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Senior laboratory scientist vs medical science liaison

The differences between senior laboratory scientists and medical science liaisons can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior laboratory scientist and a medical science liaison. Additionally, a medical science liaison has an average salary of $145,718, which is higher than the $88,562 average annual salary of a senior laboratory scientist.

The top three skills for a senior laboratory scientist include GMP, FDA and cell culture. The most important skills for a medical science liaison are patients, medical affairs, and MSL.

Senior laboratory scientist vs medical science liaison overview

Senior Laboratory ScientistMedical Science Liaison
Yearly salary$88,562$145,718
Hourly rate$42.58$70.06
Growth rate17%17%
Number of jobs77,36457,208
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 69%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age4141
Years of experience44

Senior laboratory scientist vs medical science liaison salary

Senior laboratory scientists and medical science liaisons have different pay scales, as shown below.

Senior Laboratory ScientistMedical Science Liaison
Average salary$88,562$145,718
Salary rangeBetween $61,000 And $128,000Between $59,000 And $359,000
Highest paying City-Jackson, TN
Highest paying state-Tennessee
Best paying company-Saint Luke's Health System
Best paying industry-Manufacturing

Differences between senior laboratory scientist and medical science liaison education

There are a few differences between a senior laboratory scientist and a medical science liaison in terms of educational background:

Senior Laboratory ScientistMedical Science Liaison
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 69%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common majorChemistryNursing
Most common collegeDuke UniversityUniversity of Southern California

Senior laboratory scientist vs medical science liaison demographics

Here are the differences between senior laboratory scientists' and medical science liaisons' demographics:

Senior Laboratory ScientistMedical Science Liaison
Average age4141
Gender ratioMale, 75.0% Female, 25.0%Male, 41.6% Female, 58.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 26.5% White, 53.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 23.4% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between senior laboratory scientist and medical science liaison duties and responsibilities

Senior laboratory scientist example responsibilities.

  • Manage study protocols and study conduct, intimately involve in the toxicology and pharmacokinetic study protocol development process.
  • Enter results into LIMS database.
  • Generate reports and deliver of presentations to support submissions to FDA.
  • Establish quantitative, proprietary method for measurement of menstrual blood loss (now register with FDA).
  • Key activities include process chemistry development, synthesis of intermediates, compound purification and structure identification, and comprehensive scientific documentation.
  • Interpret metabolism data and review reports to support strategies forward thinking with a specialization in drug metabolism and metabolic enzymes.

Medical science liaison example responsibilities.

  • Supervise and analyze medical necessity review of manage care appeals.
  • Develop and manage KOLs resulting in presentations to regional, national and international meetings.
  • Utilize extensive knowledge of medical terminology, ICD-9, HCPCS and CPT coding along with analysis and processing of Medicare claims.
  • Provide pre-launch field support for a novel diabetes compound.
  • Provide drug information to medical professionals and sales force within FDA guidelines.
  • Join Clementine as a trainee BMS and successfully complete training and registration.
  • Show more

Senior laboratory scientist vs medical science liaison skills

Common senior laboratory scientist skills
  • GMP, 9%
  • FDA, 9%
  • Cell Culture, 9%
  • Analytical Methods, 7%
  • R, 6%
  • Method Development, 6%
Common medical science liaison skills
  • Patients, 11%
  • Medical Affairs, 9%
  • MSL, 7%
  • Medical Science, 6%
  • Pharmaceutical Industry, 5%
  • Internal Stakeholders, 4%

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