Medical Affairs vs Regulatory Affairs

Innovation in biotech and pharma is accelerating faster than ever, underpinning the growing demand for Medical and Regulatory Affairs professionals—especially as AI, digital health, and robotics redefine the landscape (trust us, read our life science industry outlook for 2025 for a preview of what’s around the corner). But what are we really talking about when we put these sectors on the table?

What is Medical Affairs? Medical Affairs translates clinical evidence into clear, ethical scientific communication and builds clinical relationships that support patient care and product use. In other words, it’s what happens when science leaves the lab and enters the real world — and someone needs to explain it without breaking compliance laws.

And Regulatory Affairs? Regulatory Affairs is the team that ensures everything a pharma company does complies with regulations—from first submission to post-market change, making sure your miracle drug doesn’t get pulled off the shelves because someone forgot.

Before diving into Medical and Regulatory Affairs as careers, let’s anchor them in real-world market momentum. The global Regulatory Affairs market is projected to surge from around USD 16.4 billion in 2024 to nearly USD 27.2 billion by 2030, growing at a solid CAGR of 8.8%. But here’s the plot twist: Medical Affairs is growing even faster. It’s expected to expand from USD 1.7 billion in 2022 to USD 4.6 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 13.2%. That’s market growth on steroids—reflecting pharma’s swelling demand for evidence generation, medical communications, publications, and MSL support.

And that’s exactly why a career in these sectors is a good idea.

If R&D is the part of pharma that dreams big, Medical Affairs is the part that translates those dreams into real-world conversations. 

Medical Affairs sits at the intersection of science, medicine and communication. If a company develops a medicine or device, Medical Affairs is the team that explains what the evidence means for doctors, hospitals and patients without veering into promotion. This team lives in the sweet spot between science and strategy. They don’t sell, but they support sales with deep scientific expertise. They talk to doctors, run advisory boards, help design real-world studies, write publications, and sometimes even argue with marketing about what can and cannot be said in a presentation. In this McKinsey article, you’ll find a great summary of how professionals in Medical Affairs can have a significant impact on patients.

A typical day for someone in Medical Affairs might range from preparing a scientific presentation for a conference, to reviewing a manuscript, to meeting a key opinion leader (KOL) and health care professionals (HCPs) to understand unmet clinical needs, application feedback and struggles. The role is outward-facing and relationship-driven: success is measured by how well clinical questions are answered, how evidence gaps are filled, and whether healthcare professionals trust the company as a scientific partner.

Regulatory Affairs is the discipline that turns research into legally marketable products. People in RA build the regulatory strategy that determines how a product will be submitted and approved in different regions. They write and assemble the dossiers (e.g., CTD/CMC documents), interact with authorities, and shepherd products through approval, labelling negotiations and post-market obligations.

They’re the ones who:

• Figure out how a product will be approved (which is harder than it sounds).
• Make sure that everything submitted is squeaky clean — no missing data, no creative storytelling.
• Negotiate with agencies like the EMA, FDA or Swissmedic when they ask, “Are you sure about that efficacy claim?”
• Update labels, manage post-approval changes, and help products survive in an ever-evolving jungle of regulations.

Unlike Medical Affairs, Regulatory Affairs is primarily inward-facing: it translates science into regulatory language and ensures that every claim, label and packaging element complies with local laws. When a new therapy is being prepared for submission, RA coordinates across quality, clinical, manufacturing and legal teams to make sure the package is complete and defensible.

Both functions deal with the same products, the same data, and often the same deadlines — but their worlds are completely different.

It helps to imagine the lifecycle of a new drug for a rare disease. Medical Affairs will work to understand clinicians’ unmet needs, design post-approval real-world studies that answer practical questions, and communicate results through publications and medical education. Regulatory Affairs will map which datasets are required for initial approval, format and submit the dossier, and later negotiate the product label that defines what can — and legally cannot — be said about the drug.

They need each other. No product goes far without both. If Medical Affairs builds trust with doctors, Regulatory Affairs builds trust with regulators. Both are critical. And both — let’s be honest — are way more stable than most commercial roles in today’s market.

Career-wise, individuals who enjoy engaging in scientific discussions, fostering relationships, and pursuing medical education tend to gravitate to Medical Affairs; those who prefer systems, timelines, legal precision, and strategic planning often prefer Regulatory Affairs.

Are you ready to work in this Affairs thing, but still don’t know which one is for you? Let’s see what a typical career looks like in Medical and Regulatory Affairs.

In Medical Affairs, the entry role is often Medical Science Liaison (MSL). You’ll travel, meet doctors, answer scientific questions, and hear real-world feedback that R&D would kill for. From there, you might move into Medical Advisor, then Medical Manager, then Medical Director. Or you’ll pivot into publications, evidence generation, or global strategy roles. The ceiling is high — especially if you can bridge science and storytelling.

In Regulatory Affairs, you might start as a coordinator or associate. You’ll learn how submissions work, how to wrangle documents, and how to talk to Quality without crying. Over time, you’ll move into strategy — leading product filings across countries, responding to authority questions, managing complex post-approval variations. Eventually? Global lead. Head of Regulatory. The one who signs off on everything and whose phone never stops ringing.

And yes, people do switch between the two. If you’ve got the mindset, anything’s possible.

ps. If you’re curious about how scientific roles translate across life sciences—beyond the lab coat—take a look at our guide on building a career in Medical Technology to see how different backgrounds can lead to strategic roles like Medical Affairs.

Let’s keep it real: most roles prefer a life sciences degree. That said, degrees matter, but so does what you can do with them. Medical Affairs frequently prefers clinical or advanced scientific backgrounds (MD, PharmD, PhD) because credibility with clinicians is essential. Regulatory Affairs values scientific credentials too, but also rewards candidates who understand regulatory frameworks, quality systems, and dossier structure.

Beyond degrees, the most valuable skills are:

• Data literacy — the ability to read and interpret clinical study results, statistics and real-world evidence.
• Scientific communication — converting complex evidence into clear, balanced messages for different audiences.
• Regulatory thinking — understanding how study design, safety data and product labelling interact with approval pathways.

Formal training options include postgraduate certificates in Regulatory Affairs or Medical Affairs, industry courses, and short programs on pharmacovigilance, clinical trial design, or medical writing. Crucially, both fields reward hands-on experience: participating in advisory boards, contributing to a publication, or supporting an IND/CTA submission will often speak louder on your CV than a generic course.

If you searched “medical affairs salary”, you’ll find a range driven by geography, therapeutic area, company size and role type (field vs office). Entry roles (MSL or junior medical advisor) typically start with competitive base pay and variable elements (e.g., field allowances). Mid and senior roles—especially Medical Directors—often include bonuses, equity or long-term incentives.

A few things that influence pay:

• Therapeutic areas such as oncology and rare diseases typically command higher payments due to their complexity and market value.
• Location: salary bands in Switzerland, the US and major European hubs are higher than in other regions.

Seniority and remit: global roles command a premium over local/regional positions.

Rather than chasing a single number, candidates should assess total compensation (base, bonus, benefits, and career development opportunities) and how quickly a role will expand their scope and marketability.

Here’s the million-franc question: what’s the medical affairs salary or regulatory affairs salary you can expect? In Switzerland or other pharma hubs:

• Entry-level: CHF 85,000–100,000
• Mid-level: CHF 100,000–130,000
• Senior: CHF 130,000–150,000+

Regulatory Affairs sometimes edges ahead in pay due to the legal exposure and risk mitigation responsibilities. But Medical Affairs roles often include field-based perks, performance bonuses, and faster exposure to senior leadership.

Bottom line: both paths pay well. Very well. And more importantly, they grow.

If you’re in clinical research, clinical practice, QA, pharmacovigilance, medical writing or even sales, there are concrete steps to get noticed:

1. Build evidence of impact — contribute to a paper, present at a conference, or document a process improvement.
2. Network intentionally — connect with MSLs and regulatory professionals on LinkedIn, ask for informational interviews, and request one-week rotations if your company allows them.
3. Acquire targeted knowledge — short courses in medical writing, dossier structure, GCP, or regulatory strategy make your CV scannable to hiring managers.
4. Show cross-functional exposure — highlight times you worked with clinical, QA, legal or market access teams; both Medical and Regulatory roles require translating across stakeholders.

These are not theoretical steps: hiring managers consistently choose candidates who can show tangible examples of cross-functional communication, evidence generation, or submission support.

Pharma and biotech will continue to need credible scientific communicators and regulatory architects. Whether you prefer the relational, clinical side (Medical Affairs) or the regulatory strategy and compliance side (Regulatory Affairs), both careers provide purpose, stability and visibility in organisations that ultimately exist to improve patient outcomes. Choose the path that matches how you like to work—talking to clinicians and shaping scientific conversations, or designing the frameworks that make therapies available and safe.

Pharma isn’t just about discovering drugs — it’s about making them work in the real world.

If you want a career that blends science, communication, and actual influence (plus a salary that doesn’t make you cry), one of these paths might be for you – and we at headcount are here to land you your perfect job role.