Project chemist vs senior research chemist

The differences between project chemists and senior research chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior research chemist has an average salary of $95,520, which is higher than the $54,278 average annual salary of a project chemist.

The top three skills for a project chemist include gas chromatography, method development and laboratory services. The most important skills for a senior research chemist are R, chemistry, and product development.

Project chemist vs senior research chemist overview

	Project Chemist	Senior Research Chemist
Yearly salary	$54,278	$95,520
Hourly rate	$26.10	$45.92
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	7,988	55,511
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Project chemist vs senior research chemist salary

Project chemists and senior research chemists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Project Chemist	Senior Research Chemist
Average salary	$54,278	$95,520
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $81,000	Between $69,000 And $130,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Crunchbase
Best paying industry	-	Pharmaceutical

Differences between project chemist and senior research chemist education

There are a few differences between a project chemist and a senior research chemist in terms of educational background:

	Project Chemist	Senior Research Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of California, Berkeley	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Project chemist vs senior research chemist demographics

Here are the differences between project chemists' and senior research chemists' demographics:

	Project Chemist	Senior Research Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 62.8% Female, 37.2%	Male, 79.1% Female, 20.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 18.3% White, 59.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 27.5% White, 52.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between project chemist and senior research chemist duties and responsibilities

Project chemist example responsibilities.

Achieve and maintain ISO 9001-2000 certification by creating and implementing policies and serving as management representative.
Use LIMS to monitor samples world-wide and communicate with global sites in order to keep track of data for specific projects.
Review project-specific sampling and analysis plans and subsequent translation of those requirements into the laboratory information management system (LIMS).
Take initiative to be cross-train in chemistry methods used by the company to perform additional tests that ensure uninterrupt laboratory operation.
Perform testing on gas chromatograph to verify PCB contamination levels.

Senior research chemist example responsibilities.

Manage an analytical laboratory, which include SEM-EDS, GC-MS, GPC, FT-IR, ICP-MS, TGA and DSC equipment.
Conduct HPLC analysis of two main products to support equivalency programs.
Establish the fast HPLC column screening system and serve as super user.
Calculate amounts of unknown components of a distillation bottoms mixture using NMR.
Train over twenty plant operators and scientists to use the FTIR system.
Act as leading analyst to provide analytical services to several GMP API productions.

Project chemist vs senior research chemist skills

Common project chemist skills

Gas Chromatography, 9%
Method Development, 8%
Laboratory Services, 8%
DOD, 7%
Analytical Methods, 6%
Analytical Instrumentation, 5%

Common senior research chemist skills

R, 16%
Chemistry, 14%
Product Development, 8%
Analytical Laboratory, 6%
Organic Synthesis, 4%
Polymer, 4%

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Project Chemist vs Senior Research Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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