Research nurse vs study director

The differences between research nurses and study directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a research nurse and a study director. Additionally, a study director has an average salary of $82,066, which is higher than the $53,463 average annual salary of a research nurse.

The top three skills for a research nurse include patients, informed consent and data collection. The most important skills for a study director are toxicology, data collection, and study design.

Research nurse vs study director overview

	Research Nurse	Study Director
Yearly salary	$53,463	$82,066
Hourly rate	$25.70	$39.45
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	46,665	6,789
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	2	2

What does a research nurse do?

A research nurse specializes in conducting studies and scientific research for healthcare and medical development. They may work for medical facilities, private clinics, learning institutions, and government agencies. It is their duty to design research strategies and procedures, gather and analyze samples through various scientific methods, coordinate with other experts, and develop treatment and healthcare plans to optimize patient services and outcomes. Moreover, a research nurse typically works with a team of researchers, which requires an active communication line while adhering to the organization's policies and regulations.

What does a study director do?

Technically, a study director carries out scientific responsibilities for protocol design or study plan and approval. Study directors supervise the gathering, analysis, interpretation, documentation, and reporting of data results. They handle the matriculation of students with regard to data management system development. Working with the computer systems team is part of their duties so they will be able to establish a data management system in tracking the study participants. They also support the toxicology team or group on different project teams.

Research nurse vs study director salary

Research nurses and study directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Research Nurse	Study Director
Average salary	$53,463	$82,066
Salary range	Between $38,000 And $74,000	Between $56,000 And $118,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Sacramento, CA
Highest paying state	New York	California
Best paying company	Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings	AbbVie
Best paying industry	Pharmaceutical	Health Care

Differences between research nurse and study director education

There are a few differences between a research nurse and a study director in terms of educational background:

	Research Nurse	Study Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Nursing	Biology
Most common college	Duke University	-

Research nurse vs study director demographics

Here are the differences between research nurses' and study directors' demographics:

	Research Nurse	Study Director
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 9.2% Female, 90.8%	Male, 54.9% Female, 45.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 2.6% Unknown, 7.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 8.4% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 2.5% Unknown, 7.5% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 12.0% White, 62.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between research nurse and study director duties and responsibilities

Research nurse example responsibilities.

Collect, manage and analyze preliminary data using SPSS statistical software.
Adhere to local and country specific GCP and ICH guidelines.
Ensure coordinator and investigator compliance with GCP and ICH guidelines.
Assure compliance with good clinical practice (GCP) guidelines and FDA regulations.
Ensure appropriate source documentation, drug accountability and study compliance according to GCP and CFR.
Oversee study protocol implementation to ensure compliance with FDA and other regulatory bodies' rules and regulations.

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Study director example responsibilities.

Design, conducts and manages studies for EPA and oce compliance, such as water solubility and partition coefficient studies.
Manage all outsource toxicology studies at contract research laboratories.
Establish and maintain strong community partnerships to achieve HIV prevention objectives.
Evaluate study design and toxicology data as needed.
Consult drug development scientists on data interpretation and study conclusions for FDA submission.
Participate on the ISO certification team.

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Research nurse vs study director skills

Common research nurse skills

Patients, 18%
Informed Consent, 11%
Data Collection, 5%
IRB, 5%
Oncology, 4%
Research Projects, 4%

Common study director skills

Toxicology, 10%
Data Collection, 7%
Study Design, 7%
Project Management, 6%
Data Analysis, 6%
FDA, 6%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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