Child care center administrator vs child care associate

The differences between child care center administrators and child care associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a child care center administrator, becoming a child care associate takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a child care center administrator has an average salary of $58,379, which is higher than the $29,146 average annual salary of a child care associate.

The top three skills for a child care center administrator include quality care, nursing home and DHS. The most important skills for a child care associate are kids, CPR, and customer service.

Child care center administrator vs child care associate overview

	Child Care Center Administrator	Child Care Associate
Yearly salary	$58,379	$29,146
Hourly rate	$28.07	$14.01
Growth rate	8%	6%
Number of jobs	146,587	74,279
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	High School Diploma, 38%
Average age	47	37
Years of experience	4	2

Child care center administrator vs child care associate salary

Child care center administrators and child care associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Child Care Center Administrator	Child Care Associate
Average salary	$58,379	$29,146
Salary range	Between $35,000 And $95,000	Between $19,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	WRMA Incorporated
Best paying industry	-	Education

Differences between child care center administrator and child care associate education

There are a few differences between a child care center administrator and a child care associate in terms of educational background:

	Child Care Center Administrator	Child Care Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	High School Diploma, 38%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Virginia

Child care center administrator vs child care associate demographics

Here are the differences between child care center administrators' and child care associates' demographics:

	Child Care Center Administrator	Child Care Associate
Average age	47	37
Gender ratio	Male, 31.9% Female, 68.1%	Male, 14.2% Female, 85.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.1% Asian, 4.3% White, 66.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 7.8% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 21.9% Asian, 6.6% White, 56.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	16%	4%

Differences between child care center administrator and child care associate duties and responsibilities

Child care center administrator example responsibilities.

Manage facilities maintenance/upgrades, and systems such as electronic medical records (EMR), billing, transcription and phones.
Budget preparation/administration, record maintenance, purchasing, payroll, supervision of staff, development and administration of policies and procedures.
Teach them numbers ABC's sanitize the whole room change diapers make breakfast lunch and snack nap time reading time

Child care associate example responsibilities.

Complete accurate and timely documentation on kids' behavior as outlined by policy.
Supervise and coordinate activities for the children such as teaching colors and ABC'S , 123'S.

Child care center administrator vs child care associate skills

Common child care center administrator skills

Quality Care, 22%
Nursing Home, 18%
DHS, 14%
Federal Regulations, 8%
Child Care Facility, 7%
Child Development, 5%

Common child care associate skills

Kids, 24%
CPR, 18%
Customer Service, 16%
Nutritious Meals, 14%
Child Care, 12%
Homework Assignments, 5%

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Executive Management Industry
Child Care Center Administrator
Child Care Center Administrator vs Child Care Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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