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The differences between field service technicians and field service specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a field service technician, becoming a field service specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a field service technician has an average salary of $54,339, which is higher than the $51,832 average annual salary of a field service specialist.
The top three skills for a field service technician include customer service, preventative maintenance and customer satisfaction. The most important skills for a field service specialist are customer satisfaction, provide customer support, and customer support.
| Field Service Technician | Field Service Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $54,339 | $51,832 |
| Hourly rate | $26.12 | $24.92 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 167,298 | 104,134 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 35% |
| Average age | 44 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
Field service technicians are skilled professionals who manage the technical needs of their clients outside the company's physical office space. They are usually on the field to visit their clients and check up on clients' equipment. Field service technicians are dispatched to provide technical support. They oversee installations, repairs, or maintenance activities. They ensure that all the work needed is done well. They also conduct diagnostic activities and troubleshooting. Field service technicians also supervise any updating or changes needed to be done in their clients' offices. They are expected to have good analytical skills, communication skills, and highly technical skills.
A field service specialist is responsible for visiting sites and driving down to clients' locations to provide support for their technical and mechanical issues. Field service specialists identify maintenance problems by asking questions to the clients and personally fix those errors, informing the clients of technical solutions. They also perform installation and quality check services to ensure the stability and efficiency of the technical components and materials. A field service specialist must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially the ability to work for extended hours in the field to achieve the highest customer satisfaction.
Field service technicians and field service specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Service Technician | Field Service Specialist | |
| Average salary | $54,339 | $51,832 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $82,000 | Between $33,000 And $81,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Palo Alto, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | SAP | |
| Best paying industry | Finance | - |
There are a few differences between a field service technician and a field service specialist in terms of educational background:
| Field Service Technician | Field Service Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 35% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between field service technicians' and field service specialists' demographics:
| Field Service Technician | Field Service Specialist | |
| Average age | 44 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 92.3% Female, 7.7% | Male, 88.8% Female, 11.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.8% Asian, 1.7% White, 72.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 1% | 11% |