Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between junior help desk technicians and help desk specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a junior help desk technician and a help desk specialist. Additionally, a help desk specialist has an average salary of $51,065, which is higher than the $48,069 average annual salary of a junior help desk technician.
The top three skills for a junior help desk technician include escalate, help-desk support and technical support. The most important skills for a help desk specialist are customer service, troubleshoot, and technical support.
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Help Desk Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $48,069 | $51,065 |
| Hourly rate | $23.11 | $24.55 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 104,343 | 75,004 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A junior helpdesk technician is responsible for providing technical support to clients through calls or correspondence, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. They typically assist customers by identifying their needs, troubleshooting problems, providing step by step solutions, and forwarding complicated issues to helpdesk engineers. They may also refer customers to other services should it require. Furthermore, a junior helpdesk technician must maintain records of all transactions, produce progress reports, and develop strategies to help the company build positive relationships with customers.
The primary role of help desk specialists is to maintain relationships between the company and its customers. Their duties and responsibilities include responding to guests' queries, providing technical computer support, and maintaining computer systems' performance. Help desk specialists are also responsible for following up with customers to resolve issues and train computer users. There are several requirements to be qualified for this position, which include having relevant customer service experience, problem-solving and analytical skills, and the ability to prioritize vital tasks.
Junior help desk technicians and help desk specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Help Desk Specialist | |
| Average salary | $48,069 | $51,065 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $65,000 | Between $35,000 And $73,000 |
| Highest paying City | Freehold, NJ | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New Hampshire | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Prolifics | Schulte Roth & Zabel |
| Best paying industry | Utilities | Technology |
There are a few differences between a junior help desk technician and a help desk specialist in terms of educational background:
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Help Desk Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Automotive Technology | Computer Science |
| Most common college | SUNY Farmingdale | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between junior help desk technicians' and help desk specialists' demographics:
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Help Desk Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.8% Female, 16.2% | Male, 79.4% Female, 20.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 11.6% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |