Costume specialist vs costume designer

The differences between costume specialists and costume designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a costume specialist, becoming a costume designer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a costume designer has an average salary of $54,229, which is higher than the $48,798 average annual salary of a costume specialist.

The top three skills for a costume specialist include costumes, outbound calls and . The most important skills for a costume designer are costumes, make-up, and costume shop.

Costume specialist vs costume designer overview

	Costume Specialist	Costume Designer
Yearly salary	$48,798	$54,229
Hourly rate	$23.46	$26.07
Growth rate	-	3%
Number of jobs	18,721	47,323
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age	34	37
Years of experience	12	6

Costume specialist vs costume designer salary

Costume specialists and costume designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Costume Specialist	Costume Designer
Average salary	$48,798	$54,229
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $78,000	Between $34,000 And $84,000
Highest paying City	-	Camarillo, CA
Highest paying state	-	Rhode Island
Best paying company	-	Poly Prep Country Day School
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between costume specialist and costume designer education

There are a few differences between a costume specialist and a costume designer in terms of educational background:

	Costume Specialist	Costume Designer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common major	Theatre	Graphic Design
Most common college	Stanford University	Cornell University

Costume specialist vs costume designer demographics

Here are the differences between costume specialists' and costume designers' demographics:

	Costume Specialist	Costume Designer
Average age	34	37
Gender ratio	Male, 40.4% Female, 59.6%	Male, 19.3% Female, 80.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 5.6% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 11.6% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	18%

Differences between costume specialist and costume designer duties and responsibilities

Costume specialist example responsibilities.

Manage FDA regulate products requirements for ISO2000 quality assurance.
Assist customers in finding costumes or decorations, coordinate inventory with the warehouse, clean and stock the storefront.
Assist the costume designer in choosing costumes for productions and relate activities - fittings, moving costumes to and from storage.
Determine program eligibility for Medicaid, food stamp and cash benefits in accordance with current regulations using the computer-based eligibility system.
Maintain department SharePoint site including site administration.

Costume designer example responsibilities.

Manage all daily costume distributions and collection, laundering and maintenance/repair of costumes.
Develop marketing and brand awareness initiatives through social media outlets; create and manage company Facebook and Houzz profiles.
Design and sew children's Halloween costumes.
Contribute in production and on set as an assistant dressing the actors, maintaining the costumes, and setting up/organizing wardrobe.
Source cut and sew knits in NYC garment district.
Sketch, pattern and sew costume for cast including accessories.

Costume specialist vs costume designer skills

Common costume specialist skills

Costumes, 85%
Outbound Calls, 15%

Common costume designer skills

Costumes, 27%
Make-Up, 9%
Costume Shop, 8%
Design Concepts, 8%
Character Development, 7%
Wardrobe, 5%