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The differences between operations research analysts and data analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an operations research analyst has an average salary of $74,424, which is higher than the $74,342 average annual salary of a data analyst.
The top three skills for an operations research analyst include operations research, DOD and python. The most important skills for a data analyst are data analysis, python, and power bi.
| Operations Research Analyst | Data Analyst | |
| Yearly salary | $74,424 | $74,342 |
| Hourly rate | $35.78 | $35.74 |
| Growth rate | 23% | 11% |
| Number of jobs | 154,380 | 167,520 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 45 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | 4 |
Operations research analysts are responsible for assisting organizations in making better decisions. These professionals work to develop solutions that will aid businesses to operate more efficiently using advanced techniques such as data mining, optimization, and mathematical modeling. They work closely with key organizational stakeholders to stay up-to-date on short-term and long-term business goals. They also conduct research that will give them insights they need to guide decision-makers and develop solutions using predictive modeling, simulations, and statistical analysis.
Data analysts are responsible for interpreting the company's statistics and providing sound recommendations to the organization. They manage the organization's data sets, usually related to market performance, finance, or human resources. They are in charge of studying the available data, spotting trends, interpreting what the data and the trends mean, and recommending suggestions that will help the organization perform better. Their recommendations should also be relevant and backed up with strong analyses. Data analysts are expected to have a good grasp of the current market trends in the industry.
Operations research analysts and data analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Operations Research Analyst | Data Analyst | |
| Average salary | $74,424 | $74,342 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $113,000 | Between $53,000 And $103,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Richmond, CA |
| Highest paying state | Maine | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Finance |
There are a few differences between an operations research analyst and a data analyst in terms of educational background:
| Operations Research Analyst | Data Analyst | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Mathematics | Business |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between operations research analysts' and data analysts' demographics:
| Operations Research Analyst | Data Analyst | |
| Average age | 45 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 68.2% Female, 31.8% | Male, 50.2% Female, 49.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.9% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.4% Asian, 12.9% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.5% Asian, 14.5% White, 64.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 12% |