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Biology laboratory technician vs cell technician

The differences between biology laboratory technicians and cell technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a biology laboratory technician and a cell technician. Additionally, a cell technician has an average salary of $51,227, which is higher than the $38,514 average annual salary of a biology laboratory technician.

The top three skills for a biology laboratory technician include lab equipment, molecular biology and chemistry. The most important skills for a cell technician are harvest, CIP, and cell culture.

Biology laboratory technician vs cell technician overview

Biology Laboratory TechnicianCell Technician
Yearly salary$38,514$51,227
Hourly rate$18.52$24.63
Growth rate9%9%
Number of jobs45,47018,729
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 75%Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Average age4040
Years of experience44

What does a biology laboratory technician do?

A biological technician assists medical and biological scientists in conducting laboratory experiments and tests. As a biological technician, you will perform a variety of tasks that include setting up, maintaining, and cleaning laboratory equipment and instruments such as test tubes and microscopes, collecting and preparing biological samples, and analyzing experimental data, and interpreting results. In addition, you will assist medical scientists by administering new treatments and medicines to laboratory animals. You will also perform different techniques such as specimen staining to aid identification.

What does a cell technician do?

Cell tower technicians are responsible for maintaining cell phone towers and keeping them in good working condition. They make sure that cell phones are receiving signals all the time without any lag or problem and that customers always have full bars. Their duties include repairing and restoring old materials and equipment, assessing functionality, building, returning, and setting up new towers, as well as consistent servicing and maintenance. Technician applicants are required to have a degree in electronics telecommunications and undergo job and safety training.

Biology laboratory technician vs cell technician salary

Biology laboratory technicians and cell technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Biology Laboratory TechnicianCell Technician
Average salary$38,514$51,227
Salary rangeBetween $29,000 And $50,000Between $32,000 And $79,000
Highest paying CitySouth San Francisco, CAFremont, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaConnecticut
Best paying companyUniversity of CaliforniaGeneral Motors
Best paying industryManufacturingFinance

Differences between biology laboratory technician and cell technician education

There are a few differences between a biology laboratory technician and a cell technician in terms of educational background:

Biology Laboratory TechnicianCell Technician
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 75%Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Most common majorBiologyElectrical Engineering
Most common collegeCornell UniversityDuke University

Biology laboratory technician vs cell technician demographics

Here are the differences between biology laboratory technicians' and cell technicians' demographics:

Biology Laboratory TechnicianCell Technician
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 42.6% Female, 57.4%Male, 76.3% Female, 23.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 12.8% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.4% Asian, 12.7% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.4%Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 12.7% White, 52.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between biology laboratory technician and cell technician duties and responsibilities

Biology laboratory technician example responsibilities.

  • Lead experiments to assess survivor behavior differences in zebrafish contaminate with dietary mercury.
  • Prepare media and reagents necessary for microbiological and electrophoresis analysis.
  • Carry out highly complex pharmaceutical and biotechnology studies while maintaining strong relationships with clients and upholding federal regulations for FDA approval.
  • Design and implement vegetation survey using GPS and GIS; collect and analyze data for reports.
  • Record the amount of plant cover, GPS coordinates and environmental conditions in a journal for different sampling plots.
  • Lead experiments to assess survivor behavior differences in zebrafish contaminate with dietary mercury.

Cell technician example responsibilities.

  • Lead initiatives to migrate customers to VPN and remote access systems.
  • Install, maintain, repair and service PC's, servers, POS systems.
  • Maintain all base stations, transmitter equipment (GSM, UMTS, DAS, & LTE).
  • Remove and replace boost pumps, check valves, plumbing, and braces.
  • Install, troubleshoot, and configure PC, printers, routers., network LAN devices
  • Assure system performance and integrity by performing sweep testing, PIM tests, DC power system configuration, grounding
  • Show more

Biology laboratory technician vs cell technician skills

Common biology laboratory technician skills
  • Lab Equipment, 12%
  • Molecular Biology, 6%
  • Chemistry, 5%
  • Laboratory Procedures, 4%
  • Biology Lab, 4%
  • Cell Culture, 4%
Common cell technician skills
  • Harvest, 13%
  • CIP, 12%
  • Cell Culture, 12%
  • Continuous Improvement, 11%
  • Transmitters, 9%
  • Perform Routine Maintenance, 7%

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