Alarm operator vs police dispatcher

The differences between alarm operators and police dispatchers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a police dispatcher has an average salary of $37,402, which is higher than the $29,349 average annual salary of an alarm operator.

The top three skills for an alarm operator include alarm signals, emergency situations and customer service. The most important skills for a police dispatcher are computer aided dispatch, patrol, and CAD.

Alarm operator vs police dispatcher overview

	Alarm Operator	Police Dispatcher
Yearly salary	$29,349	$37,402
Hourly rate	$14.11	$17.98
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	30,893	6,964
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Average age	39	39
Years of experience	-	-

Alarm operator vs police dispatcher salary

Alarm operators and police dispatchers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Alarm Operator	Police Dispatcher
Average salary	$29,349	$37,402
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $34,000	Between $28,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Kirkland, WA	Philadelphia, PA
Highest paying state	Oregon	Pennsylvania
Best paying company	ASRC Federal	City of Seattle
Best paying industry	Utilities	Government

Differences between alarm operator and police dispatcher education

There are a few differences between an alarm operator and a police dispatcher in terms of educational background:

	Alarm Operator	Police Dispatcher
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Most common major	Business	Criminal Justice
Most common college	-	-

Alarm operator vs police dispatcher demographics

Here are the differences between alarm operators' and police dispatchers' demographics:

	Alarm Operator	Police Dispatcher
Average age	39	39
Gender ratio	Male, 39.2% Female, 60.8%	Male, 35.6% Female, 64.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 0.9% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 0.9% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	17%	17%

Differences between alarm operator and police dispatcher duties and responsibilities

Alarm operator example responsibilities.

Interpret and respond to system messages through use of JES2, MVS, SDSF and automate commands.
Supervise telecommunication operations and reinforce the confidentiality in telecommunications.
Enter data into various databases including TCIC and NCIC.
Enter stolen, re-cover and missing property into TCIC and NCIC database.
Supervise telecommunication operations and reinforce the confidentiality in telecommunications.

Police dispatcher example responsibilities.

Rout dispatch calls to police, EMT, and fire departments.
Dispatch and answer phones for police, fire and ems units to calls for emergency and non-emergency situations.
Work with programs such as NCIS/LEAPS, CJIS and IMC.
Assist with completion of subpoenas and warrants.
Respond to emergency calls and dispatch appropriate police and EMT units.
Conduct the operations of radio, telephone, and cad computer systems.

Alarm operator vs police dispatcher skills

Common alarm operator skills

Alarm Signals, 15%
Emergency Situations, 14%
Customer Service, 12%
Data Entry, 8%
Emergency Services, 7%
Security Systems, 7%

Common police dispatcher skills

Computer Aided Dispatch, 15%
Patrol, 8%
CAD, 7%
NCIC, 6%
Law Enforcement Agencies, 6%
Dispatch System, 4%