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The differences between community workers and community support 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 community worker, becoming a community support specialist takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a community worker has an average salary of $40,029, which is higher than the $39,320 average annual salary of a community support specialist.
The top three skills for a community worker include social services, mental health and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a community support specialist are social work, mental health, and rehabilitation.
| Community Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $40,029 | $39,320 |
| Hourly rate | $19.24 | $18.90 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 46,201 | 111,431 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
Community workers are individuals who work with families or social communities to help promote or restore the social functioning of a community. These workers must promote social justice and maximizing human potential while advocating the rights of individuals and community groups. They must have the skills and flexibility to work with multiple client groups to assess and evaluate community projects and programs. Community workers must also work for non-profit organizations, government, and private sectors to provide human services.
A community support specialist is responsible for supporting and providing care services for citizens with mental health conditions and other medical illnesses. Community support specialists coordinate with organizations and health institutions to generate resources that would help the patients in their daily activities, medications, and treatment plans. They also strategize community events and activities to observe the patients' social and personal behaviors and endorse them to a mental health professional for in-depth examination and counseling.
Community workers and community support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Community Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $40,029 | $39,320 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $55,000 | Between $27,000 And $56,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Mateo, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | Alaska |
| Best paying company | University of Illinois Springfield | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Education | Non Profits |
There are a few differences between a community worker and a community support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Community Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between community workers' and community support specialists' demographics:
| Community Worker | Community Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 31.6% Female, 68.4% | Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 22.9% Asian, 6.2% White, 54.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 12.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 7.0% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 21% | 11% |