Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between junior scientists and scientists 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 scientist and a scientist. Additionally, a scientist has an average salary of $97,344, which is higher than the $63,169 average annual salary of a junior scientist.
The top three skills for a junior scientist include lab equipment, literature and data analysis. The most important skills for a scientist are chemistry, data analysis, and patients.
| Junior Scientist | Scientist | |
| Yearly salary | $63,169 | $97,344 |
| Hourly rate | $30.37 | $46.80 |
| Growth rate | 17% | 17% |
| Number of jobs | 56,283 | 62,467 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A junior scientist is in charge of conducting research and scientific studies while under the supervision of a more experienced scientist. Their responsibilities typically revolve around gathering and preparing samples, performing experiments and analysis, coordinating with other experts, recording all progress, reviewing results, and summarizing findings into reports and presentations. In a company setting, a junior scientist must adhere to deadlines and budgets, submitting results to senior scientists and managers. Furthermore, it is essential to uphold the policies and regulations of laboratories to maintain a safe and productive work environment.
A scientist is responsible for researching and analyzing the nature and complexities of the physical world to identify discoveries that would improve people's lives and ignite scientific knowledge for society. Scientists' duties differ in their different areas of expertise, but all of them must have a broad comprehension of scientific disciplines and methods to support their experiments and investigations. They collect the sample for their research, record findings, create research proposals, and release publications. A scientist must know how to utilize laboratory equipment to support the study and drive results efficiently and accurately.
Junior scientists and scientists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Junior Scientist | Scientist | |
| Average salary | $63,169 | $97,344 |
| Salary range | Between $44,000 And $90,000 | Between $67,000 And $140,000 |
| Highest paying City | Los Angeles, CA | Redwood City, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | The University of Chicago | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Education | Technology |
There are a few differences between a junior scientist and a scientist in terms of educational background:
| Junior Scientist | Scientist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Biology | Chemistry |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between junior scientists' and scientists' demographics:
| Junior Scientist | Scientist | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 47.0% Female, 53.0% | Male, 56.9% Female, 43.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.7% Asian, 26.3% White, 53.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 26.3% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |