College administrator vs department chairperson

The differences between college administrators and department chairpeople can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a college administrator and a department chairperson. Additionally, a department chairperson has an average salary of $98,438, which is higher than the $41,036 average annual salary of a college administrator.

The top three skills for a college administrator include financial aid, alumni and human resources. The most important skills for a department chairperson are curriculum development, professional development, and classroom management.

College administrator vs department chairperson overview

	College Administrator	Department Chairperson
Yearly salary	$41,036	$98,438
Hourly rate	$19.73	$47.33
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	51,629	33,511
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

College administrator vs department chairperson salary

College administrators and department chairpeople have different pay scales, as shown below.

	College Administrator	Department Chairperson
Average salary	$41,036	$98,438
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $66,000	Between $50,000 And $191,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Marshall University
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between college administrator and department chairperson education

There are a few differences between a college administrator and a department chairperson in terms of educational background:

	College Administrator	Department Chairperson
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Most common major	Business	Education
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

College administrator vs department chairperson demographics

Here are the differences between college administrators' and department chairpeople' demographics:

	College Administrator	Department Chairperson
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 33.8% Female, 66.2%	Male, 45.5% Female, 54.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 4.2% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.5% Asian, 4.2% White, 64.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between college administrator and department chairperson duties and responsibilities

College administrator example responsibilities.

Direct Medicaid health plan management division activities (manage care program operations, quality improvement, and contract administration).
Lead and develop the technical strategy for improving architectural and design elements of SharePoint to enhance utilization and drive user functionality.
Coordinate DoD security inspections and develop local policies and processes used to implement these regulations.

Department chairperson example responsibilities.

Manage the club's Facebook/Twitter accounts.
Lead meetings with ESL department teachers in which teachers collaborate on unit plan ideas, classroom strategies and student needs.
Manage the development of an alumni newsletter and coordinate with alumni to provide relevant content.
Manage both individual and organizational achievements for the members through involvement with the community, philanthropies, campus involvement, and scholarship
Negotiate and obtain clinical sites for PN and ADN programs.
Develop and deliver dynamic, rigorous lessons for high school economics classes.

College administrator vs department chairperson skills

Common college administrator skills

Financial Aid, 44%
Alumni, 40%
Human Resources, 9%
Academic Programs, 8%

Common department chairperson skills

Curriculum Development, 15%
Professional Development, 14%
Classroom Management, 13%
Rehabilitation, 7%
Student Learning, 5%
Colleges, 4%

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College Administrator vs Department Chairperson

Updated January 8, 2025

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