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The differences between research associates and research fellows can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a research associate, becoming a research fellow takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a research associate has an average salary of $60,166, which is higher than the $53,823 average annual salary of a research fellow.
The top three skills for a research associate include patients, research projects and data analysis. The most important skills for a research fellow are patients, research projects, and data analysis.
| Research Associate | Research Fellow | |
| Yearly salary | $60,166 | $53,823 |
| Hourly rate | $28.93 | $25.88 |
| Growth rate | 17% | 17% |
| Number of jobs | 63,884 | 59,746 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Average age | 38 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A research associate is responsible for assisting the research team, organizing and interpreting findings, and verifying information before presenting the study to the board. Research associates duties also include gathering and comparing data from multiple sources, analyzing the current industry trends, creating draft outlines for reports, collecting individual contacts for interview purposes, and helping with the development of research procedures. A research associate must have excellent time-management skills and ability to multi-task, especially on meeting strict deadlines and conducting studies.
A research fellow is an academic researcher who conducts research and analysis of comprehensive literature, data, and results and provides literature reviews. He/She supervises research assistants and recruits study participants to interview them for a particular study. To become a research fellow, a candidate should have a doctorate in a relevant discipline and publish peer-reviewed papers. Also, a research fellow can be an independent investigator or be supervised by a principal investigator.
Research associates and research fellows have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Research Associate | Research Fellow | |
| Average salary | $60,166 | $53,823 |
| Salary range | Between $41,000 And $87,000 | Between $39,000 And $72,000 |
| Highest paying City | Worcester, MA | South San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | McKinsey & Company Inc |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Non Profits |
There are a few differences between a research associate and a research fellow in terms of educational background:
| Research Associate | Research Fellow | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Most common major | Biology | Chemistry |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Duke University |
Here are the differences between research associates' and research fellows' demographics:
| Research Associate | Research Fellow | |
| Average age | 38 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 50.8% Female, 49.2% | Male, 55.3% Female, 44.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 16.6% White, 52.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 27.1% White, 52.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |