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The differences between family service assistants and program assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a family service assistant and a program assistant. Additionally, a program assistant has an average salary of $35,193, which is higher than the $33,090 average annual salary of a family service assistant.
The top three skills for a family service assistant include social work, child care and community resources. The most important skills for a program assistant are patients, customer service, and data entry.
| Family Service Assistant | Program Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $33,090 | $35,193 |
| Hourly rate | $15.91 | $16.92 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 47,477 | 96,901 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 57% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A family service assistant offers practical and emotional support to family service workers in support of families. Family service workers are often assigned to at-risk clients through government or social service agencies. A service assistant assesses these families' needs to identify how to resolve issues. A family service assistant must have good communication skills, be calm under pressure, and be adaptable.
Program assistants are usually entry-level or junior employees assigned to a department that handles a specific program in the organization. They assist the team they are assigned to in the implementation of the programs. They usually take care of administrative or clerical activities while also getting exposure to actual program management. Program assistants get trained to handle agendas from inception, to sourcing, to implementation, to evaluation. They may also handle documentary support for business cases or other presentation materials that the team may need for a specific part of the program management cycle.
Family service assistants and program assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Family Service Assistant | Program Assistant | |
| Average salary | $33,090 | $35,193 |
| Salary range | Between $18,000 And $59,000 | Between $27,000 And $45,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | Mount Sinai Health System | The Aspen Institute |
| Best paying industry | Non Profits | Government |
There are a few differences between a family service assistant and a program assistant in terms of educational background:
| Family Service Assistant | Program Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 57% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY at Binghamton | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between family service assistants' and program assistants' demographics:
| Family Service Assistant | Program Assistant | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 18.8% Female, 81.2% | Male, 24.8% Female, 75.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 6.3% White, 54.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2% | Black or African American, 13.8% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 6.7% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |