Health physicist vs research laboratory technician

The differences between health physicists and research laboratory technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a health physicist, becoming a research laboratory technician takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a health physicist has an average salary of $74,942, which is higher than the $38,308 average annual salary of a research laboratory technician.

The top three skills for a health physicist include radioactive materials, oversight and ALARA. The most important skills for a research laboratory technician are patients, chemistry, and laboratory equipment.

Health physicist vs research laboratory technician overview

	Health Physicist	Research Laboratory Technician
Yearly salary	$74,942	$38,308
Hourly rate	$36.03	$18.42
Growth rate	8%	9%
Number of jobs	47,640	86,476
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age	48	40
Years of experience	6	4

What does a health physicist do?

A health physicist investigates research principles by which radiation interacts with living systems and matter. Health physicists study environmental radioactivity levels. Part of their research is radiation's effects on biological systems in space and on earth. They ensure the proper functioning of the x-ray and the storage of radiation therapy. Part of their responsibility is to make sure that scientists are following regulations and safely using their radioactive materials. Also, they are advocates of human and environmental protection.

What does a research laboratory technician do?

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.

Health physicist vs research laboratory technician salary

Health physicists and research laboratory technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Health Physicist	Research Laboratory Technician
Average salary	$74,942	$38,308
Salary range	Between $41,000 And $134,000	Between $30,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Chicago, IL
Highest paying state	New York	Illinois
Best paying company	UCI Health	Accenture
Best paying industry	Energy	Manufacturing

Differences between health physicist and research laboratory technician education

There are a few differences between a health physicist and a research laboratory technician in terms of educational background:

	Health Physicist	Research Laboratory Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common major	Physics	Biology
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Cornell University

Health physicist vs research laboratory technician demographics

Here are the differences between health physicists' and research laboratory technicians' demographics:

	Health Physicist	Research Laboratory Technician
Average age	48	40
Gender ratio	Male, 76.9% Female, 23.1%	Male, 49.0% Female, 51.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 2.8% Unknown, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 7.2% White, 77.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.5% Asian, 15.7% White, 49.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.5%
LGBT Percentage	24%	6%

Differences between health physicist and research laboratory technician duties and responsibilities

Health physicist example responsibilities.

Manage the work and flow through the plant and department with regard to NDT.
Ensure local site regulatory compliance by providing RSO oversight.
Interpret and apply NRC and EPA regulations pertinent to each assignment.
Review verification data for compliance with EPA cleanup standards.
Perform all functions of outage health physics job coverage.
Monitor and assist RCA exit portal area as needed.

Research laboratory technician example responsibilities.

Manage RT-PCR screening of candidate genes.
Manage the development of innovative visualization and concept mapping of contest environment analysis challenges and analyst skill sets.
Use many scientific techniques to collect and analyze RNA, DNA, and specific proteins from lines of potato plants.
Preform computational molecular simulation of DNA and RNA.
Retain patients from previous research projects and update database using patient histories and correlating pertinent medical data.
Work with non human primates in an HIV testing laboratory.

Health physicist vs research laboratory technician skills

Common health physicist skills

Radioactive Materials, 9%
Oversight, 9%
ALARA, 7%
Radiation Safety, 7%
Emergency Response, 5%
NRC, 3%

Common research laboratory technician skills

Patients, 9%
Chemistry, 7%
Laboratory Equipment, 7%
Cell Culture, 5%
Research Data, 4%
Research Projects, 4%

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Health Physicist vs Research Laboratory Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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