💡 Why it matters: Bacteria, viruses and fungi affect everything from disease to bread and yoghurt, so microbiologists are needed in hospitals, factories and farms.
🌍 Around the world
- United States: Jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, faster than average (US Bureau of Labor Statistics).
💰 What it can pay
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Starting out
- ₦1.6M – ₦3.8M
- Mid-career
- ₦3.8M – ₦9M
- Senior
- ₦9M – ₦20M
≈ ₦317k – ₦750k a month mid-career. Indicative estimate by Incusim.
🇺🇸 United States
Median pay; low and high are the 10th and 90th percentiles. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025
🇨🇦 Canada
Closest Canadian job: Biologist. Hourly wage low/median/high x 2,080 hours. Job Bank (Government of Canada), 2023-2024
Yearly pay before tax. UK, US and Canada figures come from the official sources named on each card. Nigeria has no official salary survey, so those are our indicative estimates. Real pay depends on the employer, the place, your skills and experience.
🛠️ What you actually do
- Grow and identify microbes in the lab
- Test water, food and medicines for germs
- Study how germs spread and resist drugs
- Develop helpful microbes for food and farming
- Write up results
⚡ Skills you'll need
- Lab skills
- Attention to detail
- Patience
- Analysis
- Safety awareness
Get ready at school
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Lab placement in a hospital or factory
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Laboratory scientist degree apprenticeships
- Start as a lab technician and study part-time
🇺🇸 United States
- Start as a lab technician in a hospital, food or biotech lab
- Internships in university or company labs
🇨🇦 Canada
- College laboratory technologist diplomas, then work up
- Co-op placements in hospital, food or biotech labs
🗺️ Your path to this career
- 1Study Biology and Chemistry in school
- 2Take a degree in Microbiology
- 3Do a lab placement in a hospital or factory
- 4Join a lab or research team
- 5Specialise in food, health or environment
⏰ A day in the life
You swab samples onto dishes yesterday, and today you count the colonies that grew. You identify the bacteria, write down which drugs they resist and tell the clinic what to prescribe.