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Graphic arts technician vs senior graphic designer

The differences between graphic arts technicians and senior graphic designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a graphic arts technician and a senior graphic designer. Additionally, a senior graphic designer has an average salary of $73,921, which is higher than the $53,758 average annual salary of a graphic arts technician.

The top three skills for a graphic arts technician include graphic design, adobe indesign and fine arts. The most important skills for a senior graphic designer are sketch, adobe creative suite, and creative concepts.

Graphic arts technician vs senior graphic designer overview

Graphic Arts TechnicianSenior Graphic Designer
Yearly salary$53,758$73,921
Hourly rate$25.85$35.54
Growth rate3%3%
Number of jobs9,38246,310
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age3838
Years of experience1212

Graphic arts technician vs senior graphic designer salary

Graphic arts technicians and senior graphic designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Graphic Arts TechnicianSenior Graphic Designer
Average salary$53,758$73,921
Salary rangeBetween $35,000 And $81,000Between $51,000 And $105,000
Highest paying City-San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state-Washington
Best paying company-Practice Fusion
Best paying industry-Technology

Differences between graphic arts technician and senior graphic designer education

There are a few differences between a graphic arts technician and a senior graphic designer in terms of educational background:

Graphic Arts TechnicianSenior Graphic Designer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common majorGraphic DesignGraphic Design
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Graphic arts technician vs senior graphic designer demographics

Here are the differences between graphic arts technicians' and senior graphic designers' demographics:

Graphic Arts TechnicianSenior Graphic Designer
Average age3838
Gender ratioMale, 65.9% Female, 34.1%Male, 53.2% Female, 46.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage13%13%

Differences between graphic arts technician and senior graphic designer duties and responsibilities

Graphic arts technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage external communications such as brochures and other sales collateral for direct mail from inception to circulation.
  • Plan and conduct professional development workshops on PowerPoint presentations.
  • Utilize a variety of creative media including illustration, photography and digital design to convey ideas beautifully and intelligently.
  • Create printed service menus in QuarkXPress for auto dealership service departments following the recommended maintenance schedules for each auto manufacturer.

Senior graphic designer example responsibilities.

  • Create and manage license product lines from concept sketch to production sample.
  • Manage front-end development of company website, ordering system, and JavaScript presentations.
  • Create ads, manage copywriting, respond to customer inquiries, generate brand unity, establish clear company identity.
  • Perform front-end development, navigation, IA, UI, analysis, visual design, and SEO.
  • Produce and maintain sales literature, posters, trade show materials, print ads and marketing promotional materials for print media.
  • Design and execute production of marketing collateral; including annual catalogs, brochures, and a special contest information package
  • Show more

Graphic arts technician vs senior graphic designer skills

Common graphic arts technician skills
  • Graphic Design, 33%
  • Adobe Indesign, 28%
  • Fine Arts, 21%
  • Typesetting, 10%
  • Protectors, 8%
Common senior graphic designer skills
  • Sketch, 7%
  • Adobe Creative Suite, 7%
  • Creative Concepts, 5%
  • PowerPoint, 4%
  • Art Direction, 4%
  • HTML, 4%

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