Research professor vs assistant professor

The differences between research professors and assistant professors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a research professor and an assistant professor. Additionally, a research professor has an average salary of $119,503, which is higher than the $87,099 average annual salary of an assistant professor.

The top three skills for a research professor include research projects, public health and data collection. The most important skills for an assistant professor are patients, public health, and pediatrics.

Research professor vs assistant professor overview

	Research Professor	Assistant Professor
Yearly salary	$119,503	$87,099
Hourly rate	$57.45	$41.87
Growth rate	17%	12%
Number of jobs	59,502	30,531
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Average age	41	46
Years of experience	4	4

What does a research professor do?

Research professors lead the research culture in their departments. In some cases, they will do less undergraduate teaching and focus more on teaching post-graduates. They also teach students at higher education institutions. They focus on their research activities that include presenting research findings at conferences worldwide. They are involved in initiatives working with private sectors and other public sector bodies. Part of their duties includes marking assessed work, attending planning meetings to ensure cross-departmental parity, and doing administrative tasks within the department.

What does an assistant professor do?

An assistant professor is an entry-level position who teaches in a university, conducts research, and assists senior professors. Assistant professors supervise undergraduate and graduate students at the same time provide professors and department heads with feedback on the progress of their students. To be effective in teaching and mentoring students, assistant professors must possess strong communication skills with advanced knowledge of their field. They must also have a Ph. D degree in the relevant academic discipline as well as teaching experience in a university setting.

Research professor vs assistant professor salary

Research professors and assistant professors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Research Professor	Assistant Professor
Average salary	$119,503	$87,099
Salary range	Between $67,000 And $212,000	Between $50,000 And $151,000
Highest paying City	Pasadena, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Hawaii
Best paying company	New York University	UT Medical Group, Inc.
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between research professor and assistant professor education

There are a few differences between a research professor and an assistant professor in terms of educational background:

	Research Professor	Assistant Professor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common major	Chemistry	Nursing
Most common college	Duke University	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Research professor vs assistant professor demographics

Here are the differences between research professors' and assistant professors' demographics:

	Research Professor	Assistant Professor
Average age	41	46
Gender ratio	Male, 62.4% Female, 37.6%	Male, 55.5% Female, 44.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 26.4% White, 53.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.9% Asian, 17.4% White, 62.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	8%	16%

Differences between research professor and assistant professor duties and responsibilities

Research professor example responsibilities.

Research lead to important biomarkers for stages of microglial activation.
Manage social media publications to spread awareness and notifications on Facebook.
Publish reports and papers, submit program applications to NIH, DTRA and DARPA.
Focuse on the chemical synthesis of sulfate dendrimer molecules for heparin-like coagulant activity.
Produce accurate results in Stata using appropriate statistical tests and regression models for given dataset.
Conduct statistical analyses and writing programs in SAS and STATA for sophisticate multivariate linear or non-linear regression.

Assistant professor example responsibilities.

Lead outreach to community and statewide stakeholders in the PPCC entrepreneurship program.
Used blackboard online to manage students tests, grade papers and assign materials.
Develop courses in immunology and research ethics, and develop super laboratory courses in cellular physiology and molecular biology.
Conduct research using molecular biology, genetics, histochemistry, cell biology, biochemistry.
Chair psychology and sociology departments, teach psychology classes, revise student practicum program, establish outreach mechanisms to reach alternative students
Serve as professor for humanities and sociology.

Research professor vs assistant professor skills

Common research professor skills

Research Projects, 16%
Public Health, 12%
Data Collection, 11%
Mathematics, 7%
Python, 7%
Research Methods, 5%

Common assistant professor skills

Patients, 17%
Public Health, 6%
Pediatrics, 5%
Curriculum Development, 4%
Research Projects, 4%
Professional Development, 4%

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Research Professor
Research Professor vs Assistant Professor

Updated January 8, 2025

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