Scientific technician vs certified medical technician

The differences between scientific technicians and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a scientific technician, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a scientific technician has an average salary of $40,956, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.

The top three skills for a scientific technician include data collection, GPS and harvest. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Scientific technician vs certified medical technician overview

	Scientific Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$40,956	$38,859
Hourly rate	$19.69	$18.68
Growth rate	9%	5%
Number of jobs	9,259	164,424
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	40	44
Years of experience	4	12

Scientific technician vs certified medical technician salary

Scientific technicians and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Scientific Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$40,956	$38,859
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $58,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Bethesda, MD	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	California	Alaska
Best paying company	Jacobs Engineering Group	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Pharmaceutical	Health Care

Differences between scientific technician and certified medical technician education

There are a few differences between a scientific technician and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:

	Scientific Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Biology	Nursing
Most common college	Duke University	University of Connecticut

Scientific technician vs certified medical technician demographics

Here are the differences between scientific technicians' and certified medical technicians' demographics:

	Scientific Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	40	44
Gender ratio	Male, 59.9% Female, 40.1%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 13.0% White, 55.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%	Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	6%	8%

Differences between scientific technician and certified medical technician duties and responsibilities

Scientific technician example responsibilities.

Manage AIS boat check stations with WDFW enforcement (Carl Klein).
Identify owl species by sight and sound prompt using hoot flute and reed caller.
Work onboard commercial gillnet boats to monitor salmon harvest.
Measure fork length and weight of salmon and steelhead, as well as other fish species.
Operate and maintain power boats, drift boats, and rafts for field surveys.
Utilize maps, GPS, rangefinder, secchi disk and kayaks on a daily basis.

Certified medical technician example responsibilities.

Maintain the cleanliness of storage areas, trays, centrifuges, refrigerators, freezers and work area.
Administer medications to patients according to their medication record as scheduled, as needed according to physician orders.
Perform laboratory test and procedures in areas including chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, serology, and bacteriology.
Perform first aid and apply CPR when necessary.
Perform first aid or CPR during medical emergencies until paramedics arrive.
Assist the residents in their ADL needs and prepare their meals.

Scientific technician vs certified medical technician skills

Common scientific technician skills

Data Collection, 18%
GPS, 11%
Harvest, 8%
Data Entry, 8%
Lab Equipment, 6%
Boats, 5%

Common certified medical technician skills

Patients, 17%
Vital Signs, 12%
CPR, 8%
Administer Medications, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
HIPAA, 6%

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Scientific Technician
Scientific Technician vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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