Construction administrator vs general superintendent

The differences between construction administrators and general superintendents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-8 years to become a construction administrator, becoming a general superintendent takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a general superintendent has an average salary of $75,102, which is higher than the $46,576 average annual salary of a construction administrator.

The top three skills for a construction administrator include construction management, construction projects and construction contracts. The most important skills for a general superintendent are OSHA, construction management, and project management.

Construction administrator vs general superintendent overview

	Construction Administrator	General Superintendent
Yearly salary	$46,576	$75,102
Hourly rate	$22.39	$36.11
Growth rate	8%	6%
Number of jobs	79,644	92,424
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Average age	46	44
Years of experience	8	6

What does a construction administrator do?

A Construction Administrator is responsible for all administrative duties regarding a company's construction projects. They prepare construction contract documents, review project budgets, and meet with the general contractor and clients to assist in the construction process.

What does a general superintendent do?

A general superintendent is primarily in charge of overseeing projects and programs, ensuring operations adhere to standards and requirements. In the construction industry, a general superintendent supervises the daily procedures in a construction site to ensure the project's completion within budget, schedule, and quality standards. They also have other administrative duties, such as coordinating with contractors and suppliers, monitoring the inventory of materials, purchasing supplies according to project requirements, developing reports, conducting inspections, and implementing safety policies and regulations.

Construction administrator vs general superintendent salary

Construction administrators and general superintendents have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Construction Administrator	General Superintendent
Average salary	$46,576	$75,102
Salary range	Between $32,000 And $66,000	Between $52,000 And $107,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Delaware
Best paying company	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	Southern California Edison
Best paying industry	Construction	Energy

Differences between construction administrator and general superintendent education

There are a few differences between a construction administrator and a general superintendent in terms of educational background:

	Construction Administrator	General Superintendent
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	University of Pennsylvania

Construction administrator vs general superintendent demographics

Here are the differences between construction administrators' and general superintendents' demographics:

	Construction Administrator	General Superintendent
Average age	46	44
Gender ratio	Male, 49.8% Female, 50.2%	Male, 97.3% Female, 2.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 2.8% White, 71.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 6.3% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	4%	10%

Differences between construction administrator and general superintendent duties and responsibilities

Construction administrator example responsibilities.

Manage and execute the SharePoint business integration implementation project and become the corporate governance portal administrator.
Prepare all notice to owners, certificates of insurance, and AIA billings for projects.
Respond to difficult RFI's, ferreting out inappropriate requests with answers clearly indicate in the contract documents.
Review the contract documents and specifications and consult with the design professional as required to provide responses to RFI's.
Facilitate and schedule all in-house AIA credit presentations for manufacture representatives.
Perform detailed CPM schedule analyses on as-built schedules to determine delay entitlement.

General superintendent example responsibilities.

Manage and coordinate all aspects of HVAC relate jobs for a mechanical contractor.
Manage the field installation of pipe, instrumentation and HVAC systems throughout the plant.
Implement and direct shipping and receiving functions and manage salaried and hourly UAW staff in both functions.
Develop and manage instrumental and equipment proper handling regulations in compliance CLIA.
Manage complex logistics, including procuring materials and navigating space constraints, to successfully complete project amid concurrent construction of building.
Lead and develop direct reports ensuring they are competently skil to perform their QA roles.

Construction administrator vs general superintendent skills

Common construction administrator skills

Construction Management, 7%
Construction Projects, 7%
Construction Contracts, 7%
Project Management, 6%
RFI, 5%
Purchase Orders, 5%

Common general superintendent skills

OSHA, 11%
Construction Management, 7%
Project Management, 5%
Quality Standards, 5%
Excellent Organizational, 5%
General Contractors, 5%

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Construction Administrator
Construction Administrator vs General Superintendent

Updated January 8, 2025

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