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The differences between teaching assistants and research assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a research assistant has an average salary of $42,896, which is higher than the $36,519 average annual salary of a teaching assistant.
The top three skills for a teaching assistant include lab experiments, laboratory experiments and TA. The most important skills for a research assistant are patients, lab equipment, and data collection.
| Teaching Assistant | Research Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $36,519 | $42,896 |
| Hourly rate | $17.56 | $20.62 |
| Growth rate | - | 19% |
| Number of jobs | 59,465 | 51,080 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 44 | 38 |
| Years of experience | - | 2 |
Teaching assistants are employees who aid teachers in activities needed to deliver lessons. They are usually junior employees or even students who are doing part-time work. Teaching assistants usually set up classrooms, prepare handouts, and give out these handouts in the classroom. They may also be tapped to help prepare presentation materials, source items for classroom demonstration purposes, and assist in the conduct of the lesson. Teaching assistants also help collect schoolwork from students and may also assist teachers in checking schoolwork.
Research assistants give support to researchers or other professionals who need assistance as they conduct experiments, studies, or other research projects. Research assistants help in conducting experiments, surveys, or interviews under the supervision of the primary researcher. They also work on research activities such as literature reviews, collect data, assist in interpreting results, prepare designs or visuals for the presentation of the results, and even ensure that all the tools and documentation related to the study are properly organized. They also assist in fact-checking the output and ensure that the data presented are accurate. Research assistants usually possess an academic background that is related to the main research topic.
Teaching assistants and research assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Teaching Assistant | Research Assistant | |
| Average salary | $36,519 | $42,896 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $59,000 | Between $28,000 And $64,000 |
| Highest paying City | Philadelphia, PA | New Brunswick, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Pace University | JPMorgan Chase & Co. |
| Best paying industry | Education | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a teaching assistant and a research assistant in terms of educational background:
| Teaching Assistant | Research Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | - | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between teaching assistants' and research assistants' demographics:
| Teaching Assistant | Research Assistant | |
| Average age | 44 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 42.4% Female, 57.6% | Male, 46.3% Female, 53.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 11.6% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 16.9% White, 52.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |