How To Become A Research Scientist Lead: What It Is and Career Path

What is a research scientist lead and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted experts

Dr. Betsy Smith,

Daniel Patten Ph.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a research scientist lead. For example, did you know that they make an average of $49.38 an hour? That's $102,713 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 17% and produce 20,800 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a research scientist lead?

Dr. Betsy Smith

Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Elmira College

I would advise students just graduating to be flexible and open-minded in their job search. Chemistry is a challenging major, and students who succeed in it have learned how to learn, so they shouldn't assume that pure chemistry is the only thing they can do. One growing field is biomedical research, and chemistry majors are often qualified for jobs in that area. If you have other strengths, like writing, there are often jobs that can combine them as a technical writer or work for a science journal. There are jobs out there that might be perfect for you that you haven't heard of until you see an ad for it, so be open to different possibilities.

ScoreResearch Scientist LeadUS Average

Salary

7.7

Avg. Salary $102,713

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.3

Growth rate 17%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.15%

Asian 26.39%

Black or African American 6.36%

Hispanic or Latino 9.59%

Unknown 4.10%

White 53.41%

Gender

female 31.21%

male 68.79%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

6.3

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.8

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.7

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a research scientist lead

Explore research scientist lead education requirements

Most common research scientist lead degrees

Bachelor's

54.7 %

Doctorate

28.4 %

Master's

12.8 %

Start to develop specific research scientist lead skills

Skills	Percentages
Research Projects	18.33%
R	8.22%
Artificial Intelligence	8.12%
Data Analysis	8.06%
Statistical Analysis	5.62%

Complete relevant research scientist lead training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New research scientist leads learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a research scientist lead based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real research scientist lead resumes.

Research research scientist lead duties and responsibilities

Manage pediatric dose development project, technology transfer project and alternate API supplier qualification project on budget and on schedule
Develop, validate and implement robust methods for pharmacokinetic, immunogenicity (ADA) and immunodepletion ELISAs, and cell based-bioassays.
Develop, validate and implement robust methods for pharmacokinetic, immunogenicity (ADA) and immunodepletion ELISAs, and cell based-bioassays.

Get research scientist lead experience

Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a research scientist lead. The most common roles before becoming a research scientist lead include research assistant, research scientist team lead and research associate.

Prepare your research scientist lead resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your research scientist lead resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a research scientist lead resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable research scientist lead resume templates

Build a professional research scientist lead resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your research scientist lead resume.