Director of cell biology vs medical science liaison

The differences between directors of cell biology 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 director of cell biology and a medical science liaison. Additionally, a medical science liaison has an average salary of $145,718, which is higher than the $79,225 average annual salary of a director of cell biology.

The top three skills for a director of cell biology include cell biology, cell culture and cell-based assays. The most important skills for a medical science liaison are patients, medical affairs, and MSL.

Director of cell biology vs medical science liaison overview

	Director Of Cell Biology	Medical Science Liaison
Yearly salary	$79,225	$145,718
Hourly rate	$38.09	$70.06
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	20,934	57,208
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	4	4

What does a director of cell biology do?

A director of cell biology is responsible for leading the monoclonal antibody group in immunoassay re-design for product integrity. You will oversee the initial research and development stage of the proprietary molecular detection devices and train all team members on becoming compliant with good laboratory practice. In addition, you will be responsible for executing small- and full-scale cell line development projects and developing ELISA methods for monitoring pollutants. You are also responsible for advising the senior management team on competing products and technologies.

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.

Director of cell biology vs medical science liaison salary

Directors of cell biology and medical science liaisons have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Director Of Cell Biology	Medical Science Liaison
Average salary	$79,225	$145,718
Salary range	Between $50,000 And $124,000	Between $59,000 And $359,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Jackson, TN
Highest paying state	Tennessee	Tennessee
Best paying company	Western Digital	Saint Luke's Health System
Best paying industry	Pharmaceutical	Manufacturing

Differences between director of cell biology and medical science liaison education

There are a few differences between a director of cell biology and a medical science liaison in terms of educational background:

	Director Of Cell Biology	Medical Science Liaison
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common major	Biology	Nursing
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Southern California

Director of cell biology vs medical science liaison demographics

Here are the differences between directors of cell biology' and medical science liaisons' demographics:

	Director Of Cell Biology	Medical Science Liaison
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 59.0% Female, 41.0%	Male, 41.6% Female, 58.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 26.6% White, 53.7% 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 director of cell biology and medical science liaison duties and responsibilities

Director of cell biology example responsibilities.

Lead the FDA audit of the facility as ChanTest quality representative for the site.
Process, analyze and upload HTS data that lead to the discovery of new structural classes of small molecules.
Train all staff on becoming GLP compliant.
Develop ELISA methods to monitor priority pollutants for the EPA and commercial clients.
Learned and perform various techniques relate to ELISA assays, western-blot, protein purification, phage transduction of bacteria and phage-display.
Conduct product verification testing against the product requirements specification, developing essential documentation for European and FDA submissions.

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.

Director of cell biology vs medical science liaison skills

Common director of cell biology skills

Cell Biology, 16%
Cell Culture, 10%
Cell-Based Assays, 5%
Data Analysis, 5%
Drug Discovery, 5%
Cell Lines, 4%

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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Director Of Cell Biology
Director Of Cell Biology vs Medical Science Liaison

Updated January 8, 2025

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