Scientific consultant vs medical sales representative

The differences between scientific consultants and medical sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a scientific consultant and a medical sales representative. Additionally, a scientific consultant has an average salary of $82,034, which is higher than the $74,079 average annual salary of a medical sales representative.

The top three skills for a scientific consultant include SQL, R and FDA. The most important skills for a medical sales representative are patients, medical sales, and customer service.

Scientific consultant vs medical sales representative overview

	Scientific Consultant	Medical Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$82,034	$74,079
Hourly rate	$39.44	$35.61
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	13,980	206,149
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	2

What does a scientific consultant do?

A scientific consultant provides consultation services for scientific projects and research for implementation and enabling scientific missions to the customers. They strategize solutions for business or organizational problems as well as providing a fresh perspective and knowledge based on their expertise. Their duties and responsibilities include compiling and presenting information to the organization through reports.

What does a medical sales representative do?

A medical sales representative, also known as a pharmaceutical sales representative, is an individual who is responsible for selling and promoting medications and medical equipment. Medical sales representatives set appointments with doctors, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals so that they can promote their company's medical supplies. They are required to build and maintain relationships with their customers so that they can encourage repeat purchases. Medical sales representatives should obtain a bachelor's degree in nursing, pharmacy, life sciences, or a related field.

Scientific consultant vs medical sales representative salary

Scientific consultants and medical sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Scientific Consultant	Medical Sales Representative
Average salary	$82,034	$74,079
Salary range	Between $51,000 And $131,000	Between $45,000 And $121,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Booz Allen Hamilton	Intuitive Surgical
Best paying industry	Technology	Pharmaceutical

Differences between scientific consultant and medical sales representative education

There are a few differences between a scientific consultant and a medical sales representative in terms of educational background:

	Scientific Consultant	Medical Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Most common major	Biology	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Scientific consultant vs medical sales representative demographics

Here are the differences between scientific consultants' and medical sales representatives' demographics:

	Scientific Consultant	Medical Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 63.0% Female, 37.0%	Male, 51.3% Female, 48.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 5.1% White, 73.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between scientific consultant and medical sales representative duties and responsibilities

Scientific consultant example responsibilities.

Provide SharePoint development and administration, budget and financial reporting; manage invoicing; and develop training manuals and user guides.
Define and document a new application architecture which load client databases with properly format data using in-house develop Java ETL applications.
Support regulatory submissions (ISSs, NDA), CDISC (SDTM, ADaM).

Medical sales representative example responsibilities.

Lead the sales team in number of CPAP's sell monthly.
Work closely with manage care plans, Medicare and Medicaid to ensure full coverage of all products in portfolio
Follow policies and procedures to accomplish responsibilities including following HIPAA regulations.
Develop customer relationships and achieve sales objectives for product portfolio consisting of CNS products.
Present clinical information and lead discussions on various types of treatment for hypertension and acute coronary syndrome.
Utilize CRM database to manage and track prospect interaction to ensure accurate documentation of window requirements and ongoing communication.

Scientific consultant vs medical sales representative skills

Common scientific consultant skills

SQL, 73%
R, 7%
FDA, 4%
Laboratory Procedures, 3%
Experimental Design, 2%
Scientific Journals, 2%

Common medical sales representative skills

Patients, 17%
Medical Sales, 16%
Customer Service, 9%
Sales Territory, 6%
Product Knowledge, 6%
Ventilation, 5%

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Scientific Consultant vs Medical Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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