Clinical research scientist vs senior research associate

The differences between clinical research scientists 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 scientist and a senior research associate. Additionally, a clinical research scientist has an average salary of $99,160, which is higher than the $72,618 average annual salary of a senior research associate.

The top three skills for a clinical research scientist include clinical research, clinical trials and clinical development. The most important skills for a senior research associate are patients, data analysis, and CRISPR.

Clinical research scientist vs senior research associate overview

	Clinical Research Scientist	Senior Research Associate
Yearly salary	$99,160	$72,618
Hourly rate	$47.67	$34.91
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	128,547	58,903
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	2	2

What does a clinical research scientist do?

A clinical research scientist is responsible for assisting physicians in conducting laboratory research and examinations to identify diseases and establish treatment plans. They also inspect medical tools and equipment to prevent hazards and operational delays. A clinical research scientist must have excellent communication skills and extensive knowledge of the medical industry to provide the highest quality care services for the patients.

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 scientist vs senior research associate salary

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

	Clinical Research Scientist	Senior Research Associate
Average salary	$99,160	$72,618
Salary range	Between $63,000 And $154,000	Between $51,000 And $102,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	Meta	The Citadel
Best paying industry	Pharmaceutical	Government

Differences between clinical research scientist and senior research associate education

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

	Clinical Research Scientist	Senior Research Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Biology	Biology
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Stanford University

Clinical research scientist vs senior research associate demographics

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

	Clinical Research Scientist	Senior Research Associate
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 35.4% Female, 64.6%	Male, 53.6% Female, 46.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 2.5% Unknown, 7.4% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 13.5% White, 62.2% 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 scientist and senior research associate duties and responsibilities

Clinical research scientist example responsibilities.

Supervise and manage planning, implementation, conduct and reporting of assign early phase international clinical studies in oncology.
Facilitate IRB approval, when require.
Compile and submit reports to U.S. FDA.
Provide draft responses to FDA questions to senior management.
Resolve IRB issues and implement IRB mandate changes in the protocol with amendments.
Recruit investigators perform pre-study visits, negotiate budgets, initiate and monitor studies and verify data for accuracy and completeness.

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 scientist vs senior research associate skills

Common clinical research scientist skills

Clinical Research, 11%
Clinical Trials, 7%
Clinical Development, 6%
Data Management, 5%
Oncology, 5%
Clinical Data, 5%

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 Scientist
Clinical Research Scientist vs Senior Research Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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