Junior research fellow vs doctoral fellow

The differences between junior research fellows and doctoral fellows can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a junior research fellow and a doctoral fellow. Additionally, a junior research fellow has an average salary of $64,677, which is higher than the $53,366 average annual salary of a doctoral fellow.

The top three skills for a junior research fellow include cell culture, R and molecular techniques. The most important skills for a doctoral fellow are patients, cell culture, and data analysis.

Junior research fellow vs doctoral fellow overview

	Junior Research Fellow	Doctoral Fellow
Yearly salary	$64,677	$53,366
Hourly rate	$31.09	$25.66
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	61,504	22,661
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Doctoral Degree, 46%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	4	4

Junior research fellow vs doctoral fellow salary

Junior research fellows and doctoral fellows have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Junior Research Fellow	Doctoral Fellow
Average salary	$64,677	$53,366
Salary range	Between $46,000 And $90,000	Between $39,000 And $72,000
Highest paying City	Sunnyvale, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Hawaii
Best paying company	Colfax Corporation	IBM
Best paying industry	Professional	Pharmaceutical

Differences between junior research fellow and doctoral fellow education

There are a few differences between a junior research fellow and a doctoral fellow in terms of educational background:

	Junior Research Fellow	Doctoral Fellow
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Doctoral Degree, 46%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	Duke University

Junior research fellow vs doctoral fellow demographics

Here are the differences between junior research fellows' and doctoral fellows' demographics:

	Junior Research Fellow	Doctoral Fellow
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 49.5% Female, 50.5%	Male, 55.3% Female, 44.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 37.3% White, 43.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 32.9% White, 47.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between junior research fellow and doctoral fellow duties and responsibilities

Junior research fellow example responsibilities.

Manage social media publications to spread awareness and notifications on Facebook.
Work on synthesis of D-Serine from N-Acetyl-D-glucose using microorganisms, immobilize enzymes, and microbial cells in the key steps.
Estimate cytokines levels in human patient samples using ELISA methodology.
Assist in routine analysis using radio immuno assays such as ELISA.
Involve in the multi-step synthesis of bio-active natural products and also involve in the development of novel synthetic methodologies.
Construct a preliminary testing platform for a collaborative $3MM NSF grant between biology and electrical engineering exploring molecular communication theory.

Doctoral fellow example responsibilities.

Lead the in-vitro biophysical and biochemical characterization of homologous recombination and investigate structure-function effects of mutant enzymes.
Attend courses in drug discovery, python programming, and next-generation sequencing analyses.
Coordinate the validation of data aquisition algorithms (C++, python) for all real and simulate data.
Conduct custom synthesis of organic molecules, key intermediates and building blocks for medicinal chemistry applications.
Design PCL/PLCL drug delivery system for DC immunotherapy.
Succeed in using CRISPR to genetically correct diseas iPSCs.

Junior research fellow vs doctoral fellow skills

Common junior research fellow skills

Cell Culture, 8%
R, 7%
Molecular Techniques, 7%
Molecular Biology, 6%
Chemistry, 6%
Research Projects, 5%

Common doctoral fellow skills

Patients, 8%
Cell Culture, 6%
Data Analysis, 5%
Research Projects, 5%
Cell Biology, 5%
Immunology, 5%

Junior Research Fellow vs. similar jobs

Junior Research Fellow related careers

Junior Research Fellow related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Life, Physical, and Social Science Industry
Junior Research Fellow
Junior Research Fellow vs Doctoral Fellow

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse life, physical, and social science jobs