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The differences between human resource specialists and specialists 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 a specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a specialist has an average salary of $58,013, which is higher than the $53,143 average annual salary of a human resource specialist.
The top three skills for a human resource specialist include data entry, oversight and life insurance. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.
| Human Resource Specialist | Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $53,143 | $58,013 |
| Hourly rate | $25.55 | $27.89 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 50,511 | 358,433 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| 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.
Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.
Human resource specialists and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Human Resource Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average salary | $53,143 | $58,013 |
| Salary range | Between $36,000 And $77,000 | Between $32,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Meta | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Government | - |
There are a few differences between a human resource specialist and a specialist in terms of educational background:
| Human Resource Specialist | Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between human resource specialists' and specialists' demographics:
| Human Resource Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 26.9% Female, 73.1% | Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5% |
| 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, 11.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 11% |