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Departmental assistant vs assistant director

The differences between departmental assistants and assistant directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a departmental assistant, becoming an assistant director takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, an assistant director has an average salary of $63,063, which is higher than the $39,690 average annual salary of a departmental assistant.

The top three skills for a departmental assistant include HR, chemistry and data analysis. The most important skills for an assistant director are customer service, CPR, and child care.

Departmental assistant vs assistant director overview

Departmental AssistantAssistant Director
Yearly salary$39,690$63,063
Hourly rate$19.08$30.32
Growth rate-8%8%
Number of jobs34,48025,087
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 68%Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age5040
Years of experience26

Departmental assistant vs assistant director salary

Departmental assistants and assistant directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Departmental AssistantAssistant Director
Average salary$39,690$63,063
Salary rangeBetween $28,000 And $55,000Between $37,000 And $105,000
Highest paying CitySanta Barbara, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateHawaiiCalifornia
Best paying companyUniversity of Massachusetts BostonMayer Brown
Best paying industryManufacturing-

Differences between departmental assistant and assistant director education

There are a few differences between a departmental assistant and an assistant director in terms of educational background:

Departmental AssistantAssistant Director
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 68%Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeNorthwestern UniversityStanford University

Departmental assistant vs assistant director demographics

Here are the differences between departmental assistants' and assistant directors' demographics:

Departmental AssistantAssistant Director
Average age5040
Gender ratioMale, 29.5% Female, 70.5%Male, 38.3% Female, 61.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage6%14%

Differences between departmental assistant and assistant director duties and responsibilities

Departmental assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage and develop the daily clinical schedule for the in-patient rehabilitation staff taking into consideration Medicare guidelines and staffing ratios.
  • Input appointments into HRIS (HCM- PeopleSoft) and maintain all HRIS records; process student and limit payroll in
  • Attend various meetings, take dictation, write up and distribute minutes.
  • Process employee time and payroll - records, adjustments, travel and other reimbursable payments.
  • Create and curate social media presence of the department on Instagram, Facebook and Tumblr.
  • Tutor primarily engineering students in the subjects of engineering, physics, math, chemistry, and biology.
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Assistant director example responsibilities.

  • Manage purchasing, A/P, A/R and budget management.
  • Manage care for k-5 kids before and after school.
  • Establish and develop relationships with ERP and consulting vendors with the goal of maximizing comparative advantage and cost efficient solution development.
  • Manage delivery of quality early childhood education programs by establishing an environment of learning and maintaining the integrity of the programs.
  • Coordinate new student Facebook group and create twitter handle to increase applicant and prospective student awareness for admissions news and events.
  • Direct oversight of airport security programs and operations and responsible for business management functions including human resources, finance and procurement.
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Departmental assistant vs assistant director skills

Common departmental assistant skills
  • HR, 20%
  • Chemistry, 19%
  • Data Analysis, 12%
  • Word Processing, 9%
  • Routine Correspondence, 6%
  • Scheduling Appointments, 4%
Common assistant director skills
  • Customer Service, 15%
  • CPR, 7%
  • Child Care, 7%
  • Oversight, 7%
  • Payroll, 6%
  • Alumni, 5%

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