Phase I Report: Core Competency Analysis, Platform Identification and Crosscutting Strategies for Iowa Bioscience Development, November 2017

Iowa benefits greatly from the bioscience sector. Biosciences overall represent an economic specialization for the state (with a location quotient of 1.36 – meaning the state has 36% more employment in biosciences than anticipated given national normative levels). Biosciences provide high-wage family sustaining jobs (with an average wage of $67,673 versus the average Iowa private sector wage of $41,964), and Iowa has been generally outperforming the nation in terms of bioscience employment growth (plus, biosciences have added jobs at a rate exceeding that of Iowa’s private sector overall). Specialized, growing and paying strong, family sustaining wages – biosciences are critical to Iowa’s current economic success and hold much potential for further focused development