Food service associate vs certified medical technician

The differences between food service associates and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $31,642 average annual salary of a food service associate.

The top three skills for a food service associate include patients, food handling and excellent interpersonal. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Food service associate vs certified medical technician overview

	Food Service Associate	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$31,642	$38,859
Hourly rate	$15.21	$18.68
Growth rate	2%	5%
Number of jobs	64,167	164,424
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	37	44
Years of experience	-	12

What does a food service associate do?

A food service associate performs fundamental functions in the food industry. Food service associates prepare and serve food items. They cater to special events, which involve facility preparation, food presentation maintenance, and setting up tables. Their duties include cleaning preparation and service equipment. They restock the work stations for the essential supplies. The skills they need to perform their job include customer service, teamwork, work with diverse cultural, ethnic, and academic backgrounds, and learn safety and health regulations.

What does a certified medical technician do?

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 service associate vs certified medical technician salary

Food service associates and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Food Service Associate	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$31,642	$38,859
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $39,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Alaska
Best paying company	Maine Health/maine Mental Health Partners	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Technology	Health Care

Differences between food service associate and certified medical technician education

There are a few differences between a food service associate and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:

	Food Service Associate	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Business	Nursing
Most common college	-	University of Connecticut

Food service associate vs certified medical technician demographics

Here are the differences between food service associates' and certified medical technicians' demographics:

	Food Service Associate	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	37	44
Gender ratio	Male, 38.0% Female, 62.0%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.3% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	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	6%	8%

Differences between food service associate and certified medical technician duties and responsibilities

Food service associate example responsibilities.

Experience using a cash register and POS system to manage food orders.
Maintain pantry, follow USDA guidelines for proper food storage, and maintenance on equipment.
Help track inventory using FIFO.
Stock product according to date, using the FIFO method.
Perform complex math calculations using fractions, percentile, probabilities and/or ratios.
Rank one of the top math and technology schools in the nation.

Certified medical technician example responsibilities.

Maintain the cleanliness of storage areas, trays, centrifuges, refrigerators, freezers and work area.
Administer medications to patients according to their medication record as scheduled, as needed according to physician orders.
Perform laboratory test and procedures in areas including chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, serology, and bacteriology.
Perform first aid and apply CPR when necessary.
Perform first aid or CPR during medical emergencies until paramedics arrive.
Assist the residents in their ADL needs and prepare their meals.

Food service associate vs certified medical technician skills

Common food service associate skills

Patients, 14%
Food Handling, 12%
Excellent Interpersonal, 11%
Cleanliness, 7%
Math, 6%
Kitchen Equipment, 6%

Common certified medical technician skills

Patients, 17%
Vital Signs, 12%
CPR, 8%
Administer Medications, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
HIPAA, 6%

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Food Service Associate vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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