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The differences between food inspectors and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a food inspector, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a food inspector has an average salary of $43,824, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.
The top three skills for a food inspector include food handling, federal laws and food preparation. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Food Inspector | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $43,824 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $21.07 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | -3% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 64,809 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 50 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
The Food Inspector focuses on securing all consumers' health and safety from a company's food products. They must enforce all food standards outlined by the Food and Drug Administration. Other responsibilities include inspection of slaughterhouses, food production facilities, and other food-related establishments if they follow safety and health regulations and protocols. The Food Inspector determines if the establishment is safe to sell food products and if they have permits to operate. Their job also requires them to ensure that all food sold is fit for consumption and safe according to federal laws.
Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.
Food inspectors and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Food Inspector | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $43,824 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $70,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Harrisburg, PA | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Office of Human Services | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Government | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a food inspector and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Food Inspector | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Business | Nursing |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between food inspectors' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Food Inspector | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 50 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 52.9% Female, 47.1% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 20.9% Asian, 5.5% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |