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The differences between graduate student interns and graduate researchers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a graduate researcher has an average salary of $32,346, which is higher than the $30,945 average annual salary of a graduate student internship.
The top three skills for a graduate student internship include patients, speech-language pathologist and data collection. The most important skills for a graduate researcher are R, cell culture, and research projects.
| Graduate Student Internship | Graduate Researcher | |
| Yearly salary | $30,945 | $32,346 |
| Hourly rate | $14.88 | $15.55 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 17% |
| Number of jobs | 56,982 | 17,313 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Graduate interns work in different industries, and their job responsibilities may vary. As a graduate student intern, you may be expected to offer your services free of charge to the company you find placement in exchange for the experience you'll be getting. In other cases, you may be offered compensation of some sort. Most often than not, you will be assigned to a department to work under the supervision of the head of that unit.
A graduate researcher is responsible for supporting an educational institution's academic research processes. Graduate researchers assist in data gathering and performing in-depth analysis using research methodologies under the supervision of a research professor. In some cases, graduate researchers also conduct field investigations and analyze other research publications to verify data accuracy. They prepare reports, share recommendations, and keep an organized database for research records. A graduate researcher must have excellent communication skills, both written and oral, as this task requires interaction with the researchers and writing duties.
Graduate student interns and graduate researchers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Graduate Student Internship | Graduate Researcher | |
| Average salary | $30,945 | $32,346 |
| Salary range | Between $18,000 And $50,000 | Between $15,000 And $68,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | - |
| Highest paying state | - | - |
| Best paying company | - | - |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a graduate student internship and a graduate researcher in terms of educational background:
| Graduate Student Internship | Graduate Researcher | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Chemistry |
| Most common college | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Cornell University |
Here are the differences between graduate student interns' and graduate researchers' demographics:
| Graduate Student Internship | Graduate Researcher | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 25.8% Female, 74.2% | Male, 57.3% Female, 42.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 5.7% White, 57.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 11.9% White, 53.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |