Introduction

Biotechnology is an interdisciplinary science which covers wide variety of subjects including Chemistry, Mathematics, and Engineering. The field is also associated with subjects like Health and Medicine, Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Ecology, Cell Biology and Marine Biology etc.    

Biotechnology finds promising applications in four major industrial areas, including health care (medical), crop production and agriculture, non food (industrial) uses of crops and other products (e.g. biodegradable plastics, vegetable oil, bio-fuels), and environmental uses. The Biotechnology professionals are now involved in the areas of medicine, agriculture and related fields. It is now considered as one of the fastest growing and promising field of study which is progressing ahead through research and development.

In India, the scope for education in Biotechnology is no less encouraging. Owing to its wide application in various industries, the demand for trained professionals has also increased. Realizing its academic importance, some of the institutes and universities in the country have started offering a plethora of courses for the younger generations. The courses are offered mainly at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Courses Available 

Entry into Biotechnology is mostly at the postgraduate level. However, there are few Indian universities offering undergraduate courses in Biotechnology.  Candidates having excellent academic background in science at the intermediate level can take up the course in Biotechnology viz. B.Sc, BTech or Integrated MTech course offered by the IITs.

The following Professional Courses are offered by Indian institutes/universities: 

Undergraduate Program (s)

• B.Tech in Biotechnology

Postgraduate Programs

• M.Sc. Biotechnology
• M.Sc. (Agriculture) Biotechnology
• M.V.Sc. (Animal) Biotechnology
• M.Tech. Biotechnology, M.Sc./M.V.Sc. Veterinary Biotechnology
• M.Sc. (Marine) Biotechnology
• Medical Biotechnology
• M.Tech. in Biomedical Engineering/Biotechnology.

Depending upon the aptitude and necessity, more advanced courses such Ph.D. and Post-Doctoral Research in Biotechnology can also be pursued from selected universities from India and abroad.

Areas of interest

Medical Biotechnology: The field deals in the health care and pharmacy sectors. Any discovery in this field pertaining to drugs, vaccines, diagnostics etc can take the entire industry on another platform altogether.

Medical Nanotechnology: This is a highly interdisciplinary field of Bio-technology dealing with atoms which are only a few nanometers in diameter. It is used for diagnostic and curative purposes.

Industrial Biotechnology: Industrial Biotechnology is the application of biotechnology for the environmentally-friendly production and processing of chemicals, pharmaceuticals, materials and bio-energy.

Agriculture Biotechnology: This is the most sought after job or career specialization for Biotechnology aspirants. Agricultural Biotechnology involves the application of modern Biotech techniques to improve plant health and productivity.

Marine Biotechnology: This is an emerging discipline of Biotechnology. The study of marine animals, researching and developing the drugs and survival mechanism for human are the core objectives of Marine Biotechnology. It also explores the possibility of using Marine life for transplants.  

Career Prospects

There is great career opportunity in Biotechnology as the demand for trained professionals is growing in the global scenario including India. The country has a global market worth $91 billion and there is scope for cheap R&D through bio-partnering and co-developing technologies mainly with Chinese and American companies.

Employment opportunity, both in Government and private sectors are available. The government institutes and organizations, such as Department of Biotechnology (DBT), several agriculture, dairy and horticulture institutes offer jobs to Biotechnology professionals. In the private sector, the job openings for biotechnologists are unlimited. Drug companies in biotechnology like Dabur, Ranbaxy, Hindustan Lever, Dr Reddy’s Labs that have their R & D units offer Biotechnology professional with handsome pay-package. One can also find jobs in food processing industry, chemical industry and textile industry.

In India, the major companies which hire biotechnologists are: Hindustan Lever, Thapar Group, Indo American Hybrid Seeds, Bincon India Ltd., IDPL and Hindustan Antibiotics etc.

The pay package varies from 10k-30k for graduates at entry level. However, candidates with postgraduate qualification can get more than this. Those employed in government research centres can start with Rs. 12,000 along with government allowances.

Institutes/Universities

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