Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between biology research assistants and biology laboratory assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a biology research assistant, becoming a biology laboratory assistant takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a biology research assistant has an average salary of $50,800, which is higher than the $34,240 average annual salary of a biology laboratory assistant.
The top three skills for a biology research assistant include laboratory equipment, laboratory techniques and cell culture. The most important skills for a biology laboratory assistant are lab equipment, biology laboratory, and chemistry.
| Biology Research Assistant | Biology Laboratory Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $50,800 | $34,240 |
| Hourly rate | $24.42 | $16.46 |
| Growth rate | 19% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 50,666 | 48,958 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 78% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 38 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A biological research assistant's role is to perform support tasks for biologists and researchers. Their responsibilities typically revolve around organizing samples and research documents, updating databases, reviewing documents, summarizing results into reports and presentations, handling calls and correspondence, coordinating with external parties, and running errands. There are also instances when a biological research assistant prepare laboratories and instruments, cleaning and sanitizing them as needed. Furthermore, one can also perform experiments and analyses under the supervision or directives of a more experienced researcher.
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.
Biology research assistants and biology laboratory assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Biology Research Assistant | Biology Laboratory Assistant | |
| Average salary | $50,800 | $34,240 |
| Salary range | Between $32,000 And $78,000 | Between $22,000 And $52,000 |
| Highest paying City | New Brunswick, NJ | Bridgewater, MA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Battelle | Massachusetts General Hospital |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Government |
There are a few differences between a biology research assistant and a biology laboratory assistant in terms of educational background:
| Biology Research Assistant | Biology Laboratory Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 78% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Biology | Biology |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Duke University |
Here are the differences between biology research assistants' and biology laboratory assistants' demographics:
| Biology Research Assistant | Biology Laboratory Assistant | |
| Average age | 38 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 43.1% Female, 56.9% | Male, 36.7% Female, 63.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 16.9% White, 52.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 6% |