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.
Research professor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real research professor resumes:
- 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.
- Guide the technical implementation of an automate analysis system (electrophoresis station), with the enhancement of its operational efficiency.
- Work on recommendations to adapt Ukrainian tax system to EU standards in the field of direct taxation.
- Perform forensic analysis of chemical contaminants in fish tissues using multivariate statistical methods and GIS to discern primary regional contaminant sources.
Research professor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 16% of Research Professors are proficient in Research Projects, Public Health, and Data Collection. They’re also known for soft skills such as Observation skills, Communication skills, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Research Professors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Research Projects, 16%
Managed 6 simultaneous research projects ranging from education interventions to charity giving.
- Public Health, 12%
Performed research to ascertain a needs assessment for developing public health curriculum.
- Data Collection, 11%
Involved in data collection and analysis with the mentor.
- Mathematics, 7%
Nominated as the best Instructor within the Mathematics Department.
- Python, 7%
Machine learning and time series research High performance scientific computing in R, Python, SQL, and Matlab.
- Research Methods, 5%
Teach the Scientific Research Methods Laboratory.
Most research professors use their skills in "research projects," "public health," and "data collection" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential research professor responsibilities here:
Observation skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a research professor to have is observation skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "medical scientists conduct experiments that require monitoring samples and other health-related data." Research professors often use observation skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "manipulated primary economic data from survey translated/coded the primary data from observation by using stata, ms access and excel. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling research professor duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "medical scientists must be able to explain their research in nontechnical ways." According to a research professor resume, here's how research professors can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "coordinated with post-doctoral network of media and communication researchers on methodological and theoretical developments derived from research. "
The three companies that hire the most research professors are:
- UT Health San Antonio2 research professors jobs
- University of Virginia2 research professors jobs
- PSEA2 research professors jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable research professor resume templates
Build a professional research professor resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your research professor resume.
Compare different research professors
Research professor vs. Scientist
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.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, research professor responsibilities require skills like "public health," "mathematics," "python," and "scholarship." Meanwhile a typical scientist has skills in areas such as "chemistry," "patients," "cell culture," and "java." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Scientists tend to make the most money working in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $134,486. In contrast, research professors make the biggest average salary, $143,495, in the health care industry.On average, scientists reach similar levels of education than research professors. Scientists are 3.8% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 6.5% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Research professor vs. Associate scientist
An Associate Scientist assists in various experiments and research, working under the direction of a lead scientist. Their specialties may include biological life sciences, geo-science, atmospheric physics, and computing.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, research professor responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "research projects," "public health," "mathematics," and "python." Meanwhile, an associate scientist has duties that require skills in areas such as "chemistry," "patients," "cell culture," and "gmp." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Associate scientists earn a lower average salary than research professors. But associate scientists earn the highest pay in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $80,987. Additionally, research professors earn the highest salaries in the health care with average pay of $143,495 annually.In general, associate scientists achieve similar levels of education than research professors. They're 2.1% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 6.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for research professors in the next 3-5 years?
Friedbert Ninow Ph.D.
Dean, La Sierra University
- All kinds of digital stuff
- Technology that allows us to have alternatives to the screen; screen technology lets us shrink to two-dimensional beings.
Research professor vs. Fellow
A fellow's responsibility will depend on the organization or industry where one belongs. However, most of the time, a fellow's duty will revolve around conducting research and analysis, presiding discussions and attending dialogues, handle lectures while complying with the guidelines or tasks set by supervisors, and assist in various projects and activities. Furthermore, a fellow must adhere to the institution or organization's policies and regulations at all times, meet all the requirements and outputs involved, and coordinate with every person in the workforce.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, research professors are more likely to have skills like "scholarship," "research methods," "conduct research," and "organic chemistry." But a fellow is more likely to have skills like "patients," "professional development," "veterans," and "math."
Fellows earn the best pay in the professional industry, where they command an average salary of $67,978. Research professors earn the highest pay from the health care industry, with an average salary of $143,495.When it comes to education, fellows tend to earn similar degree levels compared to research professors. In fact, they're 1.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 9.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Research professor vs. Senior scientist
A senior scientist is usually in charge of overseeing experiments and evaluating junior scientists' performance, especially in laboratory settings. Moreover, it is also their responsibility to assess every progress report to ensure it's accuracy and validity. As a senior scientist in the field, it is essential to lead and encourage fellow scientists in their joint pursuit for scientific innovations, all while adhering to the laboratory's standards and policies.
Types of research professor
Updated January 8, 2025
