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Assistant librarian vs library technical assistant

The differences between assistant librarians and library technical assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an assistant librarian has an average salary of $53,764, which is higher than the $33,427 average annual salary of a library technical assistant.

The top three skills for an assistant librarian include library materials, reference services and library services. The most important skills for a library technical assistant are library materials, circulation desk, and library services.

Assistant librarian vs library technical assistant overview

Assistant LibrarianLibrary Technical Assistant
Yearly salary$53,764$33,427
Hourly rate$25.85$16.07
Growth rate-4%-4%
Number of jobs1,61768,948
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age4747
Years of experience--

Assistant librarian vs library technical assistant salary

Assistant librarians and library technical assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Assistant LibrarianLibrary Technical Assistant
Average salary$53,764$33,427
Salary rangeBetween $40,000 And $71,000Between $25,000 And $44,000
Highest paying CityHayward, CANew York, NY
Highest paying stateAlaskaNew York
Best paying companyKent Daniels & AssociatesSaint Anselm College
Best paying industryHealth CareEducation

Differences between assistant librarian and library technical assistant education

There are a few differences between an assistant librarian and a library technical assistant in terms of educational background:

Assistant LibrarianLibrary Technical Assistant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeNew York UniversityNew York University

Assistant librarian vs library technical assistant demographics

Here are the differences between assistant librarians' and library technical assistants' demographics:

Assistant LibrarianLibrary Technical Assistant
Average age4747
Gender ratioMale, 31.5% Female, 68.5%Male, 35.0% Female, 65.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 6.3% White, 63.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.1% Asian, 6.2% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage11%11%

Differences between assistant librarian and library technical assistant duties and responsibilities

Assistant librarian example responsibilities.

  • Manage yearly budget for DVDs.
  • Cataloge new book, reclassify, original updates using OCLC.
  • Help patrons with computers, word processing, and PowerPoint.
  • Provide customer service through assisting the patrons with their research topics and general questions through OCLC library information system.
  • Create PowerPoint presentations for orientation.
  • Provide opportunities for students to use the library for class-relate research, individual investigation, independent reading, and personal inquiry.
  • Show more

Library technical assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage paperwork associate with HVAC procedures.
  • Check in and out books, journals, DVDS, etc.
  • Operate, maintain and troubleshoot computer equipment as required.
  • Search OCLC [library record database] as well as Internet for hard to find records.
  • Upgrade to full level, OCLC and RLIN bibliographic records for monographs that lack usable subject and/or classification numbers.
  • Perform elementary descriptive cataloging using automate bibliographic database.
  • Show more

Assistant librarian vs library technical assistant skills

Common assistant librarian skills
  • Library Materials, 11%
  • Reference Services, 6%
  • Library Services, 6%
  • Circulation Desk, 5%
  • Collection Development, 5%
  • Library Resources, 5%
Common library technical assistant skills
  • Library Materials, 15%
  • Circulation Desk, 7%
  • Library Services, 7%
  • Library Equipment, 4%
  • Check-In, 4%
  • Cataloging, 3%

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