Activities	Investigate and describe the causes and distribution of diseases, disabilities, and other health outcomes. They also develop methods of disease prevention and control.
Outlook	Faster-than-average-job growth
Median Income	$56,670 per year in 2006
Work Context & Conditions	Usually work indoors, in a laboratory or university. Accuracy and follow through are very important. Biological and medical scientists usually work regular hours in offices or laboratories and usually are not exposed to unsafe or unhealthy conditions.
Minimum Education Requirements	Master's Degree
Skills	Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Writing, Time Management, Mathematics, Active Learning, Complex Problem Solving, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, Science
Abilities	Oral Expression, Deductive Reasoning, Problem Sensitivity, Written Comprehension, Inductive Reasoning, Written Expression, Oral Comprehension
Interviews	Victoria Cargill W Tun

Job Category		Life, Physical, & Social Science
Job Description		Epidemiologists can be separated into two groups—research and clinical. Research epidemiologists conduct research in an effort to eradicate or control infectious diseases that affect the entire body, such as AIDS or typhus. Others may focus only on localized infections of the brain, lungs, or digestive tract, for example. Research epidemiologists work at colleges and universities, schools of public health, medical schools, and research and development services firms. For example, Federal Government agencies, such as the U.S. Department of Defense, may contract with a research firm’s epidemiologists to evaluate the incidence of malaria in certain parts of the world. While some perform consulting services, other research epidemiologists may work as college and university faculty. Clinical epidemiologists work primarily in consulting roles at hospitals, informing the medical staff of infectious outbreaks and providing containment solutions. These epidemiologists sometimes are referred to as infection control professionals, and some of them are also physicians. Epidemiologists who are not physicians often collaborate with physicians to find ways to contain diseases and outbreaks. In addition to traditional duties of studying and controlling diseases, clinical epidemiologists also may be required to develop standards and guidelines for the treatment and control of communicable diseases. Some clinical epidemiologists may work in outpatient settings.
Working Conditions		Epidemiologists usually work indoors, in a laboratory or university. Accuracy and follow through are very important. Biological and medical scientists usually work regular hours in offices or laboratories and usually are not exposed to unsafe or unhealthy conditions. Epidemiologists should be able to work independently or as part of a team and be able to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing. Those doing field research in remote areas must have physical stamina.
Salary Range		Median annual earnings of wage and salary epidemiologists were $56,670 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $45,220 and $71,080. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $36,920, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $87,300.

Education Required		The minimum educational requirement for epidemiology is a master’s degree from a school of public health. Some jobs require a Ph.D. or medical degree, depending on the work performed. Epidemiologists who work in hospitals and healthcare centers often must have a medical degree with specific training in infectious diseases. Some employees in research epidemiology positions are required to be licensed physicians because they must administer drugs in clinical trials. Epidemiologists who perform laboratory tests often require the knowledge and expertise of a licensed physician in order to administer drugs to patients in clinical trials. Epidemiologists who are not physicians frequently work closely with one. Very few students select epidemiology for undergraduate study. Undergraduates, nonetheless, should study biological sciences and should have a solid background in chemistry, mathematics, and computer science. Once a student is prepared for graduate studies, he or she can choose a specialty within epidemiology. For example, those interested in studying environmental epidemiology should focus on environmental coursework, such as water pollution, air pollution, or pesticide use. The core work of environmental studies includes toxicology and molecular biology, and students may continue with advanced coursework in environmental or occupational epidemiology. Some epidemiologists are registered nurses and medical technologists seeking advancement.
Recommended High School Courses		Computers and Electronics, Biology, Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics
Postsecondary Instructional Programs		Physics, Engineering and Technology, Chemistry, Biology, Computers and Electronics, Medicine and Dentistry, English Language
Certification and Licensing		None

Interest Area		Investigative Involves working with ideas and requires an extensive amount of thinking.
Work Values		Social Status Looked up to by others in their company and their community. Achievement Get a feeling of accomplishment. Variety Do something different every day. Creativity Try out your own ideas. Security Have steady employment. Ability Utilization Make use of individual abilities. Working Conditions Good working conditions. Activity Busy all the time. Autonomy Plan work with little supervision. Recognition Receive recognition for the work you do. Compensation Get paid well in comparison with other workers. Responsibility Make decisions on your own.
Skills		Critical Thinking Use logic and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches. Active Listening Listen to what other people are saying and ask questions as appropriate. Writing Communicate effectively with others in writing as indicated by the needs of the audience. Time Management Manage one's own time and the time of others. Mathematics Use math to solve problems. Active Learning Work with new material or information to grasp its implications. Complex Problem Solving Solving novel, ill-defined problems in complex, real-world settings. Reading Comprehension Understand written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. Speaking Talk to others to effectively convey information. Science Use scientific methods to solve problems.
Abilities		Oral Expression Able to convey information and ideas through speech in ways that others will understand. Deductive Reasoning Able to apply general rules to specific problems to come up with logical answers, including deciding whether an answer makes sense. Problem Sensitivity Able to tell when something is wrong or likely to go wrong. This doesn't involve solving the problem, just recognizing that there is a problem. Written Comprehension Able to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. Inductive Reasoning Able to combine separate pieces of information, or specific answers to problems, to form general rules or conclusions. This includes coming up with a logical explanation for why seemingly unrelated events occur together. Written Expression Able to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. Oral Comprehension Able to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

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Job Outlook		Opportunities in epidemiology should be highly competitive, as the number of available positions remains limited. However, an increasing focus on monitoring patients at hospitals and healthcare centers to ensure positive patient outcomes will contribute to job growth. In addition, a heightened awareness of bioterrorism and infectious diseases such as West Nile Virus or SARS should also spur demand for these workers. As hospitals enhance their infection control programs, many will seek to boost the quality and quantity of their staff. Besides job openings due to employment growth, additional openings will result as workers leave the labor force or transfer to other occupations. Because employment of epidemiologists is somewhat tied to the healthcare industry, industry conditions will influence occupational demand. Medical scientists and some epidemiologists are less likely to lose their jobs during recessions than are those in many other occupations because they are employed on long-term research projects. However, a recession could influence the amount of money allocated to new research and development efforts, particularly in areas of risky or innovative medical research. A recession also could limit the possibility of extension or renewal of existing projects. Epidemiologists, held about 4,600 jobs in 2006. Among epidemiologists, nearly 57 percent were employed in Government, 12 percent were employed in hospitals; 11 percent were employed in colleges and universities; and 9 percent were employed in scientific research and development services.
More Information		American Society for Microbiology, World Health Organization, American College of Epidemiology
References		Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2008-09 Edition, Medical Scientists, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos008.htm O*NET OnLine, on the Internet at http://online.onetcenter.org/link/summary/19-1041.00