The research investigator acts in a leadership role, overseeing and designing advanced experiments. They usually assist the principal investigator and play a leading role in developing a research program to advance a specific area of study. They play a crucial role in all aspects of research products, including development, implementation, and data analysis.
As a research investigator, your responsibilities will include performing analysis and documentation as per the procedure, reviewing and approving analytical data, and communicating with the client. You'll also be expected to adhere to all operating procedures, communicate with relevant departments, and ensure all measures are met and imparted to the team by training. Educational requirements include a Ph.D., a doctor of medicine (MD) degree, or equivalent doctoral degree along with five years or more work experience.
The position comes with a lot of responsibilities, but it also compensates generously. The average hourly salary for the position is $36.84, which equates to $76,626 annually. The career is expected to grow 8% in the near future.
Research Investigator Overview
Working as a Research Investigator
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a research investigator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $36.84 an hour? That's $76,626 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 8% and produce 10,600 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Research Investigator Do
There are certain skills that many research investigators have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed observation skills, communication skills and leadership skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be a research investigator, we found that a lot of resumes listed 11.3% of research investigators included data analysis, while 7.6% of resumes included molecular biology, and 7.3% of resumes included phd. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the research investigator job title. But what industry to start with? Most research investigators actually find jobs in the health care and education industries.
How To Become a Research Investigator
If you're interested in becoming a research investigator, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 30.3% of research investigators have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 21.9% of research investigators have master's degrees. Even though most research investigators have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a research investigator. When we researched the most common majors for a research investigator, we found that they most commonly earn doctoral degree degrees or bachelor's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on research investigator resumes include master's degree degrees or associate degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a research investigator. In fact, many research investigator jobs require experience in a role such as research assistant. Meanwhile, many research investigators also have previous career experience in roles such as research fellow or senior scientist.
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Research Investigator Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of senior scientist you might progress to a role such as research and development manager eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title research and development director.
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Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Average Salary for a Research Investigator
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
Washington State Research Investigator 3 (Doh5208) Research Investigator 3 (Doh5208) | Washington State Washington State | 12/17/2020 12/17/2020 | $62,74812/17/2020 $62,748 |
Washington State Dshs FFA Research Investigator 3 Dshs FFA Research Investigator 3 | Washington State Washington State | 02/27/2020 02/27/2020 | $60,92002/27/2020 $60,920 |
La Biomed Research Investigator Research Investigator | La Biomed La Biomed | 01/24/2020 01/24/2020 | $92,39401/24/2020 $92,394 |
Hunter International, Inc. Research Investigator Research Investigator | Hunter International, Inc. Hunter International, Inc. | 12/31/2019 12/31/2019 | $73,04512/31/2019 $73,045 |
University of Michigan Research Investigator Research Investigator | University of Michigan University of Michigan | 09/23/2019 09/23/2019 | $62,71409/23/2019 $62,714 |
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Top Colleges for Research Investigators
1. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
2. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
3. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Public
4. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
5. University of California - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Public
6. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Public
7. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
8. Yale University
New Haven, CT • Private
9. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
10. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Top Skills For a Research Investigator
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 11.3% of research investigators listed data analysis on their resume, but soft skills such as observation skills and communication skills are important as well.
- Data Analysis, 11.3%
- Molecular Biology, 7.6%
- PHD, 7.3%
- Research Projects, 5.0%
- Clinical Trials, 4.8%
- Other Skills, 64.0% See All Research Investigator Skills
Best States For a Research Investigator
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a research investigator. The best states for people in this position are Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, and California. Research investigators make the most in Connecticut with an average salary of $142,698. Whereas in New Jersey and Delaware, they would average $142,105 and $138,948, respectively. While research investigators would only make an average of $120,293 in California, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. New Jersey
$142,106
Avg. Salary
2. Massachusetts
$113,201
Avg. Salary
3. Connecticut
$142,698
Avg. Salary
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