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The differences between imaging specialists and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an imaging specialist, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $34,003 average annual salary of an imaging specialist.
The top three skills for an imaging specialist include patients, patient care and radiology. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Imaging Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $34,003 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $16.35 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | - | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 21,696 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 44% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
The duties of an imaging specialist depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities include meeting with clients to identify their needs, editing and scanning images, performing color corrections on photographs and other forms of image manipulation, and creating digital rendings of photos and videos. There are also instances where an imaging specialist may work together with photographers, artists, and graphic designers, all functioning in adherence to the goals and vision of a project.
Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.
Imaging specialists and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Imaging Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $34,003 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $15,000 And $75,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Trumbull, CT | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Alaska |
| Best paying company | FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Health Care |
There are a few differences between an imaging specialist and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Imaging Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 44% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Business | Nursing |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between imaging specialists' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Imaging Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 42.6% Female, 57.4% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 8% |