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The differences between assisted living administrators and direct support professionals can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a direct support professional has an average salary of $32,077, which is higher than the $28,196 average annual salary of an assisted living administrator.
The top three skills for an assisted living administrator include resident care, patients and senior care. The most important skills for a direct support professional are direct support, developmental disabilities, and autism.
| Assisted Living Administrator | Direct Support Professional | |
| Yearly salary | $28,196 | $32,077 |
| Hourly rate | $13.56 | $15.42 |
| Growth rate | 36% | 36% |
| Number of jobs | 99,059 | 142,034 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | High School Diploma, 30% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
An Assisted Living Administrator oversees an assisted living facility's daily operations that accommodate elderly residents, ensuring that they get optimal care and service. They are responsible for performing managerial tasks such as setting objectives and schedules, managing budgets, liaising with suppliers and other partners, gathering and analyzing data to identify the residents' needs, and monitoring the operations, resolving issues should any arise. They coordinate and delegate responsibilities among staff, regularly reviewing their performances while implementing the facility's policies and regulations.
Direct support professionals are responsible for taking care of patients with physical or mental limitations. They do a variety of tasks for their patients, such as doing household chores, running errands for them, cooking for them, feeding them, bathing and dressing them, and helping them with their medication, among others. They also provide their patients with companionship, accompanying their patients to appointments, providing emotional support, and being with their patients for the most part of the day. They should be familiar with their patients' prescribed medicines, meal plans, therapy schedules, and other items related to the betterment of the patients' condition. Direct support professionals help the patients overcome their challenges and assist them in acclimating themselves with their current environment.
Assisted living administrators and direct support professionals have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Assisted Living Administrator | Direct Support Professional | |
| Average salary | $28,196 | $32,077 |
| Salary range | Between $21,000 And $36,000 | Between $18,000 And $54,000 |
| Highest paying City | Auburn, WA | Santa Clara, CA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | California |
| Best paying company | ZeniMax Media | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Media | Government |
There are a few differences between an assisted living administrator and a direct support professional in terms of educational background:
| Assisted Living Administrator | Direct Support Professional | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | High School Diploma, 30% |
| Most common major | Nursing | Psychology |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between assisted living administrators' and direct support professionals' demographics:
| Assisted Living Administrator | Direct Support Professional | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 22.8% Female, 77.2% | Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 8.7% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 8.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |