How To Become A Dispute Specialist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a dispute specialist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

A dispute specialist is an individual who specializes in resolving disputes between two or more parties. They are trained to handle conflicts in various industries and settings and use various techniques to facilitate communication and negotiation. A dispute specialist acts as a mediator, helping parties to identify the root cause of the dispute, understand each other's perspectives, and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. They must have excellent communication skills and be knowledgeable about conflict resolution techniques.

ScoreDispute SpecialistUS Average

Salary

2.8

Avg. Salary $35,796

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.9

Growth rate -4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

9.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.65%

Asian 6.46%

Black or African American 12.11%

Hispanic or Latino 20.60%

Unknown 5.46%

White 54.72%

Gender

female 66.92%

male 33.08%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

5.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.6

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.5

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a dispute specialist?

Pros

Opportunity to help clients resolve conflicts and disputes
Chance to develop strong negotiation and communication skills
Potential for career growth and advancement within the field
Can be a rewarding and satisfying career path
Can offer a competitive salary and benefits package

Cons

High stress levels and pressure to meet deadlines
May require long hours or overtime work
Emotionally taxing to deal with difficult clients or situations
Requires extensive research and analysis of complex legal or regulatory issues
Involves a lot of paperwork or administrative tasks

Key steps to become a dispute specialist

Explore dispute specialist education requirements

Most common dispute specialist degrees

Bachelor's

44.5 %

Associate

24.5 %

High School Diploma

18.7 %

Start to develop specific dispute specialist skills

Skills	Percentages
Debit	12.21%
Customer Disputes	10.99%
FCRA	6.85%
Quality Customer Service	5.91%
ACH	4.93%

Complete relevant dispute specialist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New dispute specialists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a dispute specialist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real dispute specialist resumes.

Research dispute specialist duties and responsibilities

Resolve consumer relate complaints through mediation and arbitration services.
Study the merchant's case (s) and advise them on the best way to remedy them.
Mediate for various agencies such as Medicaid.
Grant or not grant atm disputes after investigation.

Prepare your dispute specialist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your dispute specialist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a dispute specialist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable dispute specialist resume templates

Build a professional dispute specialist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your dispute specialist resume.