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Research staff member vs assistant research scientist

The differences between research staff members and assistant research scientists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a research staff member, becoming an assistant research scientist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a research staff member has an average salary of $110,035, which is higher than the $62,780 average annual salary of an assistant research scientist.

The top three skills for a research staff member include python, machine learning and research projects. The most important skills for an assistant research scientist are research projects, data collection, and data analysis.

Research staff member vs assistant research scientist overview

Research Staff MemberAssistant Research Scientist
Yearly salary$110,035$62,780
Hourly rate$52.90$30.18
Growth rate17%17%
Number of jobs118,66188,786
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 58%Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age4138
Years of experience42

What does a research staff member do?

A Research Staff Member is a part of the research team who will assist in the entire research project. The staff member will work on various research stages and assist in collating information from different sources. One of the research staff members' responsibilities is to understand all facets of conducting research, get all government policies regarding the particular topic in research, and ensure that all procedures are legal and ethical. The research staff member is a broad term for a person part of a research team and is often given specific tasks when one is officially part of the team.

What does an assistant research scientist do?

An Assistant Research Scientist assists in planning, conducting, and analyzing various research projects. They also order and manage lab inventory, materials, and equipment.

Research staff member vs assistant research scientist salary

Research staff members and assistant research scientists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Research Staff MemberAssistant Research Scientist
Average salary$110,035$62,780
Salary rangeBetween $77,000 And $156,000Between $43,000 And $89,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateConnecticutMassachusetts
Best paying companyPARCUniversity of California
Best paying industryTechnologyEducation

Differences between research staff member and assistant research scientist education

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

Research Staff MemberAssistant Research Scientist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 58%Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common majorElectrical EngineeringBiology
Most common collegeDuke UniversityHarvard University

Research staff member vs assistant research scientist demographics

Here are the differences between research staff members' and assistant research scientists' demographics:

Research Staff MemberAssistant Research Scientist
Average age4138
Gender ratioMale, 68.9% Female, 31.1%Male, 55.6% Female, 44.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 26.2% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 16.7% White, 52.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between research staff member and assistant research scientist duties and responsibilities

Research staff member example responsibilities.

  • Invent and develop new (user) input technology then lead the design and prototyping of its applications.
  • Design, analyze, and oversee HIV relate research projects including IRB protocol.
  • Perform testing for urinalysis, blood sugar, EKG, eye examinations, and blood pressure.
  • Prove that single amino acid changes affect protein oligomerization as well as DNA / RNA - protein binding.
  • Develop advance visualization components and diagrams using C++ third party libraries.
  • Research chemistry and biology projects pertaining to the synthesis of gamma amino derivatives
  • Show more

Assistant research scientist example responsibilities.

  • Lead a group of four employees in optimizing DNA purification technologies for production DNA sequencing.
  • Evaluate patients' study eligibility via medical history, obtain informed consent, enroll patients, and achieve enrollment quotas.
  • Experience in SAS programming in biomedical research.
  • Prepare salivary samples for Cortisol ELISA assays.
  • Gather and code quantitative and qualitative data using SPSS and Atlas.ti.
  • Standardize assays to elucidate the mechanism of action of lead molecules.
  • Show more

Research staff member vs assistant research scientist skills

Common research staff member skills
  • Python, 17%
  • Machine Learning, 14%
  • Research Projects, 6%
  • DOE, 6%
  • Data Analysis, 5%
  • Java, 4%
Common assistant research scientist skills
  • Research Projects, 8%
  • Data Collection, 7%
  • Data Analysis, 6%
  • Lab Equipment, 4%
  • Cell Culture, 4%
  • Chemistry, 4%

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