Industrial Research Assistant

Working Schedule

Industrial Research Assistants may or may not be employed full-time. Student research positions are temporary, usually part-time, and filled by undergraduate or graduate students. Assistants may work nights or weekends, with duties sometimes requiring fieldwork. 

Typical Duties

• Discuss research project scopes, timeframes, budgets, and other considerations with stakeholders and supervisors 
• Design and build programs to perform statistical analysis
• Perform research-based and fact-checking tasks using online and library tools 
• Use programs to analyze and interpret data and statistics
• Code and input data into software programs. Manage databases and ensure the accuracy of entries
• Develop quality assurance measures
• Draft and proofread presentations, reports, survey questionnaires, and other written materials 
• Create graphics to summarize data and findings 
• Present or explain findings to stakeholders or other parties
• Conduct research interviews and testing with volunteer subjects
• Collect, analyze, log, and store or dispose of physical specimens, as needed
• Keep track of any follow-ups involving research volunteers 
• File, manage, and safeguard documentation and other sensitive materials
• Oversee inventory management to include lab supplies
• Manage budgets and keep an eye on expenses
• Supervise other team members or project participants, as needed

Additional Responsibilities

• Complete administrative tasks as requested, such as note-taking
• Attend meetings and conferences
• Update websites
• Be aware of and comply with all applicable rules, guidelines, and laws
• Stay up-to-date on changes in relevant technologies  
• Train, mentor, and supervise new assistants and other team members
• Help with recruitment efforts
• Keep work areas clean 
• Discuss technical issues with the appropriate personnel

Soft Skills

• Analytical
• Compliance-oriented
• Concentration
• Creativity
• Critical thinking
• Curiosity
• Deductive and inductive reasoning
• Detail-oriented
• Discipline
• Flexibility
• Intuition
• Observant
• Patience 
• Planning and organization
• Problem-solving skills
• Sound judgment 
• Teamwork
• Time management 

Technical Skills

• Data analysis programs
• Databases
• Familiarity with Good Laboratory Practice (GLP), Good Clinical Practice, and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), as applicable 
• Familiarity with statistics and analytical software such as Stata or MATLAB
• Information retrieval systems
• Presentation software
• R&D software like MasterControl
• Scientific research methodology
• Spreadsheets

• Charities 
• Governmental agencies and research labs
• Private organizations and business enterprises
• Universities

Industrial Research Assistants are relied on to do the background work necessary to produce products and services that conform to specific requirements. Their work must be methodical and meticulous, taking multiple factors into consideration, including what data to assess, how to obtain it in the allotted timeframes, and what to do with it. 

They need to carefully establish and follow procedures to ensure their findings are accurate, relevant, and timely. The day-to-day job requires tons of focus and critical thinking, but such sustained concentration can be exhausting at times. There may also be long periods of working independently, which can be a bit lonely for some. However, researchers do meet up to discuss how projects are going and to prepare findings.  

Just as technology is advancing, so too is the research and development behind it. As discussed by Brightspot Strategy, three overarching recent trends are that “research is becoming a more complex, collaborative activity,” there’s a “growing focus on the real-world application, societal impact, and commercial return,” and “technology has growing importance as a tool to enable more complex and collaborative research across disciplines.” 

Because of the increasing complexities of research, Industrial Research Assistants may expect more job opportunities! Researchers not only need help with the actual research, but also with several time-consuming operational and administrative burdens that come with it. Among these are tasks related to obtaining funding, managing data, finding volunteer subjects, and getting published in relevant journals. 

People who get into research fields usually enjoy reading, studying complex subjects, and figuring out solutions to problems. They may have been bookworms or computer programmers who loved being caught up in whatever they were engaged in. 

Industrial Research Assistants must collaborate with others but don’t mind working on their own for long periods. They might have been independent and self-sufficient growing up, preferring to be left to their intellectual pursuits. They were probably interested in how things work and the behind-the-scenes of how products are made!