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Pharmacologist vs medical science liaison

The differences between pharmacologists and medical science liaisons can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a pharmacologist and a medical science liaison. Additionally, a medical science liaison has an average salary of $145,718, which is higher than the $101,437 average annual salary of a pharmacologist.

The top three skills for a pharmacologist include data analysis, preclinical and clinical development. The most important skills for a medical science liaison are patients, medical affairs, and MSL.

Pharmacologist vs medical science liaison overview

PharmacologistMedical Science Liaison
Yearly salary$101,437$145,718
Hourly rate$48.77$70.06
Growth rate17%17%
Number of jobs1,76757,208
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 64%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age4141
Years of experience44

Pharmacologist vs medical science liaison salary

Pharmacologists and medical science liaisons have different pay scales, as shown below.

PharmacologistMedical Science Liaison
Average salary$101,437$145,718
Salary rangeBetween $57,000 And $178,000Between $59,000 And $359,000
Highest paying CityAlameda, CAJackson, TN
Highest paying stateAlaskaTennessee
Best paying companyGenentechSaint Luke's Health System
Best paying industry-Manufacturing

Differences between pharmacologist and medical science liaison education

There are a few differences between a pharmacologist and a medical science liaison in terms of educational background:

PharmacologistMedical Science Liaison
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 64%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common majorBiologyNursing
Most common collegeUniversity of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern California

Pharmacologist vs medical science liaison demographics

Here are the differences between pharmacologists' and medical science liaisons' demographics:

PharmacologistMedical Science Liaison
Average age4141
Gender ratioMale, 44.0% Female, 56.0%Male, 41.6% Female, 58.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 26.2% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 23.4% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between pharmacologist and medical science liaison duties and responsibilities

Pharmacologist example responsibilities.

  • Develop strategies for the CMC teams to achieve global regulatory compliance.
  • Stay inform about FDA regulations.
  • Evaluate the safety, distribution, pharmacokinetics, and bioavailability of investigational new drugs and drug delivery systems.
  • Develop, validate and implement robust methods for pharmacokinetic, immunogenicity (ADA) and immunodepletion ELISAs, and cell based-bioassays.
  • Interpret the pharmacokinetic data of in-vivo bioavailability/bioequivalency studies.
  • Participate in biomarker sub-team for biomarker strategy, vendor evaluation, assay development and validation (IHC and RNA).

Medical science liaison example 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.
  • Show more

Pharmacologist vs medical science liaison skills

Common pharmacologist skills
  • Data Analysis, 15%
  • Preclinical, 11%
  • Clinical Development, 10%
  • Biomarkers, 9%
  • Sops, 8%
  • Pharmacokinetics, 8%
Common medical science liaison skills
  • Patients, 11%
  • Medical Affairs, 9%
  • MSL, 7%
  • Medical Science, 6%
  • Pharmaceutical Industry, 5%
  • Internal Stakeholders, 4%

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