Research volunteer vs research laboratory technician

The differences between research volunteers and research laboratory technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a research volunteer, becoming a research laboratory technician takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a research volunteer has an average salary of $54,668, which is higher than the $38,308 average annual salary of a research laboratory technician.

The top three skills for a research volunteer include lab procedures, cell culture and laboratory techniques. The most important skills for a research laboratory technician are patients, chemistry, and laboratory equipment.

Research volunteer vs research laboratory technician overview

	Research Volunteer	Research Laboratory Technician
Yearly salary	$54,668	$38,308
Hourly rate	$26.28	$18.42
Growth rate	19%	9%
Number of jobs	50,334	86,476
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age	38	40
Years of experience	2	4

Research volunteer vs research laboratory technician salary

Research volunteers and research laboratory technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Research Volunteer	Research Laboratory Technician
Average salary	$54,668	$38,308
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $85,000	Between $30,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	-	Chicago, IL
Highest paying state	-	Illinois
Best paying company	-	Accenture
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between research volunteer and research laboratory technician education

There are a few differences between a research volunteer and a research laboratory technician in terms of educational background:

	Research Volunteer	Research Laboratory Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common major	Biology	Biology
Most common college	Harvard University	Cornell University

Research volunteer vs research laboratory technician demographics

Here are the differences between research volunteers' and research laboratory technicians' demographics:

	Research Volunteer	Research Laboratory Technician
Average age	38	40
Gender ratio	Male, 38.7% Female, 61.3%	Male, 49.0% Female, 51.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 16.9% White, 52.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.5% Asian, 15.7% White, 49.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.5%
LGBT Percentage	8%	6%

Differences between research volunteer and research laboratory technician duties and responsibilities

Research volunteer example responsibilities.

Evaluate patients' study eligibility via medical history, obtain informed consent, enroll patients, and achieve enrollment quotas.
Assist in monitoring MRI scans.
Assist in cloning and expression for RNA research.
Analyze cell lysates and purify proteins by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis.
Design a PowerPoint presentation to teach senior adults about email accounts.
Assist with laboratory experiments, collect data and DNA samples, contribute to lab protocols.

Research laboratory technician example responsibilities.

Manage RT-PCR screening of candidate genes.
Manage the development of innovative visualization and concept mapping of contest environment analysis challenges and analyst skill sets.
Use many scientific techniques to collect and analyze RNA, DNA, and specific proteins from lines of potato plants.
Preform computational molecular simulation of DNA and RNA.
Retain patients from previous research projects and update database using patient histories and correlating pertinent medical data.
Work with non human primates in an HIV testing laboratory.

Research volunteer vs research laboratory technician skills

Common research volunteer skills

Lab Procedures, 11%
Cell Culture, 8%
Laboratory Techniques, 7%
Data Collection, 6%
R, 4%
RT-PCR, 4%

Common research laboratory technician skills

Patients, 9%
Chemistry, 7%
Laboratory Equipment, 7%
Cell Culture, 5%
Research Data, 4%
Research Projects, 4%

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Research Volunteer
Research Volunteer vs Research Laboratory Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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