Program research specialist vs assistant research scientist

The differences between program research specialists and assistant research scientists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a program research specialist, becoming an assistant research scientist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an assistant research scientist has an average salary of $62,780, which is higher than the $60,904 average annual salary of a program research specialist.

The top three skills for a program research specialist include data analysis, data collection and mathematics. The most important skills for an assistant research scientist are research projects, data collection, and data analysis.

Program research specialist vs assistant research scientist overview

	Program Research Specialist	Assistant Research Scientist
Yearly salary	$60,904	$62,780
Hourly rate	$29.28	$30.18
Growth rate	19%	17%
Number of jobs	115,466	88,786
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age	37	38
Years of experience	6	2

What does a program research specialist do?

Program research specialists are professionals who are responsible for performing duties related to the business research program of an organization. These specialists must manage several major marketing research projects that aim to assess CRM solutions, marketing automation, and customer service processes. They must collect qualitative data and perform data analysis to create internal reports and provide recommendations to clients to improve services. Program research specialists must also use various software packages that can summarize and interpret statistical results.

What does an assistant research scientist do?

An Assistant Research Scientist assists in planning, conducting, and analyzing various research projects. They also order and manage lab inventory, materials, and equipment.

Program research specialist vs assistant research scientist salary

Program research specialists and assistant research scientists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Program Research Specialist	Assistant Research Scientist
Average salary	$60,904	$62,780
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $90,000	Between $43,000 And $89,000
Highest paying City	Sacramento, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Delaware	Massachusetts
Best paying company	SAP	University of California
Best paying industry	Technology	Education

Differences between program research specialist and assistant research scientist education

There are a few differences between a program research specialist and an assistant research scientist in terms of educational background:

	Program Research Specialist	Assistant Research Scientist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common major	Biology	Biology
Most common college	Northwestern University	Harvard University

Program research specialist vs assistant research scientist demographics

Here are the differences between program research specialists' and assistant research scientists' demographics:

	Program Research Specialist	Assistant Research Scientist
Average age	37	38
Gender ratio	Male, 39.0% Female, 61.0%	Male, 55.6% Female, 44.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 14.2% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 16.7% White, 52.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	10%	8%

Differences between program research specialist and assistant research scientist duties and responsibilities

Program research specialist example responsibilities.

Manage study documentation throughout study life cycle including IRB annual renewals, modifications, patient study charts and regulatory binder.
Used SAS to review further information for merging projects.
Time code numerous videos for postdoctoral research on developmental behavior and violence -convert subject data into statistical input using IBM SPSS.
Evaluate antibodies by sandwich ELISA to determine their ability to capture or detect proteins.
Modify ELISA and western-blotting protocols to investigate biotin-labele protein-DNA complexes.
Participate in and run biofeedback experiments in the field of psychophysiology.

Assistant research scientist example responsibilities.

Lead a group of four employees in optimizing DNA purification technologies for production DNA sequencing.
Evaluate patients' study eligibility via medical history, obtain informed consent, enroll patients, and achieve enrollment quotas.
Experience in SAS programming in biomedical research.
Prepare salivary samples for Cortisol ELISA assays.
Gather and code quantitative and qualitative data using SPSS and Atlas.ti.
Standardize assays to elucidate the mechanism of action of lead molecules.

Program research specialist vs assistant research scientist skills

Common program research specialist skills

Data Analysis, 14%
Data Collection, 10%
Mathematics, 10%
Public Health, 7%
Research Program, 6%
Research Studies, 5%

Common assistant research scientist skills

Research Projects, 8%
Data Collection, 7%
Data Analysis, 6%
Lab Equipment, 4%
Cell Culture, 4%
Chemistry, 4%

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Program Research Specialist
Program Research Specialist vs Assistant Research Scientist

Updated January 8, 2025

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