3 Emerging Careers in Health Sciences

Healthcare is changing fundamentally and, with the help of computers, healthcare professionals can discern and accomplish more than ever. For example, doctors can now view 3D renderings of tumors before even touching a scalpel. This would have been impossible even twenty years ago, but is now a fundamental part of surgeries.

While a pre-health science degree is an excellent choice for students with a general interest in the healthcare industry, students may also consider more specialized degrees in emerging concentrations. These new fields are not only at the forefront of science and technology, but also pay well and come with dependable job security.

Biomedical Engineer

A biomedical engineer combines engineering, software, and biology to develop healthcare solutions that solve a range of problems, from patient pain reduction to hospital organization/efficiency. Their work and high-profile challenges, like creating artificial organs, often make headline news. Day-to-day, biomedical engineers are in labs conducting hands-on research and documenting their findings.

Biomedical engineers also work to train and certify technicians to use biomedical equipment. Additionally, these engineers collaborate with life scientists, medical scientists and chemists to learn about biological systems. Like most engineers, biomedical engineers take home a hefty salary ($85,620 per year) and have high job security. Learn more about Florida Atlantic University’s Master of Science in Bioengineering distinctive program characteristics.

Nursing Informatics Specialist

A nursing informatics specialist focuses on the development, implementation, and management of healthcare data. When the U.S. government announced the requirement for all-digital medical records, the healthcare industry needed to invest in data management—creating a new specialty.

This specialty is composed of professional data scientists that have specific experience with healthcare and nursing. These professionals tend to work in hospitals or other healthcare facilities as a direct support for physicians and nurses.

While most of their work is in software development (focusing on the creation and implementation of computer systems), their behind-the-scenes work allows hospitals to run smoothly. This highly specialized work brings a 6-figure paycheck and confidence that there will be job opportunities in the field.

Neuroscientist

Although the field of neuroscience—the study of the human brain and the nervous system— has existed for quite some time, it has recently boomed with the rise of computers. While in the past, neuroscientists were limited by a lack of data about the brain, the Internet and databases have removed this roadblock.

With a backbone in biology, neuroscientists leverage advanced knowledge in software, engineering and chemistry to learn about the brain and develop solutions and/or medicines to fix them. Neuroscientists work in both the private and public sector, and often times on applied research. Although the specifics vary from position to position, all neuroscientists require advanced schooling— resulting in salaries upwards of $72,000 a year.

The healthcare industry is one field that has the resources to expand and invest in itself. As technology advances, watch for new specialized careers to emerge and change the world.