Associate staff scientist vs research fellow

The differences between associate staff scientists and research fellows can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an associate staff scientist and a research fellow. Additionally, an associate staff scientist has an average salary of $88,792, which is higher than the $53,823 average annual salary of a research fellow.

The top three skills for an associate staff scientist include FDA, sops and cellular assays. The most important skills for a research fellow are patients, research projects, and data analysis.

Associate staff scientist vs research fellow overview

	Associate Staff Scientist	Research Fellow
Yearly salary	$88,792	$53,823
Hourly rate	$42.69	$25.88
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	111,254	59,746
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	4	4

Associate staff scientist vs research fellow salary

Associate staff scientists and research fellows have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Associate Staff Scientist	Research Fellow
Average salary	$88,792	$53,823
Salary range	Between $62,000 And $126,000	Between $39,000 And $72,000
Highest paying City	San Carlos, CA	South San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Hawaii
Best paying company	SAS Institute	McKinsey & Company Inc
Best paying industry	Technology	Non Profits

Differences between associate staff scientist and research fellow education

There are a few differences between an associate staff scientist and a research fellow in terms of educational background:

	Associate Staff Scientist	Research Fellow
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common major	Biochemistry, Biophysics, Molecular Biology	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	Duke University

Associate staff scientist vs research fellow demographics

Here are the differences between associate staff scientists' and research fellows' demographics:

	Associate Staff Scientist	Research Fellow
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 56.1% Female, 43.9%	Male, 55.3% Female, 44.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 26.4% White, 53.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 27.1% White, 52.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between associate staff scientist and research fellow duties and responsibilities

Associate staff scientist example responsibilities.

Manage sample inventory via in-house laboratory information management system (LIMS) and implement additional systems for sample and chemical organization.
Process client samples requiring DNA purification and DNA characterization.
Perform sequencing and real time PCR.
Conduct research on global regulatory networks using mutagenesis and DNA microarray techniques.
Conduct behavioral neurobiology pharmaceutical research including data analysis, record keeping following FDA regulations.
Key activities include process chemistry development, synthesis of intermediates, compound purification and structure identification, and comprehensive scientific documentation.

Research fellow example responsibilities.

Collaborate with software engineers to automate identification of 15N- and 13C- labele LC-MS features.
Process and manage GIS databases to contribute towards research in human transportation behavior.
Manage investigator initiate and cooperative group correlative studies to identify biomarkers to ascertain tumor burden and clinical outcomes in lymphoma.
Analyze quantitative and qualitative data through statistical software SAS and SPSS.
Conduct sampling, PCR, data analysis and oral presentations of the work
Implement python and C++ codes for numerical computation of transport properties in models and materials.

Associate staff scientist vs research fellow skills

Common associate staff scientist skills

FDA, 68%
Sops, 8%
Cellular Assays, 8%
DNA, 6%
Data Collection, 5%
PCR, 5%

Common research fellow skills

Patients, 10%
Research Projects, 6%
Data Analysis, 5%
Cell Culture, 5%
Immunology, 4%
CRISPR, 4%

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Associate Staff Scientist
Associate Staff Scientist vs Research Fellow

Updated January 8, 2025

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