Senior research specialist vs senior research analyst

The differences between senior research specialists and senior research analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a senior research specialist and a senior research analyst. Additionally, a senior research analyst has an average salary of $75,056, which is higher than the $65,071 average annual salary of a senior research specialist.

The top three skills for a senior research specialist include data collection, research projects and data analysis. The most important skills for a senior research analyst are analytics, data analysis, and data collection.

Senior research specialist vs senior research analyst overview

	Senior Research Specialist	Senior Research Analyst
Yearly salary	$65,071	$75,056
Hourly rate	$31.28	$36.08
Growth rate	19%	19%
Number of jobs	57,586	71,891
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age	37	37
Years of experience	6	6

What does a senior research specialist do?

Senior research specialists are professionals who manage a team of junior research specialists that develop objectives and design research projects and proposals. These senior specialists are required to conduct scientific experiments and perform data collection to provide test evaluation and research results. They are required to propose new techniques that could improve the research quality and productivity of the team while assisting in setting up new equipment. Senior research specialists must also develop standard operating procedures while adhering to the company's policies and safety guidelines to ensure safety in their workplace.

What does a senior research analyst do?

The duties of a senior research analyst depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around coordinating with different departments to gather necessary data, performing research and analysis to identify consumer and market needs, finding new business opportunities, and devising strategies to optimize workflow and workforce processes. Furthermore, as a senior research analyst, it is essential to lead and encourage the team members and serve as a mentor to junior analysts, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

Senior research specialist vs senior research analyst salary

Senior research specialists and senior research analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Research Specialist	Senior Research Analyst
Average salary	$65,071	$75,056
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $99,000	Between $57,000 And $98,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Olympia, WA
Highest paying state	Washington	Washington
Best paying company	VMware	JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between senior research specialist and senior research analyst education

There are a few differences between a senior research specialist and a senior research analyst in terms of educational background:

	Senior Research Specialist	Senior Research Analyst
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common major	Biology	Business
Most common college	University of Georgia	University of Georgia

Senior research specialist vs senior research analyst demographics

Here are the differences between senior research specialists' and senior research analysts' demographics:

	Senior Research Specialist	Senior Research Analyst
Average age	37	37
Gender ratio	Male, 45.5% Female, 54.5%	Male, 54.1% Female, 45.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 14.2% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 14.1% White, 65.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between senior research specialist and senior research analyst duties and responsibilities

Senior research specialist example responsibilities.

Manage expanding mouse colony including genotyping.
Perform sample preparation which includes DNA and RNA extraction, follow by conventional or real-time PCR.
Gel shifts - looking at the DNA binding to proteins.
Perform DNA extractions of plant tissue.
Attend weekly IRB meetings to take meeting minutes.
Conduct gene cloning; RNA probe labeling and purification.

Senior research analyst example responsibilities.

Manage research department employees and resources, operational budget preparation and oversight.
Work with SAS to manipulate data and perform analysis by using macros, metadata, loops, counts and macro variables.
Develop and automate front-end data querying and reporting tools for client presentations and reports in VBA and SQL.
Conduct statistical analyses with SAS using grocery store scanner data of consumer package goods for test households throughout the U.S.
Develop and redesign SQL databases for condensation and reporting efficiency.
Analyze quantitative project data using SPSS and serve as statistical consultant for company.

Senior research specialist vs senior research analyst skills

Common senior research specialist skills

Data Collection, 11%
Research Projects, 9%
Data Analysis, 5%
PI, 4%
Laboratory Equipment, 4%
Research Studies, 3%

Common senior research analyst skills

Analytics, 7%
Data Analysis, 6%
Data Collection, 5%
PowerPoint, 5%
Research Projects, 4%
Healthcare, 4%

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Senior Research Specialist vs Senior Research Analyst

Updated January 8, 2025

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