Clinical data analyst vs clinical data associate

The differences between clinical data analysts and clinical data associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a clinical data analyst and a clinical data associate. Additionally, a clinical data associate has an average salary of $101,829, which is higher than the $76,314 average annual salary of a clinical data analyst.

The top three skills for a clinical data analyst include patients, data analysis and data collection. The most important skills for a clinical data associate are data review, data management, and FDA.

Clinical data analyst vs clinical data associate overview

	Clinical Data Analyst	Clinical Data Associate
Yearly salary	$76,314	$101,829
Hourly rate	$36.69	$48.96
Growth rate	31%	31%
Number of jobs	136,086	119,026
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age	37	37
Years of experience	4	4

What does a clinical data analyst do?

A clinical data analyst is a healthcare professional trained in checking the validity of scientific experiments and gathered data. Clinical data analysts have a wide variety of responsibilities to fulfill. They ensure that standard processes and protocols are followed, and data is accurate and reliable to improve the best quality and efficiency of care. They ensure that the information has been collected appropriately for clinical trials from databases. Moreover, they manage and develop databases for healthcare facilities and commonly work in a clinical setting.

What does a clinical data associate do?

A clinical data associate is responsible for documenting and recording data from clinical research programs for various purposes, such as validation and future studies. Their responsibilities revolve around understanding the needs of every program, coordinating with different teams to gather accurate data, utilizing special tools and software, and preparing and processing data according to protocols and standards. Moreover, a clinical data associate typically works in a team setting, which requires an active communication line for a smooth and efficient workflow.

Clinical data analyst vs clinical data associate salary

Clinical data analysts and clinical data associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Clinical Data Analyst	Clinical Data Associate
Average salary	$76,314	$101,829
Salary range	Between $53,000 And $109,000	Between $68,000 And $150,000
Highest paying City	Novato, CA	South San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Maryland	Maryland
Best paying company	AbbVie	Santander Private Banking International
Best paying industry	Retail	Health Care

Differences between clinical data analyst and clinical data associate education

There are a few differences between a clinical data analyst and a clinical data associate in terms of educational background:

	Clinical Data Analyst	Clinical Data Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common major	Biology	Biology
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Clinical data analyst vs clinical data associate demographics

Here are the differences between clinical data analysts' and clinical data associates' demographics:

	Clinical Data Analyst	Clinical Data Associate
Average age	37	37
Gender ratio	Male, 29.3% Female, 70.7%	Male, 27.2% Female, 72.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 22.7% White, 59.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 22.7% White, 59.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between clinical data analyst and clinical data associate duties and responsibilities

Clinical data analyst example responsibilities.

Manage clinical data projects for late-phase oncology studies (in-house and outsource).
Manage governance and permissions of SharePoint Intranet as well as data and reporting systems.
Serve as a client contact person for project meetings and CDM status updates and managing external vendors.
Handle post-trial activities and provide training relate to project specifics and ICH GCP.
Created/Modify user acceptance testing (UAT) scripts and perform any require UAT testing.
Perform UAT to ensure test data entry is as expected and create test data entry reports.

Clinical data associate example responsibilities.

Administer the execution of QC evaluation for data enter into the CTMS that lead to senior management exceeding client deliverable expectations.
Perform database audits as required to ensure FDA compliance.
Review SAS edits and data listings to produce data queries for clinical sites.
Ensure rapid identification of database errors by writing SAS code to validate clinical data.
Work with the internal study team and/or CRO on assign studies to identify data issues and proactively address data issues.
Monitor and troubleshoot system performance.

Clinical data analyst vs clinical data associate skills

Common clinical data analyst skills

Patients, 12%
Data Analysis, 11%
Data Collection, 8%
SAS, 6%
Process Improvement, 5%
Data Quality, 4%

Common clinical data associate skills

Data Review, 8%
Data Management, 7%
FDA, 7%
SAS, 6%
Clinical Trial Data, 6%
Data Quality, 5%

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Clinical Data Analyst vs Clinical Data Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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