Synthetic Biology Engineer
NicheAlso known as: Genetic Engineer, Biodesign Engineer, Metabolic Engineer
Engineer biological systems by designing DNA sequences, genetic circuits, and organisms to produce medicines, materials, food, and biofuels.
Salary Range
The highest-paid specialization or seniority level for synthetic biology engineers.
About 1 in 14 reaches this level
Field of ~10-20K practitioners (est., no BLS code — subset of SOC 19-1021 Biochemists & Biophysicists / 17-2031 Bioengineers); only the top ~7% (~1,050) reach Principal Scientist or Director of Synthetic Biology at ~$230K total comp at firms like Ginkgo Bioworks, Twist Bioscience, and large pharma.
Salary data based on 2025 BLS, Glassdoor, and industry reports. Actual compensation varies by location, experience, and employer.
How to Become One
This career typically requires a master's degree.
AI Risk Assessment
Synthetic biology requires wet-lab skills — physically designing and running experiments with living organisms, troubleshooting biological systems that behave unpredictably, and iterating through design-build-test-learn cycles. AI is accelerating the design phase (protein structure prediction, genetic circuit modeling), but the physical lab work, organism engineering, and experimental troubleshooting cannot be automated by software alone. The field is growing as applications expand into sustainable materials, biofuels, food, and therapeutics. Low risk because the work is fundamentally hands-on and the field is expanding.
Sources
Ratings reflect a 10-year outlook based on 2025-2026 research, weighted toward entry-level impact. Individual outcomes will vary.
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