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What does a senior scientist do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read
Quoted expert
Dr. Betsy Smith
What does a senior scientist do

A senior scientist is usually in charge of overseeing experiments and evaluating junior scientists' performance, especially in laboratory settings. Moreover, it is also their responsibility to assess every progress report to ensure it's accuracy and validity. As a senior scientist in the field, it is essential to lead and encourage fellow scientists in their joint pursuit for scientific innovations, all while adhering to the laboratory's standards and policies.

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Senior scientist responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real senior scientist resumes:

  • Lead the development and implementation of new technology for use in NMR applications.
  • Strategize and manage the PK/PD program with internal collaborations including chemistry, DMPK, formulation and toxicology.
  • Lead a team and develop a 24-channel GC parallel separation system for high throughput screening of catalysts.
  • Lead a team of 11 direct reports and 35 indirect reports to solve development problems for multicapillary electrophoresis instruments.
  • Influence and impact others through building and maintaining strong networks that are leverage to obtain critical information and accomplish objectives.
  • Manage collaborations with external CROs.
  • Develop and validate methods (LC, GC, and others) for the release of API.
  • Provide medicinal chemistry support in the therapeutic areas of diabetes (insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity) and oncology.
  • Detect target sequences using qPCR and perform statistical analysis using JMP.
  • Develop a reliable green process for Phase-II/III development of an oncology asset.
  • Supervise generation of soluble EGF receptor (erb-1, HER1) for oncology program.
  • Submit data into Watson (LIMS) and correspond with principal investigator regarding data.
  • Experience with numerous scientific software packages (SoftmaxPro, LIMS, SigmaPlot, etc .).
  • Inspect and select CROs, develop study proposals, review and edit the study protocols and reports.
  • Sole developer of CRISPR genome browser, a tool which will help customers to visualize genome editing process.

Senior scientist skills and personality traits

We calculated that 11% of Senior Scientists are proficient in Patients, Data Analysis, and Molecular Biology.

We break down the percentage of Senior Scientists that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 11%

    Designed a methodology for measuring the frailty of older patients which has been adopted by the Society for Thoracic Surgeons.

  • Data Analysis, 6%

    Implemented an improved scheduling and analysis management effort between government contracting team and their government customers to foster rapid data analysis.

  • Molecular Biology, 3%

    Experience in working in a cross-functional teams integrating engineering, biochemistry and molecular biology experience for hardware development.

  • Research Projects, 3%

    Provide scientific expertise on federal and commercial research projects, including proposal reviews, study execution, and presentations to stakeholders.

  • C++, 3%

    Developed deliverable software and served as configuration manager for C++ search planning product.

  • Java, 3%

    Developed GUI-based Java application for distribution of data files to client application.

Common skills that a senior scientist uses to do their job include "patients," "data analysis," and "molecular biology." You can find details on the most important senior scientist responsibilities below.

Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a senior scientist to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what senior scientists do because "medical scientists must be able to explain their research in nontechnical ways." Additionally, a senior scientist resume shows how senior scientists use communication skills: "facilitated communication between corium and tips by translating technical reports and acting as interpreter at technology transfer meetings. "

Observation skills. Another essential skill to perform senior scientist duties is observation skills. Senior scientists responsibilities require that "medical scientists conduct experiments that require monitoring samples and other health-related data." Senior scientists also use observation skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "adhered to good laboratory practice (glp), following all standard operating procedures documenting all generated data and scientific observations. "

All senior scientist skills

The three companies that hire the most senior scientists are:

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Compare different senior scientists

Senior scientist vs. Research fellow

A research fellow is an academic researcher who conducts research and analysis of comprehensive literature, data, and results and provides literature reviews. He/She supervises research assistants and recruits study participants to interview them for a particular study. To become a research fellow, a candidate should have a doctorate in a relevant discipline and publish peer-reviewed papers. Also, a research fellow can be an independent investigator or be supervised by a principal investigator.

The annual salary of research fellows is $52,849 lower than the average salary of senior scientists.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both senior scientist and research fellow positions are skilled in patients, data analysis, and research projects.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a senior scientist are more likely to require skills like "molecular biology," "java," "project management," and "drug discovery." On the other hand, a job as a research fellow requires skills like "cell culture," "immunology," "cell biology," and "python." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Research fellows earn the highest salaries when working in the non profits industry, with an average yearly salary of $57,261. On the other hand, senior scientists are paid more in the telecommunication industry with an average salary of $107,016.The education levels that research fellows earn slightly differ from senior scientists. In particular, research fellows are 1.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a senior scientist. Additionally, they're 2.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Senior scientist vs. Postdoctoral research associate

A postdoctoral research associate is responsible for assisting the educational institution's research department, writing research reports, analyzing research methods, and collecting information and related studies to support the research claims. Postdoctoral research associates must have excellent communication skills, both oral and written, reporting research updates to the research head, performing adjustments as needed, and gaining more expertise on the subject by brainstorming and discussing strategic procedures for the study. They may also conduct field investigation or coordinate with other institutions for additional reference, depending on the research's scope and limitation.

