PCR or ELISA means so they just ctrl+f those words and determine if you get through or not...

If you want to be really sly, write every science word you ever heard of in white in some corner of your resume to get past every computer based screen ever. 😀

 

[yehhhboiii]

A useful tip that I got when applying for lab jobs where you can't get in contact with the actual lab people is to include as many of the buzzwords on the job description as possible on your resume. They don't really know what PCR or ELISA means so they just ctrl+f those words and determine if you get through or not...

If you want to be really sly, write every science word you ever heard of in white in some corner of your resume to get past every computer based screen ever. 😀

then the pi interviews you and wonders why you don't know how to do anything

 

[DrEnderW]

the question is not how, but why?

While I can't say a tech job is "fun," I think my research job is huge during my gap year.

I'm getting 2-3 pubs, poster presentation, lots of experience, great future letters and contacts. This will make getting research gigs in med school easier, add to pubs from undergrad, and make my application for residency more and more competitive. Not to mention the contacts I've made that will allow me to expand and shadow/research in specialties I'm interested in for a career. If you have the right gig and a place that publishes, it's a great move IMO.