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Job outlook for research associate professors in the United States
Are research associate professor jobs in demand?
Research associate professor job and salary trends over time
Research associate professor jobs over time
Research associate professor job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 3,404 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 3,737 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 3,836 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 3,724 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 3,563 | 0.00% |
Average research associate professor salary over time
Research associate professor salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $94,301 | $45.34 | +2.8% |
| 2025 | $91,767 | $44.12 | +0.9% |
| 2024 | $90,941 | $43.72 | +5.5% |
| 2023 | $86,193 | $41.44 | +2.1% |
| 2022 | $84,441 | $40.60 | +1.8% |
Research associate professor jobs by state
Most common states for research associate professors
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 165 | 24% |
| 2 | Vermont | 623,657 | 140 | 22% |
| 3 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 698 | 17% |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,077 | 16% |
| 5 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 922 | 16% |
| 6 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 285 | 15% |
| 7 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 158 | 15% |
| 8 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 754 | 14% |
| 9 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 126 | 14% |
| 10 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 1,128 | 13% |
| 11 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 395 | 13% |
| 12 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 167 | 12% |
| 13 | Delaware | 961,939 | 117 | 12% |
| 14 | California | 39,536,653 | 4,364 | 11% |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | 12,805,537 | 1,362 | 11% |
| 16 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 1,018 | 11% |
| 17 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 203 | 11% |
| 18 | Maine | 1,335,907 | 151 | 11% |
| 19 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 108 | 10% |
| 20 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 60 | 10% |
Most common cities for research associate professors
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amherst | 1 | 3% | $124,794 |
| 2 | Pullman | 1 | 3% | $108,968 |
| 3 | Gainesville | 1 | 1% | $81,658 |
| 4 | Miami | 2 | 0% | $71,807 |
| 5 | Baltimore | 1 | 0% | $113,025 |
| 6 | Boston | 1 | 0% | $124,502 |
| 7 | Denver | 1 | 0% | $95,238 |
| 8 | Kansas City | 1 | 0% | $93,128 |
| 9 | Los Angeles | 1 | 0% | $151,381 |
| 10 | Philadelphia | 1 | 0% | $96,897 |
| 11 | Phoenix | 1 | 0% | $75,375 |
Research Associate Professor job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of research associate professor experts
Georgetown University
North Carolina State University
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Jackson State University
University of Maine
Washington State University
University of Kentucky
Purdue University
University of Pittsburgh
University of Houston
Michigan State University
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College
What Research Associate Professor skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Christopher Vitek Ph.D.: Population biology, especially biology that focuses on disease vectors, is a great field to pursue. People will always want to get rid of mosquitoes, so there is always a demand for learning when, where, and how to control them, as well as helping to identify risks for disease transmission. Newly available molecular tools help us understand more about the biological underpinnings that control characteristics like population growth and distribution.
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Christopher Vitek Ph.D.: I love being a population biologist because it allows me to work with a lot of other people and help public health offices learn how to control vector-borne diseases. The work is interesting and has an end result that can provide some use to the public. One thing that people may not like is that population biology often uses a lot of math and mathematical modeling to help predict growth and distribution patterns. You don’t need to be an expert, but you should be comfortable with math.
What Research Associate Professor skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Frank David MD, PhD: My main piece of advice is to network. Do tons of informational interviews with folks and then follow up to see if there are possible opportunities or other connections that folks can help you make. Many biotech and pharma positions go to folks with 'inside tracks' because they are recommended by current employees or already know the hiring manager. Also: be flexible about the type of role whenever possible. For example, if you’re looking at an entry-level lab-based job, don’t get hung up on the specific disease area. Or if you’re interested in regulatory science, cast a broad net and also explore roles in program management and medical writing, which involve similar activities and required skills. Finally: it’s great to look for opportunities at biotech and pharma firms, but don’t forget about contract research organizations, consultancies, and other vendors that serve drug companies. Those types of organizations are often more willing to train folks who are coming straight out of school, and those positions are great stepping stones to eventually move 'to the client side' (into drug companies) as experienced hires.
Camellia Okpodu
What Research Associate Professor skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Camellia Okpodu: My advise would be to continue to network by joining affiliated associations in botany and Keep learning, stay updated on research, and explore new areas.
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Alex Holte PhD: When you are starting out at any career, it is important to negotiate your salary. Many candidates feel that they have to accept their first offer, but in reality, at many jobs, there is some room for negotiation. Be mindful however, to not request a salary that is much higher than what is being offered as they may feel like a compromise would not be possible and move on to the next candidate.
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Meghan McGee-Lawrence Ph.D.: Cast a wide net! A huge variety of career paths can be pursued with a degree like this, including industry, academic research, healthcare, education, and more. It is a very versatile degree, and can be a foundation for a multitude of different professions. Talk to recent graduates from your program (as many as possible!) and see what they did with their degree – the more information you can collect, the better prepared you’ll be to seek out opportunities yourself. Take the time to figure out where your interests lie – and understand that you may have to try a few different paths out before you find the right one for you. The first position you land after graduation doesn’t have to be the job you perform for the next 30 years of your life – so use each opportunity as a learning experience to figure out what you’d really like to do long-term.
What Research Associate Professor skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Ivica Labuda PhD: Certainly everyone in the biotech field would benefit from having knowledge of biotechnology techniques and skills in concert with understanding the regulatory framework. That provides a good foundation so that one can interact confidently in every aspect of the biotech world. With AI progress, the next step is to add the basic understanding of the speed at which we can evolve new techniques and materials. Not everybody needs to code, but everyone needs to think about how to maximize its benefits for biotechnology.
What general advice would you give to a Research Associate Professor?
Kristopher Koudelka Ph.D.: There are two skillsets, and one field I see become more important. The first skillset is application of material. You must know the language of your field; however, most content can be quickly found through simple research. People who can apply this knowledge, and formulate the new questions are more valuable employees. The second skill set is troubleshooting. Very often experiments fail or give strange results, how one can glean as much information as possible from the experiment and then plan the next course of action is a huge asset. The field I see becoming more important is computer programming. Very often these fields deal with large datasets that are so big, complex, or repetitive that computer assistance isn’t just helpful… but mandatory.
Jane Kuandre
Associate ProfessorWhat will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Jane Kuandre: Networking is crucial for career advancement in academia as it allows individuals to establish collaborations, gain access to resources, and stay updated on the latest research trends.
What general advice would you give to a Research Associate Professor?
Jacob Nordman: Salary potential in my field of neuroscience almost always involves publications, awards, and technical acumen. Therefore, as I mentioned, it is important to start early looking for opportunities that can strengthen these areas. Another important aspect of getting high-profile, and thus high-paying, positions, is being able to tell a story with your research and career. Employers want to see that you have thought deeply and strategically about your career and where it’s going. This will allow them to believe you are a safe bet and worthy of their investment.
What Research Associate Professor skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Hung-Chung Huang: Cloud computing, AI (e.g., ChatGPT) computing, machine learning, HMM, neural network, and natural language processing.
Dr. Elizabeth Neiman
Director of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies ProgramUniversity of Maine
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, And Group Studies
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Dr. Elizabeth Neiman: Rather than answer your questions, I'll give you some background information: Since becoming Director of the Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies program at UMaine in fall 2022, I have been doing a great deal of outreach to faculty in other departments across the university.
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Lindsey du Toit: Take every opportunity you can to learn, network, and build an effective team of people that bring a greater breadth and depth of skills and expertise to the work on which you will be focusing. Cultivate a life-long sense of intellectual curiosity and learning. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Treat ignorance as an opportunity to learn. Questions demonstrate you want to understand the situation/problem effectively and that you are paying attention. Always demonstrate integrity in your work. It is one of the most valuable traits you can bring to your career. Be kind and supportive of your colleagues.
Dr. David Harmon
Professor of Animal & Food SciencesUniversity of Kentucky
Animal Sciences
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Dr. David Harmon: Be productive as a graduate student. Publishing is still the road to success.
Yan Cong
Purdue University
Romance Languages, Literatures, And Linguistics
What Research Associate Professor skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Yan Cong: AI singularity, Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), et cetera are topics that trigger a lot of debate nowadays and they will be prevalent in the near future. Perspectives from humanities and linguistics would contribute to the ongoing debate and provide new opportunities for future innovative technologies that are linked to languages, linguistics and humanities.
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Yan Cong: Develop some in-demand skills such as programming or generating content from text models via prompt engineering, et cetera. Get experience and extra income via paid summer internships.
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Arjumand Ghazi Ph. D: Having an advanced degree such as a PhD and even a few years postdoc is a good way to start at a higher level. It often allows one to make up for the reduced earnings during the training periods while increasing long-term earnings.
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Autumn Mathias Ph.D., LCSW: I think it is important for graduates to look at projections on the Bureau of Labor Statistics
website and to conduct general research on the state of certain industries at the time of
graduation. For instance, the tech industry is currently very saturated; some people who started
positions as user experience researchers just a few years ago were laid off. Individuals who have
years of experience in these positions will then have an advantage in securing new positions.
