What Does a Food Service Associate Do?

In this section, we compare the average food service associate annual salary with that of a pastry cook. Typically, pastry cooks earn a $3,216 higher salary than food service associates earn annually.

Even though food service associates and pastry cooks have vast differences in their careers, a few of the skills required to do both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require food handling, cleanliness, and kitchen equipment in the day-to-day roles.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. A food service associate responsibility is more likely to require skills like "patients," "excellent interpersonal," "math," and "basic math." Whereas a pastry cook requires skills like "food safety," "wine," "banquet events," and "executive pastry chef." Just by understanding these different skills you can see how different these careers are.

Pastry cooks really shine in the hospitality industry with an average salary of $36,443. Whereas food service associates tend to make the most money in the technology industry with an average salary of $33,477.

Pastry cooks tend to reach similar levels of education than food service associates. In fact, pastry cooks are 0.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Now we're going to look at the line cook profession. On average, line cooks earn a $1,252 higher salary than food service associates a year.

A similarity between the two careers of food service associates and line cooks are a few of the skills associated with both roles. We used resumes from both professions to find that both use skills like "food handling," "cleanliness," and "math. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences that are worth noting. For example, food service associate responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "patients," "excellent interpersonal," "food trays," and "patient meals." Meanwhile, a line cook might be skilled in areas such as "team work," "quality food," "food processors," and "dexterity." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Line cooks may earn a higher salary than food service associates, but line cooks earn the most pay in the hospitality industry with an average salary of $32,363. On the other side of things, food service associates receive higher paychecks in the technology industry where they earn an average of $33,477.

On the topic of education, line cooks earn similar levels of education than food service associates. In general, they're 1.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

The sous chef profession generally makes a higher amount of money when compared to the average salary of food service associates. The difference in salaries is sous chefs making $17,074 higher than food service associates.

By looking over several food service associates and sous chefs resumes, we found that both roles utilize similar skills, such as "food handling," "cleanliness," and "kitchen equipment." But beyond that the careers look very different.

Some important key differences between the two careers are a few of the skills necessary to fulfill responsibilities. Some examples from food service associate resumes include skills like "patients," "excellent interpersonal," "math," and "basic math," whereas a sous chef might be skilled in "food service," "kitchen operations," "chefs," and "cuisine. "

Sous chefs make a very good living in the government industry with an average annual salary of $52,076. Whereas food service associates are paid the highest salary in the technology industry with the average being $33,477.

Sous chefs typically study at similar levels compared with food service associates. For example, they're 0.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Now, we'll look at line chefs, who generally average a lower pay when compared to food service associates annual salary. In fact, the difference is about $4,991 per year.

While their salaries may vary, food service associates and line chefs both use similar skills to perform their jobs. Resumes from both professions include skills like "patients," "food handling," and "cleanliness. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a food service associate might have more use for skills like "excellent interpersonal," "math," "basic math," and "food trays." Meanwhile, some line chefs might include skills like "broilers," "chefs," "mix ingredients," and "steam meats" on their resume.

Now, let's take a closer look at the financials in each career. The education industry tends to pay more for line chefs with an average of $28,064. While the highest food service associate annual salary comes from the technology industry.

In general, line chefs reach similar levels of education when compared to food service associates resumes. Line chefs are 1.1% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.