On average, postdoctoral research associates earn a $53,887 lower salary than senior scientists a year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Senior scientists and postdoctoral research associates both require similar skills like "patients," "data analysis," and "research projects" to carry out their responsibilities.

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that senior scientist responsibilities requires skills like "molecular biology," "java," "project management," and "drug discovery." But a postdoctoral research associate might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "python," "chemistry," "post-doctoral," and "cell culture."

Postdoctoral research associates earn a lower average salary than senior scientists. But postdoctoral research associates earn the highest pay in the professional industry, with an average salary of $69,999. Additionally, senior scientists earn the highest salaries in the telecommunication with average pay of $107,016 annually.In general, postdoctoral research associates achieve similar levels of education than senior scientists. They're 1.0% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 2.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for senior scientists in the next 3-5 years?

Dr. Betsy SmithDr. Betsy Smith LinkedIn profile

Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Elmira College

Honestly, I think anytime a scientist tries to predict what will be "big" in a few years, they're likely to fail. That said, I think there's a growing interest among consumers for more "green" products, so research into those areas will likely grow. For instance, we might see attempts to develop new plastics that are safer for the environment and humans, perhaps biodegradable. Organic chemistry traditionally uses harsh solvents and chemicals that are difficult to dispose of safely, so there is an effort to find alternatives to these. Analytical chemistry techniques for separating and identifying compounds, like GC-MS (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry), will likely continue to be necessary. CRISPR, the relatively new gene-editing technology, is likely to become even more widely used on the biochemistry side of things.

Senior scientist vs. Quality control analyst

Quality assurance representatives are professionals who are responsible for ensuring the quality of units produced or manufactured is following the standards set by the industry. These representatives supervise the entire production process to identify erroneous methods or tools being used by workers and observing produced for visible defects. They are required to perform various tests to check for the durability of the product and other desirable characteristics. Quality assurance representatives must also collaborate with the manufacturing engineer to implement quality control programs and preparing training manuals and quality guidelines.

An average quality control analyst eans a lower salary compared to the average salary of senior scientists. The difference in salaries amounts to quality control analysts earning a $47,455 lower average salary than senior scientists.Using the responsibilities included on senior scientists and quality control analysts resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "data analysis," "excellent interpersonal," and "r.rdquo;

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a senior scientist is likely to be skilled in "patients," "molecular biology," "research projects," and "c++," while a typical quality control analyst is skilled in "lab equipment," "microbiology," "test results," and "test procedures."

Quality control analysts earn the best pay in the manufacturing industry, where they command an average salary of $62,870. Senior scientists earn the highest pay from the telecommunication industry, with an average salary of $107,016.Most quality control analysts achieve a lower degree level compared to senior scientists. For example, they're 7.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 28.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Senior scientist vs. Postdoctoral associate

A postdoctoral associate is responsible for researching to support scientific claims and theories by collecting evidence and information to answer scientific questions. Postdoctoral associates must have excellent communication skills, both oral and written, to interact with people and document investigation findings. They also utilize laboratory tools and equipment for scientific researches, conduct field investigations, and interview participants. A postdoctoral associate designs comprehensive research models to discuss results with the panel and the team efficiently and accurately.

Postdoctoral associates typically earn lower pay than senior scientists. On average, postdoctoral associates earn a $52,322 lower salary per year.While their salaries may vary, senior scientists and postdoctoral associates both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "patients," "data analysis," and "research projects. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between senior scientists and postdoctoral associates, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a senior scientist might have more use for skills like "molecular biology," "project management," "drug discovery," and "excellent interpersonal." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of postdoctoral associates require skills like "tip," "biomedical," "python," and "cell biology. "

In general, postdoctoral associates earn the most working in the education industry, with an average salary of $53,445. The highest-paying industry for a senior scientist is the telecommunication industry.In general, postdoctoral associates hold similar degree levels compared to senior scientists. Postdoctoral associates are 3.0% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 17.4% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of senior scientist

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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