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Scientific technician vs research technician

The differences between scientific technicians 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 scientific technician and a research technician. Additionally, a research technician has an average salary of $43,034, which is higher than the $40,956 average annual salary of a scientific technician.

The top three skills for a scientific technician include data collection, GPS and harvest. The most important skills for a research technician are patients, data collection, and cell culture.

Scientific technician vs research technician overview

Scientific TechnicianResearch Technician
Yearly salary$40,956$43,034
Hourly rate$19.69$20.69
Growth rate9%9%
Number of jobs9,25964,786
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 78%Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age4040
Years of experience44

Scientific technician vs research technician salary

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

Scientific TechnicianResearch Technician
Average salary$40,956$43,034
Salary rangeBetween $28,000 And $58,000Between $31,000 And $59,000
Highest paying CityBethesda, MDPasadena, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaConnecticut
Best paying companyJacobs Engineering GroupGCP Applied Technologies
Best paying industryPharmaceuticalManufacturing

Differences between scientific technician and research technician education

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

Scientific TechnicianResearch Technician
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 78%Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common majorBiologyBiology
Most common collegeDuke UniversityCornell University

Scientific technician vs research technician demographics

Here are the differences between scientific technicians' and research technicians' demographics:

Scientific TechnicianResearch Technician
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 59.9% Female, 40.1%Male, 49.3% Female, 50.7%
Race ratioBlack 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, 12.0% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 16.5% White, 49.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.4%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between scientific technician and research 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.
  • Show more

Research technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage a DNA database and work with researchers to retrieve or send out samples and results.
  • Lead experiments to assess survivor behavior differences in zebrafish contaminate with dietary mercury.
  • Prepare reagents for use in processing samples, DNA and RNA extractions, and QC.
  • Investigate and validate various acute phase protein assays as OA biomarkers in rodent animal models.
  • Perform DNA extraction and analysis for the purpose of identifying bacterial strand for waste stream characterization.
  • Extend course knowledge of CRISPR to experiment.
  • Show more

Scientific technician vs research technician skills

Common scientific technician skills
  • Data Collection, 18%
  • GPS, 11%
  • Harvest, 8%
  • Data Entry, 8%
  • Lab Equipment, 6%
  • Boats, 5%
Common research technician skills
  • Patients, 9%
  • Data Collection, 6%
  • Cell Culture, 5%
  • Laboratory Equipment, 5%
  • Research Projects, 4%
  • Lab Equipment, 3%

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