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The differences between child life specialists and living specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a child life specialist and a living specialist. Additionally, a child life specialist has an average salary of $55,201, which is higher than the $36,759 average annual salary of a living specialist.
The top three skills for a child life specialist include patients, child development and patient care. The most important skills for a living specialist are independent living, community resources, and autism.
| Child Life Specialist | Living Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $55,201 | $36,759 |
| Hourly rate | $26.54 | $17.67 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 90,517 | 49,916 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
The job of a child life specialist is to help children and their families navigate the process of injury, illness, trauma, hospitalization, and disability. These health care professionals perform varied duties that include helping children and their families better understand the procedure and process of their medical experience. They also work on developing strategies to lessen the trauma and improve their understanding of a diagnosis by providing support, guidance, and information to family members. They are also expected to work closely with other members of the health care team in coordinating and managing care.
A living specialist is a person who is responsible for assisting and guiding individuals that have difficulties caring for themselves. They are the person who helps them in doing household chores and guiding them throughout the cleaning process. This career is an important position in society because it provides care for those who are in need.
Child life specialists and living specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Child Life Specialist | Living Specialist | |
| Average salary | $55,201 | $36,759 |
| Salary range | Between $31,000 And $96,000 | Between $28,000 And $47,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | L.E.K. Consulting | Terros Health |
| Best paying industry | - | Non Profits |
There are a few differences between a child life specialist and a living specialist in terms of educational background:
| Child Life Specialist | Living Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | SUNY at Binghamton |
Here are the differences between child life specialists' and living specialists' demographics:
| Child Life Specialist | Living Specialist | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 24.9% Female, 75.1% | Male, 29.5% Female, 70.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.8% | Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 6.8% White, 60.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |