Clinical Research Associate (CRA)
- Salary: ₹4–12 lakh/year (average entry: ₹4–5 lakh; senior: up to ₹12 lakh and more).
- Scope: High-growth due to India’s expanding clinical trial and pharmaceutical sector; roles involved in protocol setup, trial monitoring, and documentation.
- Companies: IQVIA, Syneos Health, Novartis, Parexel, Dr. Reddy’s, Sun Pharma, Apollo Hospitals.
- Eligibility: BPharm, BSc/MSc (Life Sciences/Biotech), MBBS, BDS, or clinical research diplomas.
Clinical Data Manager
- Salary: ₹5–12 lakh/year (average).
- Scope: Needed for handling, cleaning, and reporting of clinical trial data. Demand is rising due to healthcare digitization.
- Companies: TCS, Cognizant, Novartis, Accenture, Biocon, ICON.
- Eligibility: BSc/MSc (Life Sciences, Computers, Statistics), data management certifications helpful.
Biomedical Scientist
- Salary: ₹6–13 lakh/year (average: ₹7–11 lakh).
- Scope: Research-based roles in government, hospital, private diagnostic labs; also involved in translational research.
- Companies: AIIMS, SRL Diagnostics, Dr Lal PathLabs, Metropolis, government research institutes.
- Eligibility: MSc/PhD (Biomedical Sciences/Biotech/Microbiology).
Genetic Counselor
- Salary: ₹4–9 lakh/year (average starter).
- Scope: Growing demand at genetic testing firms, hospitals, fertility centers, and counseling for genetic disorders.
- Companies: MedGenome, Positive Biosciences, Core Diagnostics, Apollo Hospitals.
- Eligibility: MSc in Genetics or Human Genetics (specific counseling training adds value).
Patent Analyst / IP Specialist
- Salary: ₹6–14 lakh/year.
- Scope: Needed by pharmaceutical and biotechnology MNCs, law firms and patent offices for patent logic and strategy.
- Companies: Panacea Biotec, KPMG, Cognizant, Remfry& Sagar, pharma IP law offices.
- Eligibility: MSc/PhD (Biotech/Life Science), often LLB or IP law certification/Indian Patent Agent exam.
Laboratory Technician (Govt. Hospitals & Institutes)
- Salary: ₹2.5–8 lakh/year (govt. pay matrix).
- Scope: Critical routine testing roles at government/medical colleges, diagnostic centers.
- Companies: AIIMS, ESIC, State Medical/Health Departments, ICMR labs, private diagnostics.
- Eligibility: BSc/Diploma in Lab Technology, Medical Laboratory Technician (MLT).
Regulatory Affairs Specialist
- Salary: ₹6–14 lakh/year.
- Scope: Pharma, biotech, and medical device companies hire for documentation, drug/biotech product approval, and compliance roles.
- Companies: Sun Pharma, Lupin, Cipla, Biocon, Dr. Reddy’s, Mylan.
- Eligibility: BPharm/MPharm, MSc, with expertise in regulatory guidelines (CDSCO, USFDA, EMEA).
Quality Control (QC) Analyst
- Salary: ₹3–9 lakh/year.
- Scope: Ensures safety and integrity of products and lab methods in pharma, food and diagnostic labs.
- Companies: Dabur, Cipla, Biocon, Glenmark, Nestle, ITC.
- Eligibility: BSc/MSc (Chemistry, Life Sciences, Microbiology), with practical lab experience.
Quality Assurance (QA) Officer
- Salary: ₹4–10 lakh/year.
- Scope: Vital for manufacturing and regulatory compliance in pharma, biotech, food and chemical industries.
- Companies: Biocon, Sun Pharma, Abbott, PepsiCo, Wockhardt.
- Eligibility: BPharm/MPharm/MSc (Life Science), knowledge of GMP/GDP standards.
Bioprocess Associate / Engineer
- Salary: ₹6–12 lakh/year.
- Scope: Hands-on roles in biomanufacturing, fermentation and R&D in vaccine and bio-product industries.
- Companies: Serum Institute, Bharat Biotech, Biocon, Panacea Biotec, Syngene.
- Eligibility: BTech/MTech (Biotech/Biochemical Engg).
Drug Safety Associate (Pharmacovigilance)
- Salary: ₹3.5–10 lakh/year.
- Scope: Tracks and manages adverse effects, safety profile of pharmaceutical drugs for companies and regulatory bodies.
- Companies: Accenture, Novartis, Covance, TCS, IQVIA.
- Eligibility: BPharm/MPharm/MSc (Life Science/Pharmacy), a pharmacovigilance certificate improves opportunities.
Medical Science Liaison (MSL)
- Salary: ₹8–20 lakh/year.
- Scope: Strategic communicators between company and healthcare experts, product and research-focused, field based.
- Companies: Pfizer, Roche, Novartis, Johnson & Johnson, Sanofi.
- Eligibility: MSc/PhD, MBBS, PharmD (therapeutic area expertise required).
Product Manager (Life Sciences/Pharma Sector)
- Salary: ₹10–26 lakh/year.
- Scope: Manages the lifecycle, marketing, innovation and strategy for biotech/pharma products.
- Companies: Sun Pharma, Biocon, Mylan, Dr Reddy’s, Cipla.
- Eligibility: MSc/MBA (Marketing/Science), strong sector experience.
Agricultural Scientist (ICAR, ARS)
- Salary: ₹6–14 lakh/year.
- Scope: Research scientist roles at government institutes (ICAR), agricultural universities; policy, teaching, research.
- Companies: ICAR, State Agricultural Universities, Krishi Vigyan Kendra network.
- Eligibility: MSc/PhD (Agriculture/Life Sciences), ARS Exam qualification.
Food Safety Officer (FSSAI, State Govt.)
- Salary: ₹4–12 lakh/year.
- Scope: Regulatory and monitoring roles to ensure food safety in public and industry sectors.
- Companies: FSSAI, State Food Safety Offices, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
- Eligibility: BSc/MSc (Food Tech, Biotech, Chemistry); FSSAI or State Public Service Commission (PSC) exam.
Food Analyst
- Salary: ₹3.5–9 lakh/year.
- Scope: Testing, analysis of foods in public and private sector labs, product safety and certification.
- Companies: FSSAI, SGS, Intertek, state food labs, ITC, Nestle.
- Eligibility: MSc (Food Science, Chemistry, Biotech), FSSAI certification.
Bioinformatics Scientist
- Salary: ₹8–18 lakh/year.
- Scope: Data analysis in genomics/proteomics, software development, research in genomics labs/IT companies.
- Companies: MedGenome, Strand Life Sciences, Tata Consultancy, Genotypic Tech.
- Eligibility: MSc/MTech (Bioinformatics, Comp Biology), programming/data analysis skills.
Computational Biologist
- Salary: ₹6–21 lakh/year (average: ₹21,479/month).
- Scope: Modeling of biological systems, drug research, R&D, academic and private sector.
- Companies: NCBS, inStem, IBAB, pharma and biotech labs.
- Eligibility: MSc/PhD (Comp Biology, Bioinformatics, Math, Physics), machine learning/statistics experience.
Biostatistician
- Salary: ₹5–15 lakh/year (average: ₹6.2 lakh).
- Scope: Healthcare analysis, clinical trials, research survey design and analysis.
- Companies: Novartis, GSK, IQVIA, TCS, Apollo Hospitals.
- Eligibility: MSc (Biostatistics/Statistics), proficiency in R, SAS, SPSS software.
Genomics Data Analyst
- Salary: ₹5–16 lakh/year.
- Scope: Growing field in biotech, next-gen sequencing (NGS), personalized medicine companies.
- Companies: MedGenome, Mapmygenome, NIBMG, AgriGenome Labs.
- Eligibility: MSc/MTech (Genomics, Bioinformatics, Biotech), advanced data analysis capabilities.
Scientific Writer
- Salary: ₹3.5–11 lakh/year.
- Scope: Regulatory and scientific documentation for pharma, CROs, publishers, universities.
- Companies: Cactus Communications, Springer Nature, Editage, pharma companies.
- Eligibility: MSc/PhD (Life Sciences), strong command of English and scientific writing norms.
Medical Writer
- Salary: ₹4–14 lakh/year.
- Scope: Documentation for clinical research, regulatory submission, pharma and medical publishers.
- Companies: Novartis, Springer, Cactus, Parexel, Mankind Pharma.
- Eligibility: MSc/PhD/PharmD/MBBS/BDS, excellent scientific communication.
General Salary Trends
- Median salary for life sciences professionals: ₹19.5 lakh/year.
- The top 10% command salaries above ₹44 lakh/year, reaching ₹91 lakh for top 1% in leadership/executive roles.
- Fastest salary growth is found in informatics/data science, regulatory, and product management tracks.
- Demand remains high for skilled personnel in pharma, healthcare IT, diagnostics, agricultural tech, food safety, and scientific communication fields
