Headlines on biosecurity, stem cell research, and drug development suggest that the life sciences are expanding rapidly, but this is not reflected in salary growth for US life scientists, which has remained relatively stagnant. The consumer price index has risen 3.0% since July 2003, but salaries for life scientists have marked only a 2.3% increase, according to
Some cities, sectors, and specializations in the life sciences posted slight increases in income this past year, but most researchers saw no significant changes in their salaries. "It's not surprising that, with the general US economy, healthcare costs, and reduced NIH budgets, there isn't a large increase or even a substantial increase in salaries at the PhD level," says Jeremy M. Boss, director of the genetics and molecular biology graduate program at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta.
When this year's salary numbers are compared with those ...
