Career In Immunology

What is Immunology?

Immunology as a Medical course manages physical, chemical and physiological characteristics of the components of the immune system.

Immunology is the branch of biomedical science that deals with the study of an organism’s immune system, in both health and disease.

In a simple way we can say that:

“Immunology examines the structure and function of the immune system.”

Immunology has applications in various disciplines of medicine that are virology, organ transplantation, dermatology, oncology, parasitology, bacteriology, and psychiatry.

An immunologist is a person who studies the immune system, either in humans or animals. The immune system is the body’s defense against disease.

The word immunity was derived from the Latin word “immunis” that means “exempt”.

The main aim of immunology is to study the health of humans and animals through effective yet consistent research.

The scientists or clinician who specializes in the field of Immunology is known as Immunologist.

Scope

The younger graduates in this field can find numbers of employment in government as well as private hospitals. There is a bunch of scope in this field for appearing aspirants. You can also work as a visiting immunologist in various hospitals. The students who are doing training in doctorate can avail the placements with high salaries in private hospitals depending upon their experience. You can also opt the career in teaching jobs in universities and colleges. In upcoming future, there is a vast scope in this field.

Courses & Duration

Also Check – Courses After 12th

For all branches of immunology, the student has a strong knowledge in the field of Biology, Chemistry and Mathematics. Students also have an understanding of electronics, computers, clerical knowledge, deductive reasoning, management skills, and communication.

Various courses in Immunology are given here:

Diploma Course: It is three-year duration polytechnic diploma programme. You can pursue this course after complete 10^th examination.

• Diploma in Immunology & Blood transfusion

Bachelor Degree Courses: If anyone interested to pursue the bachelor degree, they have to qualify the 10+2 examination with Physics, Chemistry & Biology. Typically, it is a three-year duration programme.

• Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) in Immunology
• Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) in Micro-Biology & Immunology

Master Degree Courses: The duration of this course is two years. For admission in the master course, you have a bachelor’s degree in science subjects such as Biology & Chemistry.

• Master of Science (M.Sc) in Immunology
• Master of Science (M.Sc) in Medical Laboratory Technology (Microbiology & Immunology)

Post Graduate Diploma Course:

• Post Graduate Diploma in Medical Microbiology and Immunology
• Post Graduate Diploma in Clinical Virology and Immunology

Doctoral Degree Course:

• Doctor of Medicine in Clinical Immunology
• Doctor of Philosophy in Immunology
• Doctor of Philosophy in Cancer Immunology
• Doctor of Philosophy in Immunity & Infection
• Doctor of Philosophy in Allergy and Immunology

What are the specializations of Immunology?

• Cancer Immunology
• Allergy and Immunology
• Evolutionary immunology
• Immunology & blood transfusion
• Clinical Immunology
• Reproductive Immunology
• Microbiology Immunology
• Medical microbiology and immunology
• Diagnostic immunology

Some of the leading universities in India, which offer courses in immunology are:

• Government Medical College, Surat
• Amity University, Noida
• National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi
• Vels University, Chennai
• Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education & Research (JIPMER), Puducherry

You can also pursue post graduation from abroad, after doing B.Sc in Immunology from India. Abroad colleges that offer study in immunology are:

• University of Southern California, USA
• University of Sydney, Australia
• University of Iowa, US
• University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, USA
• University of Glasgow, UK
• University of Melbourne, Australia

Career & Jobs

The most important aspect of immunology is research because it is the biggest portion of their jobs. Immunologists work in various areas such as biomedical research, healthcare, agriculture and environmental monitoring. A career in scientific research, immunology requires a Ph.D degree.

There is lots of scope for young aspirants in this field. Those students complete their master degree, they can work in the government & private hospitals.

Many governments funded institutes, hospitals, laboratories and research agencies require such professionals. The demand of the Immunologists in market is more today as common antibiotics and other diseases have become resistant. So, the education in immunology assumes greater importance.

This course opens up careers in molecular biology, diagnostics, biotechnology and regulation, and research into infectious agents associated with immune-based pathology. You can make your career as practitioners in this field and can earn good remuneration through watching patients. Interested students who wish to do further studies can go for research in immunology. Skilled professional in this field with some experience can earn around 1 lakh every month.

Immunologists in the medical field are responsible for diagnosing and treating human patients with immunological disorders.

Immunologists often have a different job profile and their role often depends on the type of organization they work for. Some of the Job profiles are:

• Researcher
• Research Assistant
• Lecturer
• Professors
• Therapist
• Consultants
• Health Care Workers
• Self – Employment
• Cytotechnologist

Job Duties of Immunologist

• Examine patients.
• Diagnose and treat the wide variety of immune system disorders.
• Plan and do experiments and studies.
• Examine and understand the results of studies.
• Arrange complete information based on the results of studies.
• Present reports at seminars, conventions, colleges and other appropriate platforms.

Typical employers of immunologists:

Immunologists are employed by the National Health Service, universities, private healthcare groups, corporate sector, government agencies, various pharmaceutical firms and organizations and biotechnology companies.

Salary Package

There are different branches in the field of immunology, an average salary is difficult to determine. The starting salary of the Immunologist anywhere starts between Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 30,000 per month in India. It can be risen up to Rs. 35,000 to Rs. 50,000 depending on their experience. Students who have a doctoral degree in Immunology, they can earn 7 to 8 Lakh per annum.

In the USA, an immunologist’s can earn $215,158 per year. An immunologist salary starts from $54,880 to $82,320 while an average immunologist receives a take-home salary with a range usually $66,640 to $99,960 per year.

Books & Study Material

Some of the best books for the preparation of Immunology:

• Immunology for Medical Students by Matthew Helbert
• How the Immune System Works (How It Works) by Lauren M. Sompayrac
• The Compatibility Gene by Daniel M. Davis
• Primary Immunodeficiency Disorders by Zinet Currimbhoy, Manisha Madkaikar, Mukesh Desai
• Parasitology by Mohammad Manjur Shah
• Immunology and Evolution of Infectious Disease by Steven A. Frank

For more information related to the Immunology, then you can ask here.