Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between scientists and assistant research scientists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a scientist, becoming an assistant research scientist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a scientist has an average salary of $97,344, which is higher than the $62,780 average annual salary of an assistant research scientist.
The top three skills for a scientist include chemistry, data analysis and patients. The most important skills for an assistant research scientist are research projects, data collection, and data analysis.
| Scientist | Assistant Research Scientist | |
| Yearly salary | $97,344 | $62,780 |
| Hourly rate | $46.80 | $30.18 |
| Growth rate | 17% | 17% |
| Number of jobs | 62,467 | 88,786 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 41 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
A scientist is responsible for researching and analyzing the nature and complexities of the physical world to identify discoveries that would improve people's lives and ignite scientific knowledge for society. Scientists' duties differ in their different areas of expertise, but all of them must have a broad comprehension of scientific disciplines and methods to support their experiments and investigations. They collect the sample for their research, record findings, create research proposals, and release publications. A scientist must know how to utilize laboratory equipment to support the study and drive results efficiently and accurately.
An Assistant Research Scientist assists in planning, conducting, and analyzing various research projects. They also order and manage lab inventory, materials, and equipment.
Scientists and assistant research scientists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Scientist | Assistant Research Scientist | |
| Average salary | $97,344 | $62,780 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $140,000 | Between $43,000 And $89,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redwood City, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Airbnb | University of California |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Education |
There are a few differences between a scientist and an assistant research scientist in terms of educational background:
| Scientist | Assistant Research Scientist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Chemistry | Biology |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between scientists' and assistant research scientists' demographics:
| Scientist | Assistant Research Scientist | |
| Average age | 41 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 56.9% Female, 43.1% | Male, 55.6% Female, 44.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 26.3% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 16.7% White, 52.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |