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The differences between instructional design consultants and instructional designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an instructional design consultant and an instructional designer. Additionally, an instructional design consultant has an average salary of $70,045, which is higher than the $57,534 average annual salary of an instructional designer.
The top three skills for an instructional design consultant include instructional design, subject matter experts and elearning. The most important skills for an instructional designer are instructional design, subject matter experts, and project management.
| Instructional Design Consultant | Instructional Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $70,045 | $57,534 |
| Hourly rate | $33.68 | $27.66 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 47,057 | 50,321 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
An instructional design consultant is responsible for assisting, developing, and managing instructional material and plans with other professionals such as programmers, web developers, and teachers in IT. They usually collaborate, coordinate, and interact with the aforementioned professionals to develop a program design to enhance their expertise and learning experiences. Also, they must research electronic learning, run usability tests, find learning objectives for a particular project, and do a content development review and analysis.
An instructional designer focuses on devising learning materials and content to aid every students' learning difficulties. These can include videos, books, and presentations. They are primarily responsible for conducting thorough research and analysis to identify the needs of students, crafting learning strategies in collaboration with experts. They are also responsible for developing tools and materials to help assess every students' progress, such as quizzes and examinations. Furthermore, an instructional designer needs to coordinate with all personnel involved with the project to ensure accuracy and timeliness.
Instructional design consultants and instructional designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Instructional Design Consultant | Instructional Designer | |
| Average salary | $70,045 | $57,534 |
| Salary range | Between $51,000 And $95,000 | Between $41,000 And $79,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Hartford, CT |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | Qualtrics | |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Technology |
There are a few differences between an instructional design consultant and an instructional designer in terms of educational background:
| Instructional Design Consultant | Instructional Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between instructional design consultants' and instructional designers' demographics:
| Instructional Design Consultant | Instructional Designer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% | Male, 41.8% Female, 58.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 5.4% White, 62.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 5.5% White, 62.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 16% | 16% |