Neuroscientist vs postdoctoral scholar

The differences between neuroscientists and postdoctoral scholars can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a neuroscientist and a postdoctoral scholar. Additionally, a neuroscientist has an average salary of $76,267, which is higher than the $57,587 average annual salary of a postdoctoral scholar.

The top three skills for a neuroscientist include literature reviews, animal models and experimental design. The most important skills for a postdoctoral scholar are chemistry, python, and patients.

Neuroscientist vs postdoctoral scholar overview

	Neuroscientist	Postdoctoral Scholar
Yearly salary	$76,267	$57,587
Hourly rate	$36.67	$27.69
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	23,046	18,983
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	4	4

Neuroscientist vs postdoctoral scholar salary

Neuroscientists and postdoctoral scholars have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Neuroscientist	Postdoctoral Scholar
Average salary	$76,267	$57,587
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $133,000	Between $41,000 And $79,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Meta	Microsoft
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between neuroscientist and postdoctoral scholar education

There are a few differences between a neuroscientist and a postdoctoral scholar in terms of educational background:

	Neuroscientist	Postdoctoral Scholar
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Most common major	Biology	Chemistry
Most common college	University of Southern California	Duke University

Neuroscientist vs postdoctoral scholar demographics

Here are the differences between neuroscientists' and postdoctoral scholars' demographics:

	Neuroscientist	Postdoctoral Scholar
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 47.4% Female, 52.6%	Male, 53.0% Female, 47.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 3.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.4% Asian, 27.9% White, 56.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.7% Asian, 26.3% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between neuroscientist and postdoctoral scholar duties and responsibilities

Neuroscientist example responsibilities.

Manage sample inventory via in-house laboratory information management system (LIMS) and implement additional systems for sample and chemical organization.
Supervise activities of analytical cellular and molecular immunology laboratories.
Supervise activities of analytical cellular and molecular immunology laboratories.

Postdoctoral scholar example responsibilities.

Lead community-based health projects on and off campus as an Oslerian student scholar.
Lead the in-vitro biophysical and biochemical characterization of homologous recombination and investigate structure-function effects of mutant enzymes.
Utilize basic organic and inorganic chemistry techniques including polymer synthesis and NMR spectroscopy.
Train graduate students on molecular biology techniques- DNA and RNA extraction and qPCR.
Contribute to successful NIH grant proposals.
Develop HPLC analysis method for skin folate.

Neuroscientist vs postdoctoral scholar skills

Common neuroscientist skills

Literature Reviews, 43%
Animal Models, 28%
Experimental Design, 16%
R, 8%
Scientific Data, 4%

Common postdoctoral scholar skills

Chemistry, 10%
Python, 8%
Patients, 6%
Data Analysis, 6%
NIH, 5%
C++, 5%

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Neuroscientist vs Postdoctoral Scholar

Updated January 8, 2025

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