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The differences between research staff members and research technicians 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 staff member and a research technician. Additionally, a research staff member has an average salary of $110,035, which is higher than the $43,034 average annual salary of a research technician.
The top three skills for a research staff member include python, machine learning and research projects. The most important skills for a research technician are patients, data collection, and cell culture.
| Research Staff Member | Research Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $110,035 | $43,034 |
| Hourly rate | $52.90 | $20.69 |
| Growth rate | 17% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 118,661 | 64,786 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 41 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
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.
A research technician is responsible for assisting in research studies and laboratory experiments. Research technicians operate laboratory tools and equipment, process data for experiments, collect samples for study, analyze existing research materials, analyze experiment results, manage inventories and stock supplies, record observations, and create reports for further examination. A research technician must have strong analytical and scientific knowledge, as well as a passion for research writing and investigations crucial for this kind of industry.
Research staff members and research technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Research Staff Member | Research Technician | |
| Average salary | $110,035 | $43,034 |
| Salary range | Between $77,000 And $156,000 | Between $31,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Pasadena, CA |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | PARC | GCP Applied Technologies |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a research staff member and a research technician in terms of educational background:
| Research Staff Member | Research Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Biology |
| Most common college | Duke University | Cornell University |
Here are the differences between research staff members' and research technicians' demographics:
| Research Staff Member | Research Technician | |
| Average age | 41 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1% | Male, 49.3% Female, 50.7% |
| Race ratio | Black 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, 12.0% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 16.5% White, 49.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 6% |