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The differences between child protective specialists and specialists 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 protective specialist, becoming a specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a specialist has an average salary of $58,013, which is higher than the $52,032 average annual salary of a child protective specialist.
The top three skills for a child protective specialist include social work, social services and mental health. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.
| Child Protective Specialist | Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $52,032 | $58,013 |
| Hourly rate | $25.02 | $27.89 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 75,325 | 358,433 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
A Child Protective Specialist is a social worker who handles suspected cases of abuse and neglect in children. They focus on performing research and investigation, conducting home visits and inspections, interviewing families and potential witnesses, gathering evidence, and reaching out to hospitals or schools to collect and analyze data. Through the findings of their investigation, a Child Protective Specialist draws conclusions and develops recommendations for the children's safety and welfare. Moreover, there are instances where they conduct interventions, refer families to other agencies, or coordinate with law enforcement.
Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.
Child protective specialists and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Child Protective Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average salary | $52,032 | $58,013 |
| Salary range | Between $41,000 And $65,000 | Between $32,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Children's National Medical Center | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Professional | - |
There are a few differences between a child protective specialist and a specialist in terms of educational background:
| Child Protective Specialist | Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY at Albany | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between child protective specialists' and specialists' demographics:
| Child Protective Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 21.2% Female, 78.8% | Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 2.7% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 11% |