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The differences between senior documentation specialists and medical writers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a senior documentation specialist and a medical writer. Additionally, a medical writer has an average salary of $93,842, which is higher than the $45,943 average annual salary of a senior documentation specialist.
The top three skills for a senior documentation specialist include data entry, federal regulations and sharepoint. The most important skills for a medical writer are medical writing, patients, and clinical research.
| Senior Documentation Specialist | Medical Writer | |
| Yearly salary | $45,943 | $93,842 |
| Hourly rate | $22.09 | $45.12 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 8,436 | 59,516 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A senior documentation specialist has the responsibility of leading a team of documentation specialists. They are responsible for the distribution of the documentations their team has written. They oversee new storage systems and optimize the efficiency of existing systems. Ultimately, they preserve documents for their company.
As the name entails, medical writers produce technical, educational, promotional, and technical content. They typically work with physicians, scientists, and subject matter experts to produce documentation that defines product usage and research results. Their duties and responsibilities may vary, but they perform some common tasks, including developing documentation related to clinical trials, creating monographs, and developing promotional materials. Medical writers are also responsible for creating grant proposals, writing newspaper and magazine articles, and creating presentations for conferences.
Senior documentation specialists and medical writers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Documentation Specialist | Medical Writer | |
| Average salary | $45,943 | $93,842 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $90,000 | Between $63,000 And $137,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | - | Virginia |
| Best paying company | - | Biogen |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a senior documentation specialist and a medical writer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Documentation Specialist | Medical Writer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Most common major | Business | Biology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | University of Southern California |
Here are the differences between senior documentation specialists' and medical writers' demographics:
| Senior Documentation Specialist | Medical Writer | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2% | Male, 33.6% Female, 66.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 8.7% White, 71.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 8.7% White, 71.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |