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Senior project scientist vs staff scientist

The differences between senior project scientists and staff scientists 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 project scientist and a staff scientist. Additionally, a senior project scientist has an average salary of $106,302, which is higher than the $93,941 average annual salary of a staff scientist.

The top three skills for a senior project scientist include GIS, sample collection and OSHA. The most important skills for a staff scientist are data analysis, research projects, and molecular biology.

Senior project scientist vs staff scientist overview

Senior Project ScientistStaff Scientist
Yearly salary$106,302$93,941
Hourly rate$51.11$45.16
Growth rate17%17%
Number of jobs48,950121,054
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age4141
Years of experience44

Senior project scientist vs staff scientist salary

Senior project scientists and staff scientists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Senior Project ScientistStaff Scientist
Average salary$106,302$93,941
Salary rangeBetween $76,000 And $146,000Between $63,000 And $137,000
Highest paying CitySunnyvale, CARedwood City, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyAmazonEtsy
Best paying industryRetailTechnology

Differences between senior project scientist and staff scientist education

There are a few differences between a senior project scientist and a staff scientist in terms of educational background:

Senior Project ScientistStaff Scientist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common majorChemistryChemistry
Most common collegeDuke UniversityDuke University

Senior project scientist vs staff scientist demographics

Here are the differences between senior project scientists' and staff scientists' demographics:

Senior Project ScientistStaff Scientist
Average age4141
Gender ratioMale, 78.5% Female, 21.5%Male, 67.8% Female, 32.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 24.5% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 26.5% White, 53.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between senior project scientist and staff scientist duties and responsibilities

Senior project scientist example responsibilities.

  • Manage pediatric dose development project, technology transfer project and alternate API supplier qualification project on budget and on schedule
  • Complete health & safety and industrial hygiene oversight for excavation activities relate to utility installations at areas impact with hydrocarbons.
  • Produce ESA report maps utilizing AutoCAD skills.
  • Conduct research programs to identify new ingredients and new test methods to support product IP, consumer concepts and equity claims.
  • Provide technical and regulatory (NEPA) support for natural resources/aquatic environmental/biological projects.

Staff scientist example responsibilities.

  • Lead efforts to replace a critical radioactive immunoassay with a non-radioactive format to measure clinical samples.
  • Manage clinical sample testing using MSD and ELISA in LIMS, including data review and approval using LIMS.
  • Assist in managing and maintenance of HPLC and Prep-HPLC systems to ensure maximum productivity for the process development group.
  • Manage pediatric dose development project, technology transfer project and alternate API supplier qualification project on budget and on schedule
  • Assist with RNA and DNA extractions from FFPE tissue and blood.
  • Supervise temps performing HPLC assays and validations during development and production campaigns under GMP conditions.
  • Show more

Senior project scientist vs staff scientist skills

Common senior project scientist skills
  • GIS, 14%
  • Sample Collection, 12%
  • OSHA, 12%
  • R, 10%
  • Site Assessments, 9%
  • Phase II, 7%
Common staff scientist skills
  • Data Analysis, 9%
  • Research Projects, 7%
  • Molecular Biology, 5%
  • Next-Generation Sequencing, 4%
  • Statistical Analysis, 4%
  • RNA, 4%

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