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The differences between assistant directors and administrative directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an assistant director, becoming an administrative director takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an administrative director has an average salary of $80,158, which is higher than the $63,063 average annual salary of an assistant director.
The top three skills for an assistant director include customer service, CPR and child care. The most important skills for an administrative director are patients, patient care, and customer service.
| Assistant Director | Administrative Director | |
| Yearly salary | $63,063 | $80,158 |
| Hourly rate | $30.32 | $38.54 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 25,087 | 52,849 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 40 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 2 |
Assistant directors are employees in show business who directly support directors. They may be working on a film, television show, or theatre production. Assistant directors are the second-in-command on the set. They take over for the director when he/she or she is unable to work. Assistant directors should be familiar with the script and the scenes. They are usually heavily involved in the conception of the production. They ensure that the plans are executed well by assisting in the selection of the cast and crew, production sets, and other set providers. They also make sure that shoot days or performance days go without a hitch by ironing out all the details in advance and preparing alternatives.
An administrative director primarily functions to oversee daily operations within a company, ensuring everything is running smoothly. Among their responsibilities include monitoring the budget and audits, allocating funds to every department, coordinating with supervisors, and analyzing key data such as finances and progress reports. Additionally, they are also responsible for implementing policies and regulations, even crafting new ones when necessary. They typically report all progress and concerns to higher officials such as the president and vice president.
Assistant directors and administrative directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Assistant Director | Administrative Director | |
| Average salary | $63,063 | $80,158 |
| Salary range | Between $37,000 And $105,000 | Between $53,000 And $121,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | Mayer Brown | Mayer Brown |
| Best paying industry | - | Media |
There are a few differences between an assistant director and an administrative director in terms of educational background:
| Assistant Director | Administrative Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between assistant directors' and administrative directors' demographics:
| Assistant Director | Administrative Director | |
| Average age | 40 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.3% Female, 61.7% | Male, 33.8% Female, 66.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 13.8% Asian, 4.3% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 14% | 5% |