Program research specialist vs research project coordinator

The differences between program research specialists and research project coordinators 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 a research project coordinator takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a program research specialist has an average salary of $60,904, which is higher than the $48,683 average annual salary of a research project coordinator.

The top three skills for a program research specialist include data analysis, data collection and mathematics. The most important skills for a research project coordinator are data collection, patients, and project management.

Program research specialist vs research project coordinator overview

	Program Research Specialist	Research Project Coordinator
Yearly salary	$60,904	$48,683
Hourly rate	$29.28	$23.41
Growth rate	19%	6%
Number of jobs	115,466	67,800
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age	37	44
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 a research project coordinator do?

Research Project Coordinators take on a lead role in maintaining and creating processes that support the execution of a research project. Their duties include researching governance requirements, preparing for contract bidding, manage budgeting of a project to meet a specified timeline, and present findings of a project to all stakeholders involved. The Research Project Coordinator will also support administrative tasks, including producing corporate reports, organizing committee meetings, and developing a research database to track active milestones achieved.

Program research specialist vs research project coordinator salary

Program research specialists and research project coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Program Research Specialist	Research Project Coordinator
Average salary	$60,904	$48,683
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $90,000	Between $36,000 And $65,000
Highest paying City	Sacramento, CA	Middletown, CT
Highest paying state	Delaware	Connecticut
Best paying company	SAP	Dignity Health
Best paying industry	Technology	Professional

Differences between program research specialist and research project coordinator education

There are a few differences between a program research specialist and a research project coordinator in terms of educational background:

	Program Research Specialist	Research Project Coordinator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Biology	Psychology
Most common college	Northwestern University	Duke University

Program research specialist vs research project coordinator demographics

Here are the differences between program research specialists' and research project coordinators' demographics:

	Program Research Specialist	Research Project Coordinator
Average age	37	44
Gender ratio	Male, 39.0% Female, 61.0%	Male, 37.8% Female, 62.2%
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, 2.5% Unknown, 7.4% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 13.3% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	10%	9%

Differences between program research specialist and research project coordinator 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.

Research project coordinator example responsibilities.

Manage study documentation throughout study life cycle including IRB annual renewals, modifications, patient study charts and regulatory binder.
Recommend administrative revisions to IRB submit studies including inform consent documents.
Demonstrate small molecule are protective against DNA damage in mouse model of melanoma.
Conduct analysis using SPSS which result in developing a new software for students to selecting college.
Conduct primary research through interviews with Boston area travelers and analyze raw data into reports via SPSS.
Maintain FDA correspondence and government documentation.

Program research specialist vs research project coordinator skills

Common program research specialist skills

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

Common research project coordinator skills

Data Collection, 12%
Patients, 9%
Project Management, 6%
Public Health, 5%
IRB, 5%
Data Analysis, 4%

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Program Research Specialist
Program Research Specialist vs Research Project Coordinator

Updated January 8, 2025

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