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The differences between development technicians and systems developers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a development technician, becoming a systems developer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a systems developer has an average salary of $97,230, which is higher than the $92,109 average annual salary of a development technician.
The top three skills for a development technician include java, C++ and C #. The most important skills for a systems developer are java, python, and C++.
| Development Technician | Systems Developer | |
| Yearly salary | $92,109 | $97,230 |
| Hourly rate | $44.28 | $46.75 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 82,959 | 322,419 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 39 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
A development technician is an individual who manages technology development for hardware used in the server systems of an organization. Development technicians are required to organize tasks and resources so that they can complete work and meet deadlines that are according to departmental procedures. They must train production personnel on the standard operating procedures for manufacturing equipment as well as train colleagues in standard operating procedures. Development technicians must also assist Java developers in characterizing and debugging technical problems.
A Systems Developer is responsible for designing and creating software applications and server programs to support business requirements and client specifications. System Developers run multiple diagnostic tests to the systems to ensure performance and stability and revise scripts for optimization as needed. They also evaluate and improve existing networks, develop infrastructure, and set configuration. A Systems Developer must have excellent communication and technical skills, as well as a strong command of programming languages and system codes to identify network structures and operating systems.
Development technicians and systems developers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Development Technician | Systems Developer | |
| Average salary | $92,109 | $97,230 |
| Salary range | Between $63,000 And $134,000 | Between $73,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Delaware | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Hospitality |
There are a few differences between a development technician and a systems developer in terms of educational background:
| Development Technician | Systems Developer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between development technicians' and systems developers' demographics:
| Development Technician | Systems Developer | |
| Average age | 39 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 67.6% Female, 32.4% | Male, 76.5% Female, 23.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 30.0% White, 52.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 16.6% White, 57.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |