Computer laboratory supervisor vs hardware technician

The differences between computer laboratory supervisors and hardware technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a computer laboratory supervisor and a hardware technician. Additionally, a hardware technician has an average salary of $47,851, which is higher than the $36,304 average annual salary of a computer laboratory supervisor.

The top three skills for a computer laboratory supervisor include computer lab equipment, mac and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a hardware technician are customer service, technical support, and network printers.

Computer laboratory supervisor vs hardware technician overview

	Computer Laboratory Supervisor	Hardware Technician
Yearly salary	$36,304	$47,851
Hourly rate	$17.45	$23.01
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	54,027	85,174
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	2	2

Computer laboratory supervisor vs hardware technician salary

Computer laboratory supervisors and hardware technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Computer Laboratory Supervisor	Hardware Technician
Average salary	$36,304	$47,851
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $62,000	Between $32,000 And $71,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	Delaware
Best paying company	-	Apple
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between computer laboratory supervisor and hardware technician education

There are a few differences between a computer laboratory supervisor and a hardware technician in terms of educational background:

	Computer Laboratory Supervisor	Hardware Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Computer Science
Most common college	Stanford University	University of Pennsylvania

Computer laboratory supervisor vs hardware technician demographics

Here are the differences between computer laboratory supervisors' and hardware technicians' demographics:

	Computer Laboratory Supervisor	Hardware Technician
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 68.2% Female, 31.8%	Male, 90.0% Female, 10.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 12.7% White, 54.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 12.0% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between computer laboratory supervisor and hardware technician duties and responsibilities

Computer laboratory supervisor example responsibilities.

Manage departmental computer labs, update departmental website and troubleshot relate PC/Mac applications.
Provide Internet support for internal clients in setting up connections and troubleshoot problems associate with server and connectivity.
Assist lab users run system backups, install software, and make repairs; and monitor Decnet/Internet and mainframe connections.
Lead student orientations to register students, set up testing, and review scores and assessments for the GED program.
Partner with local community college and online universities to mentor GED graduates to pursue higher education learning including distance learning.
Design and implement hardening PC standards for computer labs and college user community maintaining industry standards incorporate SOX compliance practices.

Hardware technician example responsibilities.

Manage resource allocation and work scheduling for UNIX restatement administrators across all the shifts.
Manage all customer network equipment including routers, switches, WLC's, AP's, and firewalls.
Manage trouble ticket queues in order to keep tickets within SLA's and to expedite high level issues.
Work to troubleshoot OS and hardware issue on many computers and peripherals.
Test and troubleshoot: reset bios and perform power-on-self-test on servers and PCs, perform power on tests on various electronics.
Update LAN spreadsheets with appropriate computer information.

Computer laboratory supervisor vs hardware technician skills

Common computer laboratory supervisor skills

Computer Lab Equipment, 9%
Mac, 8%
Troubleshoot, 7%
Computer Software, 5%
Lab Assistants, 5%
Computer Programs, 5%

Common hardware technician skills

Customer Service, 6%
Technical Support, 5%
Network Printers, 5%
Desktop Support, 5%
Test Equipment, 4%
Switches, 4%

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Computer Laboratory Supervisor vs Hardware Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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