College administrator vs residence hall director

The differences between college administrators and residence hall directors 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 residence hall director. Additionally, a residence hall director has an average salary of $47,193, 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 residence hall director are residence life, desk assistants, and student development.

College administrator vs residence hall director overview

	College Administrator	Residence Hall Director
Yearly salary	$41,036	$47,193
Hourly rate	$19.73	$22.69
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	51,629	6,713
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

College administrator vs residence hall director salary

College administrators and residence hall directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	College Administrator	Residence Hall Director
Average salary	$41,036	$47,193
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $66,000	Between $31,000 And $70,000
Highest paying City	-	Newark, NJ
Highest paying state	-	Massachusetts
Best paying company	-	School of Visual Concepts
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between college administrator and residence hall director education

There are a few differences between a college administrator and a residence hall director in terms of educational background:

	College Administrator	Residence Hall Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common major	Business	Psychology
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

College administrator vs residence hall director demographics

Here are the differences between college administrators' and residence hall directors' demographics:

	College Administrator	Residence Hall Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 33.8% Female, 66.2%	Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1%
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, 12.2% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 4.7% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between college administrator and residence hall director 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.

Residence hall director example responsibilities.

Motivate, train and lead a team of nine ministry coordinators.
Develop nightly social programs and weekly educational programs to encourage healthy lifestyle choices and embracement of multicultural diversity.
Direct resident relations by providing oversight of resident retention, leasing and marketing programs.
Cultivate, coordinate, and assist in the development of student leadership and responsibility through programming and direct involvement with students.

College administrator vs residence hall director skills

Common college administrator skills

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

Common residence hall director skills

Residence Life, 12%
Desk Assistants, 7%
Student Development, 6%
Community Development, 6%
Student Conduct, 4%
Professional Development, 3%

College Administrator vs. similar jobs

College Administrator related careers

College Administrator related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Executive Management Industry
College Administrator
College Administrator vs Residence Hall Director

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse executive management jobs