Collections assistant vs debt collector

The differences between collections assistants and debt collectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a collections assistant and a debt collector. Additionally, a collections assistant has an average salary of $38,063, which is higher than the $33,865 average annual salary of a debt collector.

The top three skills for a collections assistant include patients, data collection and delinquent accounts. The most important skills for a debt collector are customer service, outbound calls, and payment arrangements.

Collections assistant vs debt collector overview

	Collections Assistant	Debt Collector
Yearly salary	$38,063	$33,865
Hourly rate	$18.30	$16.28
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	11,335	23,385
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	High School Diploma, 34%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	12	12

Collections assistant vs debt collector salary

Collections assistants and debt collectors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Collections Assistant	Debt Collector
Average salary	$38,063	$33,865
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $48,000	Between $26,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	New Haven, CT	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	California
Best paying company	Calvin Klein	Mayor Ethan Berkowitz
Best paying industry	Health Care	Construction

Differences between collections assistant and debt collector education

There are a few differences between a collections assistant and a debt collector in terms of educational background:

	Collections Assistant	Debt Collector
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	High School Diploma, 34%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Collections assistant vs debt collector demographics

Here are the differences between collections assistants' and debt collectors' demographics:

	Collections Assistant	Debt Collector
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 27.7% Female, 72.3%	Male, 30.7% Female, 69.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.8% Asian, 3.9% White, 59.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 20.0% Asian, 3.4% White, 59.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between collections assistant and debt collector duties and responsibilities

Collections assistant example responsibilities.

Plan and conduct sensitive HUMINT collection operations with an emphasis on managing and debriefing confidential sources.
Maintain confidential donor records in accordance with HIPAA.
Adhere to FDCPA guidelines pertaining to all telephone contacts.
Submit claims to Medicare and Medicaid and third party commercial plans.
Assist customers in all areas regarding their accounts while complying with FDCPA regulations.
Promote employee safety and compliance of all government federal regulations including OSHA and HIPAA.

Debt collector example responsibilities.

Prevent impeding loss and increasing profitability through negotiation and enforcement of schedule collection campaigns, consistently achieving high success standards.
Work with FHA, obama programs at the time.
Educate customers on ways to get medical assistance such as Medicaid, Medicare etc.
Prevent foreclosure by putting people on repayment plans, submitting requests for modifications, or deed in lieu.
File Medicaid, Medicare and commercial claims consisting of PPO discounts, nurse practitioner discounts, humanitarian discounts, etc.
Maintain security and confidentiality of company and client information, following FDCPA regulations.

Collections assistant vs debt collector skills

Common collections assistant skills

Patients, 17%
Data Collection, 13%
Delinquent Accounts, 5%
Collection Calls, 5%
Collection Agencies, 5%
Medicaid, 4%

Common debt collector skills

Customer Service, 9%
Outbound Calls, 9%
Payment Arrangements, 8%
Delinquent Accounts, 8%
Credit Card Payments, 6%
FDCPA, 5%