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The differences between early intervention specialists and child life specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an early intervention specialist, becoming a child life specialist takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a child life specialist has an average salary of $55,201, which is higher than the $46,103 average annual salary of an early intervention specialist.
The top three skills for an early intervention specialist include early intervention, developmental disabilities and applied behavior analysis. The most important skills for a child life specialist are patients, child development, and patient care.
| Early Intervention Specialist | Child Life Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $46,103 | $55,201 |
| Hourly rate | $22.16 | $26.54 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 22,033 | 90,517 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 42 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
Early intervention specialists are responsible for determining and helping youth who are manifesting deficiencies in the fundamental areas of learning. They are trained teachers who work with youngsters between birth and age four to direct developmental impediments. Also, they have an essential role in bridging children and their families with other social service workers. Their jobs include carefully evaluating the child, establishing developmental goals, creating medication plans, recommending learning activities, and keeping track of the child's progress.
The job of a child life specialist is to help children and their families navigate the process of injury, illness, trauma, hospitalization, and disability. These health care professionals perform varied duties that include helping children and their families better understand the procedure and process of their medical experience. They also work on developing strategies to lessen the trauma and improve their understanding of a diagnosis by providing support, guidance, and information to family members. They are also expected to work closely with other members of the health care team in coordinating and managing care.
Early intervention specialists and child life specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Early Intervention Specialist | Child Life Specialist | |
| Average salary | $46,103 | $55,201 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $70,000 | Between $31,000 And $96,000 |
| Highest paying City | Anchorage, AK | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | California |
| Best paying company | Children's Hospital Los Angeles | L.E.K. Consulting |
| Best paying industry | Professional | - |
There are a few differences between an early intervention specialist and a child life specialist in terms of educational background:
| Early Intervention Specialist | Child Life Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between early intervention specialists' and child life specialists' demographics:
| Early Intervention Specialist | Child Life Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 13.0% Female, 87.0% | Male, 24.9% Female, 75.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 2.7% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% | Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 11% |