Director of cell biology vs postdoctoral associate

The differences between directors of cell biology and postdoctoral 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 director of cell biology and a postdoctoral associate. Additionally, a director of cell biology has an average salary of $79,225, which is higher than the $54,350 average annual salary of a postdoctoral associate.

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 postdoctoral associate are patients, TIP, and data analysis.

Director of cell biology vs postdoctoral associate overview

	Director Of Cell Biology	Postdoctoral Associate
Yearly salary	$79,225	$54,350
Hourly rate	$38.09	$26.13
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	20,934	18,093
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Doctoral Degree, 47%
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 postdoctoral associate do?

A postdoctoral associate is responsible for researching to support scientific claims and theories by collecting evidence and information to answer scientific questions. Postdoctoral associates must have excellent communication skills, both oral and written, to interact with people and document investigation findings. They also utilize laboratory tools and equipment for scientific researches, conduct field investigations, and interview participants. A postdoctoral associate designs comprehensive research models to discuss results with the panel and the team efficiently and accurately.

Director of cell biology vs postdoctoral associate salary

Directors of cell biology and postdoctoral associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Director Of Cell Biology	Postdoctoral Associate
Average salary	$79,225	$54,350
Salary range	Between $50,000 And $124,000	Between $39,000 And $74,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Berkeley, CA
Highest paying state	Tennessee	Maine
Best paying company	Western Digital	Argonne National Laboratory
Best paying industry	Pharmaceutical	Education

Differences between director of cell biology and postdoctoral associate education

There are a few differences between a director of cell biology and a postdoctoral associate in terms of educational background:

	Director Of Cell Biology	Postdoctoral Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Doctoral Degree, 47%
Most common major	Biology	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	Duke University

Director of cell biology vs postdoctoral associate demographics

Here are the differences between directors of cell biology' and postdoctoral associates' demographics:

	Director Of Cell Biology	Postdoctoral Associate
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 59.0% Female, 41.0%	Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8%
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, 5.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 39.4% White, 42.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between director of cell biology and postdoctoral associate 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.

Postdoctoral associate example responsibilities.

Develop and manage third party claim investigations and contractor remedial oversight for various insurance companies.
Co-Authore NIH grant proposal on membrane protein folding.
Participate in writing research grant applications including NIH and NSF.
X-ray protein crystallographic studies on the structures of antibodies and DNA.
Purify DNA from subject blood samples and organize the genome screen.
Complete mice handling training and currently using CRISPR technology to knockout genes in cell lines.

Director of cell biology vs postdoctoral associate 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 postdoctoral associate skills

Patients, 8%
TIP, 7%
Data Analysis, 6%
Biomedical, 5%
CRISPR, 5%
Python, 4%

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Director Of Cell Biology
Director Of Cell Biology vs Postdoctoral Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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