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The differences between research associates and scientists 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 scientist takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a scientist has an average salary of $97,344, which is higher than the $60,166 average annual salary of a research associate.
The top three skills for a research associate include patients, research projects and data analysis. The most important skills for a scientist are chemistry, data analysis, and patients.
| Research Associate | Scientist | |
| Yearly salary | $60,166 | $97,344 |
| Hourly rate | $28.93 | $46.80 |
| Growth rate | 17% | 17% |
| Number of jobs | 63,884 | 62,467 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| 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 scientist is responsible for researching and analyzing the nature and complexities of the physical world to identify discoveries that would improve people's lives and ignite scientific knowledge for society. Scientists' duties differ in their different areas of expertise, but all of them must have a broad comprehension of scientific disciplines and methods to support their experiments and investigations. They collect the sample for their research, record findings, create research proposals, and release publications. A scientist must know how to utilize laboratory equipment to support the study and drive results efficiently and accurately.
Research associates and scientists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Research Associate | Scientist | |
| Average salary | $60,166 | $97,344 |
| Salary range | Between $41,000 And $87,000 | Between $67,000 And $140,000 |
| Highest paying City | Worcester, MA | Redwood City, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | California |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a research associate and a scientist in terms of educational background:
| Research Associate | Scientist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 60% |
| Most common major | Biology | Chemistry |
| Most common college | Harvard University | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between research associates' and scientists' demographics:
| Research Associate | Scientist | |
| Average age | 38 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 50.8% Female, 49.2% | Male, 56.9% Female, 43.1% |
| 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, 6.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 26.3% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |