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Graduate assistant vs assistant supervisor

The differences between graduate assistants and assistant supervisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an assistant supervisor has an average salary of $39,907, which is higher than the $31,704 average annual salary of a graduate assistant.

The top three skills for a graduate assistant include computer lab, undergraduate courses and research projects. The most important skills for an assistant supervisor are customer service, safety procedures, and direct supervision.

Graduate assistant vs assistant supervisor overview

Graduate AssistantAssistant Supervisor
Yearly salary$31,704$39,907
Hourly rate$15.24$19.19
Growth rate20%-
Number of jobs3,02632,901
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Average age4447
Years of experience-6

What does a graduate assistant do?

Graduate assistants are graduate or postgraduate students in a university who work part-time for a researcher, professor, or department in the university. They do a variety of tasks that would help expose them more to the field they are doing their studies in. Graduate assistants help researchers by conducting interviews, testing research tools, encoding and analyzing data, creating presentation materials, and managing the research schedule. They help professors in preparing for lessons, creating and updating presentation materials, and even trying their hand in teaching the professor's students. They help university departments in administrative, clerical, research, and any other task that may be needed.

What does an assistant supervisor do?

An assistant supervisor is responsible for assisting supervisors in various tasks and functioning as their point of contact to coordinate with employees in a company, ensuring that their needs are understood and relayed. Aside from overseeing the operations of workflow and workforce, an assistant supervisor's duties will also revolve around clerical tasks such as preparing reports and necessary documents, handling the leaves of employees, and other forms of correspondence. Furthermore, an assistant supervisor can also recruit and train staff, assign workload and verify documentation procedures.

Graduate assistant vs assistant supervisor salary

Graduate assistants and assistant supervisors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Graduate AssistantAssistant Supervisor
Average salary$31,704$39,907
Salary rangeBetween $11,000 And $85,000Between $28,000 And $55,000
Highest paying CityBoston, MARochester, NY
Highest paying stateMassachusettsNew York
Best paying companySotheby's Institute of ArtEmerson College
Best paying industryEducationGovernment

Differences between graduate assistant and assistant supervisor education

There are a few differences between a graduate assistant and an assistant supervisor in terms of educational background:

Graduate AssistantAssistant Supervisor
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Most common majorPsychologyBusiness
Most common collegeStanford UniversityCalifornia State University - Bakersfield

Graduate assistant vs assistant supervisor demographics

Here are the differences between graduate assistants' and assistant supervisors' demographics:

Graduate AssistantAssistant Supervisor
Average age4447
Gender ratioMale, 42.9% Female, 57.1%Male, 53.0% Female, 47.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 11.0% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 5.3% White, 60.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage6%8%

Differences between graduate assistant and assistant supervisor duties and responsibilities

Graduate assistant example responsibilities.

  • Lead a number of introductory and advance philosophy lecture courses under close faculty supervision.
  • Manage graduate program twitter handle @ comugrad and assist in developing and implementing engagement strategies.
  • Develop and manage syllabus material; evaluate students' performance relative to standardize learning objectives.
  • Collaborate with professors to accomplish academic educations through fulfilling academic instruction tasks in blackboard system and other academic activities.
  • Assist students with completing financial aid applications (FAFSA and TASFA) and applications for various scholarships.
  • Handle administrative tasks including preparation of PowerPoint presentations data entry and analysis, website development and collation of marketing materials.
  • Show more

Assistant supervisor example responsibilities.

  • Interact with clients and manage client relationships, including escalate issues; team with executive leadership regarding strategy and operations.
  • Monitor and update admit status to maintain CMS compliance for place of service.
  • Facilitate and deliver training as required under CMS department guidelines including EJT, initiatives, and up training.
  • Implement menu plans to meet customers' requirements, ensuring availability of food items for those patrons with food allergies.
  • Report monthly/quarterly/annual reports in PowerPoint for presentation to clients and corporate executives.
  • Train faculty and students to create course relate videos/audio and PowerPoint presentations.
  • Show more

Graduate assistant vs assistant supervisor skills

Common graduate assistant skills
  • Computer Lab, 7%
  • Undergraduate Courses, 6%
  • Research Projects, 6%
  • Student Athletes, 5%
  • Data Collection, 5%
  • Alumni, 4%
Common assistant supervisor skills
  • Customer Service, 23%
  • Safety Procedures, 12%
  • Direct Supervision, 11%
  • Payroll, 4%
  • CPR, 4%
  • Patient Care, 3%

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