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What does a faculty research assistant do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read
Quoted expert
David Simon

The main job of a faculty research assistant is to gather and log experimental data. Faculty research assistants analyze the statistical aspect of data sets. They prepare spreadsheets and graphs to portray research results. Their duties and responsibilities include the creation of posters and slides to aid researchers in presenting their findings. They need to develop skills in communication, technical, critical thinking, scheduling, and planning. Also, they must know how to maintain safety, quality, and infection control standards.

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Faculty research assistant responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real faculty research assistant resumes:

  • Accomplish the optimized synthesis of a carbohydrate antigen globo-H.
  • Manage all aspects of HPLC method development and analysis through interpretation of data ensuring accuracy of results.
  • Conduct chemistry research with Dr. Willis Weigand.
  • Prepare and submit research grant and IRB applications.
  • Serve as teaching assistant for various courses in chemistry.
  • Secure NIH funding through writing and submission of a grant proposals.
  • Conduct NIH project for measuring brain activity and monitoring brain stroke by near-infrare light.
  • Enforce quality assurance policies and data validity as per institutional IRB and federal guidelines
  • Develop organic synthesis methods that maximize product yields and investigate better separation techniques to minimize substrate loss.
  • Guide the technical implementation of an automate analysis system (electrophoresis station), with the enhancement of its operational efficiency.
  • Guide the technical implementation of an automate analysis system (electrophoresis station), with the enhancement of its operational efficiency.

Faculty research assistant skills and personality traits

We calculated that 14% of Faculty Research Assistants are proficient in Research Faculty, C++, and Biomedical.

We break down the percentage of Faculty Research Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Research Faculty, 14%

    Present findings to research faculty, staff, and peers at Research Symposium at The Commonwealth Medical College.

  • C++, 10%

    Developed and implemented a software package to derive hybrid numeric/symbolic algorithms to solve systems of differential equations using C++.

  • Biomedical, 7%

    Spring 2004, Summer Research Program funded by the Louisiana Biomedical Resea: Exploring the phylogeny of Echinacea-a medicinal plant.

  • Research Projects, 7%

    Major Contributions Successfully contributed to diamond and crystal growth research projects.

  • Research Findings, 5%

    Engaged with Pediatric Neurologist presenting research findings

  • CRISPR, 4%

    Utilized gene silencing techniques such as CRISPR and RNA interference to study ISG gene function.

Most faculty research assistants use their skills in "research faculty," "c++," and "biomedical" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential faculty research assistant responsibilities here:

Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a faculty research assistant to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "medical scientists must be able to explain their research in nontechnical ways." Faculty research assistants often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "helped establish the biobank at cedar sinai medical center with the core responsibility of establishing communication with hospital and irb administration. "

Observation skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling faculty research assistant duties is observation skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "medical scientists conduct experiments that require monitoring samples and other health-related data." According to a faculty research assistant resume, here's how faculty research assistants can utilize observation skills in their job responsibilities: "attended monthly classroom meetings at chicago public schools and recorded observations for data collection and analysis. "

See the full list of faculty research assistant skills

Choose from 10+ customizable faculty research assistant resume templates

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Faculty Research Assistant Resume

Compare different faculty research assistants

Faculty research assistant vs. Senior research fellow

Senior Research Fellows are reputable researchers employed in an academic institution or a research facility. The nature of their employment in the institution is related to their research work or field of interest. Senior Research Fellows lead a team of researchers on big projects that require more team members. They manage the team's budget, set timelines, and guide the researchers. They spearhead the analysis of the data gathered. They also set the tone for the presentation materials. Senior Research Fellows should be passionate about their field, should have a thirst for knowledge, and should be able to lead teams.

We looked at the average faculty research assistant salary and compared it with the wages of a senior research fellow. Generally speaking, senior research fellows are paid $2,432 higher than faculty research assistants per year.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both faculty research assistant and senior research fellow positions are skilled in c++, research projects, and research findings.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, faculty research assistant responsibilities require skills like "research faculty," "biomedical," "biochemistry," and "pi." Meanwhile a typical senior research fellow has skills in areas such as "visualization," "technical assistance," "product development," and "chemistry." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Senior research fellows tend to reach higher levels of education than faculty research assistants. In fact, senior research fellows are 5.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 4.0% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Faculty research assistant vs. Faculty

A faculty member is an individual whose primary responsibility is to provide teaching and research to students in colleges and universities. Faculties must work with colleagues to design a curriculum to keep up with the changes in the discipline. They help their students choose majors and mentor them by way of face-to-face or electronic means. They also keep up their communication with alumni to assist with employment searches or career changes.

