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The differences between biology laboratory assistants and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a biology laboratory assistant, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $34,240 average annual salary of a biology laboratory assistant.
The top three skills for a biology laboratory assistant include lab equipment, biology laboratory and chemistry. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Biology Laboratory Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $34,240 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $16.46 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 48,958 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
A biology laboratory assistant is in charge of assisting scientists or researchers and performing laboratory support tasks on a daily basis. Their responsibilities include setting up and sanitizing equipment, preparing samples, maintaining documentation of all experiments and procedures, writing laboratory reports, and running errands as needed. There are also instances where they must update databases, answer calls and correspondence, and grade student papers. Furthermore, a biology laboratory assistant must maintain the cleanliness of laboratories, all while implementing its policies and regulations.
Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.
Biology laboratory assistants and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Biology Laboratory Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $34,240 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $52,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Bridgewater, MA | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Massachusetts General Hospital | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Government | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a biology laboratory assistant and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Biology Laboratory Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Biology | Nursing |
| Most common college | Duke University | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between biology laboratory assistants' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Biology Laboratory Assistant | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 36.7% Female, 63.3% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.4% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 13.7% Asian, 14.9% White, 50.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.5% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |