Biomedical scientist vs medical science liaison

The differences between biomedical scientists and medical science liaisons can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a biomedical scientist and a medical science liaison. Additionally, a medical science liaison has an average salary of $145,718, which is higher than the $72,246 average annual salary of a biomedical scientist.

The top three skills for a biomedical scientist include biomedical, research program and extraction. The most important skills for a medical science liaison are patients, medical affairs, and MSL.

Biomedical scientist vs medical science liaison overview

	Biomedical Scientist	Medical Science Liaison
Yearly salary	$72,246	$145,718
Hourly rate	$34.73	$70.06
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	53,739	57,208
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	4	4

What does a biomedical scientist do?

A biomedical scientist conducts studies to help doctors diagnose and treat various illnesses. They primarily work at laboratories where they gather and analyze samples through different laboratory procedures, perform experiments, utilize special tools and equipment, perform experiments, identify blood groups, and monitor the effect of medication and treatment on the patients. Through their research findings, a biomedical scientist interprets the results and produces written reports, all while maintaining extensive records of every procedure. Moreover, a biomedical scientist keeps a clear communication line with fellow scientists and staff for an efficient and successful workflow.

What does a medical science liaison do?

A medical science liaison (MSL) is a scientific professional who facilitates a working relationship between healthcare companies and leading physicians, researchers, and clinicians. Also referred to as key opinion leaders (KOL), medical science liaisons represent their company to the decision-makers in the medical community as well as to investors and government regulatory agencies. They analyze clinical trends and monitor the scientific literature for new developments in the medical community. Medical science liaisons also prepare medical samples and data to investigate the causes of chronic diseases, pathogens, and toxicity.

Biomedical scientist vs medical science liaison salary

Biomedical scientists and medical science liaisons have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Biomedical Scientist	Medical Science Liaison
Average salary	$72,246	$145,718
Salary range	Between $44,000 And $117,000	Between $59,000 And $359,000
Highest paying City	Sunnyvale, CA	Jackson, TN
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Tennessee
Best paying company	Intuitive Surgical	Saint Luke's Health System
Best paying industry	Health Care	Manufacturing

Differences between biomedical scientist and medical science liaison education

There are a few differences between a biomedical scientist and a medical science liaison in terms of educational background:

	Biomedical Scientist	Medical Science Liaison
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common major	Biology	Nursing
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Southern California

Biomedical scientist vs medical science liaison demographics

Here are the differences between biomedical scientists' and medical science liaisons' demographics:

	Biomedical Scientist	Medical Science Liaison
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 49.6% Female, 50.4%	Male, 41.6% Female, 58.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 26.4% White, 53.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 23.4% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between biomedical scientist and medical science liaison duties and responsibilities

Biomedical scientist example responsibilities.

Manage sample inventory via in-house laboratory information management system (LIMS) and implement additional systems for sample and chemical organization.
Invent SLOP-PCR and a novel fluorogenic probe for live-time PCR.
Prepare functional membranes from mammalian cells for high throughput assays.
Operate and perform quality assurance on large vault style autoclaves.
Provide CDMRP with custom meeting summary documents that meet their specific needs
Construct genomic libraries, sequence clones, devise sequence specific PCR primers.

Medical science liaison example responsibilities.

Supervise and analyze medical necessity review of manage care appeals.
Develop and manage KOLs resulting in presentations to regional, national and international meetings.
Utilize extensive knowledge of medical terminology, ICD-9, HCPCS and CPT coding along with analysis and processing of Medicare claims.
Provide pre-launch field support for a novel diabetes compound.
Provide drug information to medical professionals and sales force within FDA guidelines.
Join Clementine as a trainee BMS and successfully complete training and registration.

Biomedical scientist vs medical science liaison skills

Common biomedical scientist skills

Biomedical, 56%
Research Program, 10%
Extraction, 5%
PCR, 4%
Sops, 4%
FDA, 3%

Common medical science liaison skills

Patients, 11%
Medical Affairs, 9%
MSL, 7%
Medical Science, 6%
Pharmaceutical Industry, 5%
Internal Stakeholders, 4%

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Biomedical Scientist vs Medical Science Liaison

Updated January 8, 2025

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