On average, faculties earn a $20,708 higher salary than faculty research assistants a year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Faculty research assistants and faculties both require similar skills like "c++," "research projects," and "mathematics" to carry out their responsibilities.

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, faculty research assistant responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "research faculty," "biomedical," "research findings," and "crispr." Meanwhile, a faculty has duties that require skills in areas such as "philosophy," "patients," "rehabilitation," and "student learning." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Faculties earn higher levels of education than faculty research assistants in general. They're 7.9% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 4.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for faculty research assistants in the next 3-5 years?

David Simon

Professor, Stonehill College

Two closely related areas of technology will have a particularly large impact on the careers of young physicists in coming years: quantum technology and photonics.

With the surge in interest in quantum computation and related areas such as quantum cryptography, quantum communication, and quantum sensing, working knowledge of quantum mechanics has become a valuable asset for job seekers. In the past ten years, many start-up companies have appeared whose purpose has been to bring formerly exotic quantum protocols and quantum technologies to life in practical, real-world applications. Many tech giants like Apple, IBM, Microsoft, and Google have also recently founded initiatives along the same lines. So, these quantum technology companies have become a valuable source of potential jobs for new graduates who have a strong grounding in quantum mechanics, combined with either solid computational or experimental skills.

One other rapidly growing source of potential employment for new physics graduates in photonics, the science and application of light-based technologies. Photonics has an enormous range of applications that includes fiber-optic communication networks, self-driving cars, remote sensing for archeology, biomedical imaging, and remote detection of environmental hazards. Photonic devices are also one of the most promising platforms for the quantum technologies mentioned above, as well as being a key tool for many areas of fundamental science such as quantum optics and atomic physics. Non-academic jobs in photonics-related industries have been exploding in recent years, but the academic world has been slow to keep up: there is a widely recognized shortage of dedicated photonics programs at the undergraduate level. So, a student who graduates from a physics program with a strong background in optics and electronics is likely to find themselves with a wide variety of options in photonics-related careers.

Faculty research assistant vs. Research laboratory technician

Research laboratory technicians play a vital role in scientific laboratories. They perform varied duties and responsibilities, which include setting up, operating, and maintaining the laboratory equipment, assisting in laboratory-based research activities such as sampling, testing, and analyzing results, and providing technical support to the laboratory team members. In addition, they are expected to support the development and advancement of science and modern medicine. Other typical duties of research laboratory technicians include preparing samples and specimens, keeping abreast with current technical developments, and ensuring strict compliance with safety procedures.

On average scale, research laboratory technicians bring in lower salaries than faculty research assistants. In fact, they earn a $21,389 lower salary per year.By looking over several faculty research assistants and research laboratory technicians resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "research projects," "crispr," and "nih." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a faculty research assistant is likely to be skilled in "research faculty," "c++," "biomedical," and "research findings," while a typical research laboratory technician is skilled in "patients," "chemistry," "laboratory procedures," and "flow cytometry."

Research laboratory technicians make a very good living in the manufacturing industry with an average annual salary of $42,600. On the other hand, faculty research assistants are paid the highest salary in the manufacturing industry, with average annual pay of $61,923.research laboratory technicians typically earn lower educational levels compared to faculty research assistants. Specifically, they're 10.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 11.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Faculty research assistant vs. Research fellow

A research fellow is an academic researcher who conducts research and analysis of comprehensive literature, data, and results and provides literature reviews. He/She supervises research assistants and recruits study participants to interview them for a particular study. To become a research fellow, a candidate should have a doctorate in a relevant discipline and publish peer-reviewed papers. Also, a research fellow can be an independent investigator or be supervised by a principal investigator.

Research fellows tend to earn a lower pay than faculty research assistants by an average of $5,874 per year.While their salaries may vary, faculty research assistants and research fellows both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "c++," "research projects," and "research findings. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between faculty research assistants and research fellows, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a faculty research assistant might have more use for skills like "research faculty," "biomedical," "biochemistry," and "research assistants." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of research fellows require skills like "patients," "immunology," "cell biology," and "rna. "

In general, research fellows earn the most working in the non profits industry, with an average salary of $57,261. The highest-paying industry for a faculty research assistant is the manufacturing industry.The average resume of research fellows showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to faculty research assistants. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 1.2% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 18.4%.

Types of faculty research assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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