Clinical research coordinator vs senior research associate

The differences between clinical research coordinators and senior research associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a clinical research coordinator and a senior research associate. Additionally, a senior research associate has an average salary of $72,618, which is higher than the $52,459 average annual salary of a clinical research coordinator.

The top three skills for a clinical research coordinator include patients, informed consent and IRB. The most important skills for a senior research associate are patients, data analysis, and CRISPR.

Clinical research coordinator vs senior research associate overview

	Clinical Research Coordinator	Senior Research Associate
Yearly salary	$52,459	$72,618
Hourly rate	$25.22	$34.91
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	102,960	58,903
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	2	2

What does a clinical research coordinator do?

A clinical research coordinator is a healthcare professional responsible for administering clinical trials of drugs or medications. Clinical research coordinators work under the supervision of clinical research managers to collect data and help inform trial participants about the study's objectives. They must ensure that these trials have met all regulations, including drug safety, government regulations, and the organization's code of ethics. Clinical research coordinators must obtain a bachelor's degree in nursing and have at least two years of healthcare experience.

What does a senior research associate do?

A Senior Research Associate works closely with research team members to implement research ideas. They diagnose, solve system/software problems, and install application software according to research needs.

Clinical research coordinator vs senior research associate salary

Clinical research coordinators and senior research associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Clinical Research Coordinator	Senior Research Associate
Average salary	$52,459	$72,618
Salary range	Between $37,000 And $72,000	Between $51,000 And $102,000
Highest paying City	Richmond, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Washington	Washington
Best paying company	Genentech	The Citadel
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between clinical research coordinator and senior research associate education

There are a few differences between a clinical research coordinator and a senior research associate in terms of educational background:

	Clinical Research Coordinator	Senior Research Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Nursing	Biology
Most common college	Duke University	Stanford University

Clinical research coordinator vs senior research associate demographics

Here are the differences between clinical research coordinators' and senior research associates' demographics:

	Clinical Research Coordinator	Senior Research Associate
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 20.0% Female, 80.0%	Male, 53.6% Female, 46.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 2.5% Unknown, 7.5% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 10.7% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 2.5% Unknown, 7.4% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 13.4% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between clinical research coordinator and senior research associate duties and responsibilities

Clinical research coordinator example responsibilities.

Assess study participants for adverse reactions or complications and manage side effects of chemotherapy and other study relate drugs.
Establish and maintain strong community partnerships to achieve HIV prevention objectives.
Direct acquisition and analysis of functional MRI research data following GCP and FDA regulations
Prepare and maintain IRB and regulatory documentation for various research projects and consent patients for clinical research.
Facilitate constant communication between principal investigators, oncology nurses, and patients to address concerns and maximize eligibility and enrollment.
Schedule patient for study procedures; initiate/coordinate drug orders, laboratory procedures and treatments for patients base on standing protocol orders.

Senior research associate example responsibilities.

Manage the development of innovative visualization and concept mapping of contest environment analysis challenges and analyst skill sets.
Develop, implement and optimize HPLC and ELISA assays in support of cell line and process development.
Provide purification service with rp-LCMS, np- HPLC, and MPLC, as well QC data including UPLC-MS and NMR.
Engineer and design a unique CRISPR cloning system for the group.
Apply the CRISPR technology to conduct gene editing in human IPSCs.
Develop an identity ELISA assay to detect the presence of competing and irrelevant drug products in manufacturing process.

Clinical research coordinator vs senior research associate skills

Common clinical research coordinator skills

Patients, 11%
Informed Consent, 10%
IRB, 7%
Data Collection, 5%
Research Projects, 4%
Patient Care, 4%

Common senior research associate skills

Patients, 9%
Data Analysis, 6%
CRISPR, 6%
Molecular Biology, 5%
Cell Culture, 5%
Flow Cytometry, 4%

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Clinical Research Coordinator
Clinical Research Coordinator vs Senior Research Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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