Business Resources
Life Sciences Workforce
Maryland’s workforce programs help fuel one of the nation’s leading life sciences clusters. From community college programs that integrate with high school curriculum–to specialized training programs–to some of the world’s most recognized universities, Maryland has a pipeline of well prepared workers to support the life sciences industry.
Our Life Sciences Workforce
Maryland is home to one of the nation’s strongest life sciences industries, employing more than 54,000 people (according to the Milken Institute), across a wide range of jobs in R&D, manufacturing and laboratories.
Maryland’s high concentration of STEM workers, along with some of the most highly-educated professionals in the nation, make it one of the leading places for life sciences and high-tech businesses to lay down roots.
Life Sciences Programs at Colleges & Universities
Maryland’s network of 16 community colleges are responsive; continually launching new programs and curriculum to meet local workforce needs. In particular, Frederick Community College and Montgomery Community College are especially focused on preparing the workforce for industry jobs, creating initiatives such as “bio boot camps” to quickly train entry level employees needed by organizations of all sizes right in their backyards.
In addition to an agile community college network, Maryland colleges and universities prepare students for a range of opportunities, ensuring our businesses are well- equipped with a steady supply of PhDs and other scientific roles for years to come.
BioHub Maryland, a site that helps connect life science companies with local workforce has a comprehensive overview of programs available at Maryland colleges and universities.
Life Sciences Training Programs
Various companies and organizations across Maryland offer training programs to help better prepare the local life science workforce, from entry-level lab techs to postgraduate research scientists. Explore programs, below.
Bio-Trac
Bio-Trac® offers hands-on biotechnology training workshops ideal for bench and research scientists. Team-taught by active researchers at a graduate/post graduate level, Bio-Trac workshops focus on the latest relevant technologies in cell and molecular biology. Bio-Trac provides custom designed training programs for government, private and academic institutions as well as conducts 20+ offerings at the Montgomery College Bioscience Education Center in Germantown, MD.
BioTRAIN
BioTRAIN offers training modules developed with industry input. In addition, BioTRAIN staff work closely with Montgomery College’s biotechnology programs to place students.
Biotechnical Institute (BTI) of Maryland
The Biotechnical Institute (BTI) offers free skill-based scientific training to qualified adult high school graduates who are unemployed or underemployed to become entry-level biotechnicians/lab techs, providing employers with a stream of ready-for-hire, well-qualified lab technicians. BTI also serves biotech employers by providing fee-based workshops in relevant science topics.
The Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES)
Created by Maryland-based National Institutes of Health, the FAES offers an array of management and leadership development seminars and workshops provided to help the medical science and public health community to advance their professional knowledge.
Colleges and Universities Meet Local Workforce Needs
From programs that begin with high school career training to top-rated programs from world-renowned Johns Hopkins University, Maryland's colleges and universities offer everything needed for today's life sciences businesses. In particular, the state's community colleges rally to meet the needs of the local life sciences workforce.
Bridges to Biotech
Bridges to Biotech is a collaboration between the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, the National Institutes of Health, and the Maryland Department of Commerce to provide Ph.D. students and postdoctoral fellows with additional training and networking within the industry. The academic and research partners work to recruit qualified science students and postdocs through a competitive application process, while Maryland Commerce identifies companies that are interested in serving as mentors.
Companies interested in hosting a Bridges to Biotech session, should contact Ulyana Desiderio, Director, Office of Life Sciences at ulyana.desiderio@maryland.gov.
Additional Workforce Resources
- View a comprehensive overview of Maryland’s educated workforce.
- Explore State & Community Data for insight to how Maryland’s workforce stacks up.
- Check out the Maryland Workforce Expressway , a guide to even more workforce development programs across the state.