That being said, I believe that quantitative research skills in particular are advantageous for many
positions. This includes attaining coding skills and learning coding languages such as Python, R,
and Java.
In addition to the tech industry, the higher education market for individuals with a Master's
degree or PhD in sociology for tenure-track, full-time assistant professor positions in sociology
proves to remain highly competitive, as there are far more graduates than full-time positions.
That being said, some Master's programs emphasize an applied focus that prepares students for a
variety of research and evaluation positions.
In relation to research skills focused on data collection and analysis, sociology majors develop
writing and presentation skills that are crucial to success in any field. Also, the major's emphasis
on a critical global perspective along with cultural humility, cultural competence, empathy, and
overall interpersonal skills are sought-after skills in many fields. For instance, the U.S. is
experiencing a serious shortage of mental health professionals. Although some mental health
positions require a bachelor's or Master's degree in social work, others are also open to
individuals with a bachelor's degree in sociology or psychology.
Badri Roysam D.Sc.
Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen University Professor Chair, Electrical & Computer Engineering Department University of HoustonUniversity of Houston
Petroleum Engineering
What will help Research Associate Professors increase their earning potential?
Badri Roysam D.Sc.: Make yourself valuable, and become good at articulating your value proposition.
Addie Thompson Ph.D.
Assistant ProfessorMichigan State University
Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences
What skills stand out on Research Associate Professor resumes?
Addie Thompson Ph.D.: I will interject a disclaimer that plant sciences are a fairly large field encompassing many disciplines and skillsets. As such, there will be jobs that are more field crops oriented, some that deal with greenhouse production, others that are analytical and lab-based, some primarily computational and data science-oriented, etc. - without even getting into adjacent fields of study that need plant science expertise like technology/patent law, environmental resources management, various NGOs. So one set of skills that apply to all of those doesn't make a lot of sense. However, it is good to get real-world experience in whatever your area of interest is, beyond classwork. This includes internships, research experiences, and study abroad programs. These experiences indicate that you may be more prepared to jump into a working environment than someone who has only had coursework.
What soft skills should all Research Associate Professors possess?
Addie Thompson Ph.D.: One of the most important skills highlighted in our roundtable earlier this week was actually... likability. It sounds simple and obvious, but your future co-workers have to want to work with you. Your technical competence isn't as important as your willingness and ability to get along well with others without leading to discord. Similarly, unimpeachable morality. There is no tolerance or excuse for poor behavior, whether workplace harassment, stealing credit for others' work, or fabricating results. Other important skills are the ability to communicate across disciplines and to audiences with a wide range of technical expertise, creativity, work ethic, critical thinking, and I might even add empathy. That last one has begun to stand out a bit more in light of the past couple of years, but it also plays into the other skills on a day-to-day basis. If you are a likable, empathetic, creative, hard-working person, you are more likely to be successful in being able to not only think critically about a complex problem but then also communicate your solutions and suggestions to a wide audience, as you can see and process from others' perspectives and understand alternative interpretations.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Research Associate Professors?
Addie Thompson Ph.D.: Keeping in mind the caveats in answer 1 and the suggestions there, I think a strong argument could be made for statistics and data analysis. Not all plant science positions require these skills, of course. But as automation and other technologies become increasingly pervasive, data is very much the modern currency. Learning to process, manipulate, and analyze relevant data types appropriately (ranging from analytical lab data to yield trial data to the image or sensor-based data) will almost certainly pay off. This is something you can even teach yourself through practice and/or with online course modules.
Sara Church
Lecturer of PsychologySaint Mary-of-the-Woods College
Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Research Associate Professors?
Sara Church: Absolutely, yes. We may not even know all the ways this pandemic will impact graduates professionally and personally. Students have experienced tremendous stress because of this pandemic. Classes have gone virtual, loved ones or they themselves have gotten sick, some are battling anxiety and depression-all the while they are trying to complete their coursework and stay engaged. I think it's important for us to acknowledge that along with this collective traumatic experience has come some incredible resilience. Graduates will have become flexible and adaptable; they will be ready to use technology in the field. Also, empathy! There is a depth of compassion for others that comes from living this together.
I will also say that qualified helping professionals are needed now more than ever. Counselor caseloads are packed, and people are reaching out for help at high rates. People were universally stressed before this pandemic happened. This sent some people over the edge and straight to their local therapist. We are working to get our psychology and human services students ready to make an immediate impact in this field.