How to hire a medical science liaison

How to hire a medical science liaison, step by step

Here's a step-by-step medical science liaison hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a medical science liaison job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new medical science liaison
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a medical science liaison do?

Post a medical science liaison job for free, promote it for a fee

Post free

1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your medical science liaison job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a medical science liaison for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a medical science liaison to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a medical science liaison that fits the bill.

   This list presents medical science liaison salaries for various positions.

   Type of Medical Science Liaison	Description	Hourly rate
   Medical Science Liaison	Medical scientists conduct research aimed at improving overall human health. They often use clinical trials and other investigative methods to reach their findings.	$28-172
   PHD Researcher	The primary job of a Ph.D. researcher is to plan and conduct experiments and analyzing their outcome... Show more	$16-36
   Researcher	A researcher is responsible for collating, organizing, and verifying necessary information for a specific subject. Researchers' duties include analyzing data, gathering and comparing resources, ensuring facts, sharing findings with the whole research team, adhering to required methodologies, performing fieldwork as needed, and keeping critical information confidential... Show more	$17-57

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Medical Affairs
   • MSL
   • Medical Science
   • Pharmaceutical Industry
   • Internal Stakeholders
   • Scientific Exchange
   • Clinical Trials
   • Clinical Research
   • Excellent Interpersonal
   • Kols
   • Patient Care
   • Advisory Boards
   • Clinical Development

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Supervise and analyze medical necessity review of manage care appeals.
   • Develop and manage KOLs resulting in presentations to regional, national and international meetings.
   • Utilize extensive knowledge of medical terminology, ICD-9, HCPCS and CPT coding along with analysis and processing of Medicare claims.
   • Provide pre-launch field support for a novel diabetes compound.
   • Provide drug information to medical professionals and sales force within FDA guidelines.
   • Join Clementine as a trainee BMS and successfully complete training and registration.

   More medical science liaison duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your medical science liaison job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A medical science liaison can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, medical science liaisons' average salary in louisiana is 48% less than in tennessee.
   • Seniority. Entry-level medical science liaisons 84% less than senior-level medical science liaisons.
   • Certifications. A medical science liaison with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a medical science liaison's salary.

   Average medical science liaison salary

   $145,718yearly

   $70.06 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level medical science liaison salary

   $59,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 21, 2026

   Average medical science liaison salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Tennessee	$188,176	$90
   2	California	$186,494	$90
   3	Minnesota	$183,249	$88
   4	Indiana	$178,702	$86
   5	Montana	$170,015	$82
   6	Connecticut	$165,878	$80
   7	Rhode Island	$162,035	$78
   8	Illinois	$155,473	$75
   9	Wisconsin	$154,075	$74
   10	District of Columbia	$153,848	$74
   11	Washington	$151,850	$73
   12	Ohio	$150,995	$73
   13	New York	$150,867	$73
   14	Maryland	$148,441	$71
   15	Michigan	$147,426	$71
   16	Massachusetts	$142,066	$68
   17	Pennsylvania	$139,715	$67
   18	Arizona	$139,561	$67
   19	Nevada	$138,974	$67
   20	Oklahoma	$138,360	$67

   Average medical science liaison salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Saint Luke's Health System	$322,184	$154.90	2
   2	Novant Health	$234,521	$112.75	4
   3	Baptist Health Home Care	$207,725	$99.87	1
   4	Organon	$204,409	$98.27	26
   5	Daiichi Sankyo	$201,755	$97.00	2
   6	Sanofi US	$199,511	$95.92	32
   7	Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.	$197,611	$95.01	50
   8	American Society of Hematology	$192,902	$92.74
   9	UCB	$190,900	$91.78	6
   10	Fresenius Medical Care North America Holdings Limited Partnership	$183,126	$88.04
   11	Eisai	$183,094	$88.03	23
   12	Amneal Pharmaceuticals	$177,102	$85.15	3
   13	Genentech	$174,515	$83.90	41
   14	Catalyst Pharmaceuticals	$174,071	$83.69	2
   15	Columbus Regional Health	$167,878	$80.71
   16	UnitedHealth Group	$165,366	$79.50	324
   17	Ferring Pharmaceuticals	$163,962	$78.83	1
   18	Otsuka Pharmaceuticals	$160,090	$76.97	408
   19	Biogen	$159,819	$76.84	17
   20	Exact Sciences	$159,481	$76.67	1

4. Writing a medical science liaison job description

   A job description for a medical science liaison role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a medical science liaison job description:

   Medical science liaison job description example

   The Sr. MSL plays a pivotal role in the education of healthcare professionals (HCPs) about Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy as well as Sarepta's investigational therapeutics and product pipeline. The Sr. MSL is expected to have expertise in the field of Neurology / Pediatrics and to be a scientific expert regarding Sarepta's portfolio of products. This role serves as a resource for scientific information for key customers, including but not limited to national and regional opinion leaders, investigators, advisors, and physician networks. The successful candidate will be highly driven individual who combines scientific knowledge with a focus on customer service and compassion for the patients we serve. This role actively contributes to the establishment of MSL process and policy, KOL strategy development, and tactical planning.
   
   This position requires the incumbent to be located in and covering territory of the following state: Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee.
   Primary Responsibilities Include:
   Identify, establish, and maintain collaborative relationships with key opinion leaders, investigators, and institutions within academic, clinical, and health care organizations in a defined territory Implement KOL field strategy, KOL identification, speaker development, and support Leadership role in medical education for healthcare professionals through proactive communication of scientific data as well as scientific exchange of information during routine interactions High quality presentations of scientific data to health care professionals in various settings, including advisory boards, investigator meetings, and other appropriate venues to enhance product / disease state knowledge Provide on-site support to clinical operations for investigators in ongoing clinical trials, investigator-initiated studies, and registries consistent with company objectives and regulations Visit potential sites to assess their capabilities with regard to conduct these various forms of clinical research Provide professional medical affairs representation and support at global, national and regional scientific meetings, including but not limited to staffing medical affairs booths, gathering competitive intelligence, and partnering with medical information to develop post-conference scientific materials Develop and maintain clinical expertise in Duchenne muscular dystrophy through review of scientific journals, recent data disclosures and participation in scientific congresses Demonstrate an understanding of key medical and commercial strategies and provide medical support for commercial activities Perform other related duties as needed
   
   Desired Education and Skills:
   Advanced degree such as MD, PhD, PharmD, or NP/PA required At least 10 years of relevant experience; of which, at least 5+ years of MSL experience Familiarity with and track record of complying with industry and regulatory compliance guidelines Demonstrated ability to work independently and in collaborative team environment Existing Neurology / Pediatric experience and relationships is a plus, experience in immunology and/or gene therapy a plus Experience and expertise in clinical trial design, interpretation of scientific data, competitive intelligence tools, drug information systems, and medical marketing strategies High integrity, sense of urgency, ability to recognize time sensitivity Excellent written and verbal communication skills, exceptional listening skills, strong presentation skills, and good negotiating and influencing skills Recognized by former peers/colleagues/managers for attributes congruent with Sarepta Cultural Values: Patients First, Action, Unconventional Thinking, Talent, and IntegrityWillingness to travel >50% of time
   
   Candidates must be authorized to work in the U.S.
   Sarepta Therapeutics offers a competitive compensation and benefit package.
   Sarepta Therapeutics is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and participates in e-Verify.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right medical science liaison for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with medical science liaisons they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit medical science liaisons who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your medical science liaison job on Zippia to find and recruit medical science liaison candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit medical science liaisons, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new medical science liaison

   Once you've selected the best medical science liaison candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new medical science liaison. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

   Sign up to download full list

   Sign up

How much does it cost to hire a medical science liaison?