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The differences between human resource specialists and assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a human resource specialist, becoming an assistant takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a human resource specialist has an average salary of $53,143, which is higher than the $37,363 average annual salary of an assistant.
The top three skills for a human resource specialist include data entry, oversight and life insurance. The most important skills for an assistant are patients, customer service, and patient care.
| Human Resource Specialist | Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $53,143 | $37,363 |
| Hourly rate | $25.55 | $17.96 |
| Growth rate | 8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 50,511 | 557,900 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 41 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 2 |
A human resources specialist is responsible for assisting in the recruitment and staffing process. Duties of a human resources specialist include updating the requirements and qualifications of a job post, handling employees' inquiries regarding compensation and benefits, maintaining employees' records, updating the status of new joiners, tracking performance reviews, and generating reports as business requires. A human resource specialist must be detail-oriented, as well as excellent in organizational and communication skills. Additionally, a human resource specialist must have a broad knowledge of the recruitment process and structure.
An assistant intern is responsible for facilitating administrative and clerical tasks as assigned by the management. Assistant interns' duties include keeping records of meetings, receiving calls and handling customer inquiries, assisting on writing reports and data entry processing, cooperating and providing support for business events, and adhering to company policies and regulatory procedures. Successful assistant interns must have excellent time-management, multi-tasking, and communication skills. They must be a team player and fast-learner to handle various tasks in the corporate industry.
Human resource specialists and assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Human Resource Specialist | Assistant | |
| Average salary | $53,143 | $37,363 |
| Salary range | Between $36,000 And $77,000 | Between $16,000 And $82,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Meta | Latham & Watkins |
| Best paying industry | Government | Education |
There are a few differences between a human resource specialist and an assistant in terms of educational background:
| Human Resource Specialist | Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between human resource specialists' and assistants' demographics:
| Human Resource Specialist | Assistant | |
| Average age | 41 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 26.9% Female, 73.1% | Male, 40.7% Female, 59.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 7.6% White, 56.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 6% |