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The differences between finance aid counselors and finance advisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a finance aid counselor, becoming a finance advisor takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a finance advisor has an average salary of $64,993, which is higher than the $37,672 average annual salary of a finance aid counselor.
The top three skills for a finance aid counselor include financial assistance, customer service and financial aid programs. The most important skills for a finance advisor are team support, wealth management, and securities.
| Finance Aid Counselor | Finance Advisor | |
| Yearly salary | $37,672 | $64,993 |
| Hourly rate | $18.11 | $31.25 |
| Growth rate | 15% | 15% |
| Number of jobs | 118,072 | 106,311 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
Financial aid counselors are professionals who are responsible for providing advice to students and parents regarding various institutional financial aid programs. By following state and university guidelines, financial aid counselors are required to award funds from various controlled programs to students by ensuring the optimal use of financial aid funds. These counselors must assist students to complete all the appropriate and required forms to ensure the proper application process for financial aid. They must also assist the financial aid coordinator to make sure that their department is running smoothly.
A Financial Advisor specializes in sharing their expertise with an individual or company on how to handle and boost finances. The responsibilities of a Financial Advisor include creating and proposing a strategy to attain financial gains through profits and investments, educating the client about new methods and opportunities, monitor and evaluate progress, and as well as plan policies according to the clients' life changes. Furthermore, it is also the duty of the Financial Advisor to research new investments that would be of great help to the client's assets.
Finance aid counselors and finance advisors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Finance Aid Counselor | Finance Advisor | |
| Average salary | $37,672 | $64,993 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $47,000 | Between $34,000 And $121,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New York | New York |
| Best paying company | The American Musical and Dramatic Academy | Enbridge |
| Best paying industry | Education | Finance |
There are a few differences between a finance aid counselor and a finance advisor in terms of educational background:
| Finance Aid Counselor | Finance Advisor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Minnesota - Twin Cities |
Here are the differences between finance aid counselors' and finance advisors' demographics:
| Finance Aid Counselor | Finance Advisor | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 28.2% Female, 71.8% | Male, 72.3% Female, 27.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 6.4% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 8.3% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 5% |