What does an application scientist do?
The duties of an application scientist vary in one's place of employment. Typically, they are in charge of providing services to customers in their laboratory equipment needs. Their responsibilities revolve around liaising with clients and fellow scientists, providing technical support through appointments and meetings, discussing and explaining conditions, and even test samples in different scientific applications. Furthermore, as an application scientist, it is essential to implement the laboratory's safety policies and regulations to ensure a safe and healthy work environment for everyone.
Application scientist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real application scientist resumes:
- Manage sample inventory via in-house laboratory information management system (LIMS) and implement additional systems for sample and chemical organization.
- Develop and standardize protocol for pathogen detection in food matrices using real time PCR.
- Utilize free energy perturbation and molecular dynamics approaches to evaluate binding of proprietary camptothecins to DNA.
- Structure-Base design and synthesis of biologically active compounds targeting SH2 domains for the treatment of osteoporosis and/or cancer.
- Conduct technology comparison study to assess applicability of a wide range of chromatography products to support specific HTS assays.
- Develop new product QC program significantly reducing costs and delays for experimental vaccine.
- Collaborate with academic institutions, contract laboratories and manufacturers to establish applicable functionality tests for QC.
- Manage sample inventory via in-house laboratory information management system (LIMS) and implement additional systems for sample and chemical organization.
Application scientist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Application Scientists are proficient in Diagnostics, Technical Support, and Sample Preparation.
We break down the percentage of Application Scientists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Diagnostics, 10%
Involved in kit development for Sepsis Immunological and Diagnostics screening and testing.
- Technical Support, 9%
Provided technical support/sales support in specific application roles with custom-built Olympus- based microscope-platform imaging units for Start-up spectroscopy company.
- Sample Preparation, 7%
Collaborated with existing customers and co-workers on the development of new sample preparation and analysis techniques.
- Application Support, 6%
Provide application support to customers or marketing team.
- Customer Service, 5%
Traveled to 5 different countries to accomplish customer services.
- Next-Generation Sequencing, 5%
Established a Next-generation sequencing platform and developed assays for high-throughput genetic analysis using Ion Torrent Personal Genome Machine (PGM).
"diagnostics," "technical support," and "sample preparation" are among the most common skills that application scientists use at work. You can find even more application scientist responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for an application scientist to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what application scientists do because "medical scientists must be able to explain their research in nontechnical ways." Additionally, an application scientist resume shows how application scientists use communication skills: "facilitate communication between pi and collaborators. "
Observation skills. Another essential skill to perform application scientist duties is observation skills. Application scientists responsibilities require that "medical scientists conduct experiments that require monitoring samples and other health-related data." Application scientists also use observation skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "make detailed observations, document results and perform data analysis. "
The three companies that hire the most application scientists are:
- Thermo Fisher Scientific118 application scientists jobs
- Bruker15 application scientists jobs
- Danaher14 application scientists jobs
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Application scientist vs. Research fellow
A research fellow is an academic researcher who conducts research and analysis of comprehensive literature, data, and results and provides literature reviews. He/She supervises research assistants and recruits study participants to interview them for a particular study. To become a research fellow, a candidate should have a doctorate in a relevant discipline and publish peer-reviewed papers. Also, a research fellow can be an independent investigator or be supervised by a principal investigator.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an application scientist are more likely to require skills like "diagnostics," "technical support," "sample preparation," and "application support." On the other hand, a job as a research fellow requires skills like "patients," "immunology," "crispr," and "cell biology." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Research fellows tend to make the most money working in the non profits industry, where they earn an average salary of $57,261. In contrast, application scientists make the biggest average salary, $100,021, in the manufacturing industry.On average, research fellows reach similar levels of education than application scientists. Research fellows are 2.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 9.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Application scientist vs. Postdoctoral research associate
A postdoctoral research associate is responsible for assisting the educational institution's research department, writing research reports, analyzing research methods, and collecting information and related studies to support the research claims. Postdoctoral research associates must have excellent communication skills, both oral and written, reporting research updates to the research head, performing adjustments as needed, and gaining more expertise on the subject by brainstorming and discussing strategic procedures for the study. They may also conduct field investigation or coordinate with other institutions for additional reference, depending on the research's scope and limitation.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real application scientist resumes. While application scientist responsibilities can utilize skills like "diagnostics," "technical support," "sample preparation," and "application support," postdoctoral research associates use skills like "python," "chemistry," "post-doctoral," and "cell biology."
On average, postdoctoral research associates earn a lower salary than application scientists. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, postdoctoral research associates earn the most pay in the professional industry with an average salary of $69,999. Whereas application scientists have higher pay in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $100,021.In general, postdoctoral research associates achieve similar levels of education than application scientists. They're 0.3% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 9.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Application scientist vs. Postdoctoral associate
A postdoctoral associate is responsible for researching to support scientific claims and theories by collecting evidence and information to answer scientific questions. Postdoctoral associates must have excellent communication skills, both oral and written, to interact with people and document investigation findings. They also utilize laboratory tools and equipment for scientific researches, conduct field investigations, and interview participants. A postdoctoral associate designs comprehensive research models to discuss results with the panel and the team efficiently and accurately.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an application scientist is likely to be skilled in "diagnostics," "technical support," "application support," and "post sales," while a typical postdoctoral associate is skilled in "patients," "tip," "biomedical," and "crispr."
Postdoctoral associates earn the highest salary when working in the education industry, where they receive an average salary of $53,445. Comparatively, application scientists have the highest earning potential in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $100,021.When it comes to education, postdoctoral associates tend to earn similar degree levels compared to application scientists. In fact, they're 2.3% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 24.4% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Application scientist vs. Research associate
A research associate is responsible for assisting the research team, organizing and interpreting findings, and verifying information before presenting the study to the board. Research associates duties also include gathering and comparing data from multiple sources, analyzing the current industry trends, creating draft outlines for reports, collecting individual contacts for interview purposes, and helping with the development of research procedures. A research associate must have excellent time-management skills and ability to multi-task, especially on meeting strict deadlines and conducting studies.
Types of application scientist
Updated January 8, 2025











