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The differences between acquisition specialists and senior purchasing agents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an acquisition specialist and a senior purchasing agent. Additionally, a senior purchasing agent has an average salary of $73,386, which is higher than the $65,906 average annual salary of an acquisition specialist.
The top three skills for an acquisition specialist include program management, market research and DOD. The most important skills for a senior purchasing agent are purchase orders, project management, and supplier relationships.
| Acquisition Specialist | Senior Purchasing Agent | |
| Yearly salary | $65,906 | $73,386 |
| Hourly rate | $31.69 | $35.28 |
| Growth rate | 9% | -6% |
| Number of jobs | 17,543 | 43,833 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
An acquisition specialist is in charge of developing strategies to acquire goods and services on behalf of a company. Their responsibilities include coordinating with different departments to gather data, conducting extensive research and analysis to find cost-efficient materials and resources, liaising with external parties such as vendors and suppliers, negotiating contracts, and arranging payment plans. Furthermore, an acquisition specialist may also participate in a company's employment procedures and recruit potential employees in adherence to the company's vision and mission.
Senior Purchasing Agents are experienced employees in the company's purchasing department. They oversee the purchase requisitions of the employees. They validate requests, ensure that the requestors followed company guidelines, check the availability of the items with the chosen supplier, and forward the purchase order to the supplier. Upon fulfillment of the request, Senior Purchasing Agents check the deliveries, ensure that the items are complete and correct, forward the items to the requestor, and process the payment for the supplier. Senior Purchasing agents also prepare reports, spot trends in employee or department purchases, and create recommendations based on observations. They are also expected to form good working relationships with suppliers.
Acquisition specialists and senior purchasing agents have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Acquisition Specialist | Senior Purchasing Agent | |
| Average salary | $65,906 | $73,386 |
| Salary range | Between $43,000 And $99,000 | Between $52,000 And $103,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New York |
| Best paying company | Amazon | Levi Strauss & Co. |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Energy |
There are a few differences between an acquisition specialist and a senior purchasing agent in terms of educational background:
| Acquisition Specialist | Senior Purchasing Agent | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between acquisition specialists' and senior purchasing agents' demographics:
| Acquisition Specialist | Senior Purchasing Agent | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 51.9% Female, 48.1% | Male, 57.7% Female, 42.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 7.6% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 7.7% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |