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The differences between background investigators and community services officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a background investigator has an average salary of $51,076, which is higher than the $38,039 average annual salary of a community services officer.
The top three skills for a background investigator include excellent time management, work ethic and face-to-face interviews. The most important skills for a community services officer are patrol, public safety, and traffic control.
| Background Investigator | Community Services Officer | |
| Yearly salary | $51,076 | $38,039 |
| Hourly rate | $24.56 | $18.29 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 4,428 | 181,257 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Average age | 44 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 6 | - |
The primary job of background investigators is to conduct background checks into an individual's personal and professional history that can validate or disprove their identity and character. They perform background investigations as part of hiring new employees, making an investment, and choosing a public official. Background investigators are responsible for obtaining and reviewing witness statements and arrest reports and meeting with candidates or the management to keep them updated on the investigation's progress and status. They are also responsible for completing background packages for final review and recommendation.
Community service offers or CSO support in crime response, investigation, and prevention where police powers are not necessary. The community service officers assist the police officers in terms of upholding order and law in the community. They provide citizens with customer service, community outreach, and patrol. It is their job to implement city codes and other non-criminal police associated duties. They provide non-EMS in-home and on-site assistance to the citizens. Also, they respond to non-criminal complaints, building checks, and more.
Background investigators and community services officers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Background Investigator | Community Services Officer | |
| Average salary | $51,076 | $38,039 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $90,000 | Between $27,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | - | Washington |
| Best paying company | - | City of Los Angeles |
| Best paying industry | - | Education |
There are a few differences between a background investigator and a community services officer in terms of educational background:
| Background Investigator | Community Services Officer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Most common major | Criminal Justice | Criminal Justice |
| Most common college | California State University - Bakersfield | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Here are the differences between background investigators' and community services officers' demographics:
| Background Investigator | Community Services Officer | |
| Average age | 44 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.6% Female, 50.4% | Male, 56.1% Female, 43.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 15.2% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.8% Asian, 4.6% White, 55.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 22.4% Asian, 2.9% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 7% |