As more researchers flock to the popular field, observers fear a widening gap between supply and demand
When scientists convene in New Orleans next week for the 33rd annual meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB), nine symposia, 20 minisymposia, and countless informal gatherings are sure to focus on the recent achievements and continuing progress in this exciting and rapidly expanding scientific field.

There is likely to be little excitement in the air, however, concerning the current job market for the researchers committed to working in cell biology.

Steve Hanes, whose recent job search consumed two years before he landed a position as a research scientist at the New York State Department of Health's Wadsworth Center in Albany, puts it simply: "There is a tremendous supply of first-rate people looking for a few positions."

For Hanes, an accomplished cell biologist, the job hunt was "an exhausting process."

The...

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