Learning design specialist vs design specialist

The differences between learning design specialists and design specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a learning design specialist and a design specialist. Additionally, a learning design specialist has an average salary of $72,967, which is higher than the $56,917 average annual salary of a design specialist.

The top three skills for a learning design specialist include blended learning, instructional design and subject matter experts. The most important skills for a design specialist are customer service, sketch, and CAD.

Learning design specialist vs design specialist overview

	Learning Design Specialist	Design Specialist
Yearly salary	$72,967	$56,917
Hourly rate	$35.08	$27.36
Growth rate	8%	1%
Number of jobs	68,913	68,347
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age	44	42
Years of experience	4	4

What does a learning design specialist do?

A learning design specialist is responsible for creating instructional materials according to the learner's curriculum and evaluate existing educational resources for further improvements needed. Learning design specialists facilitate the development of educational software tools and technology and coordinate with the educators for testing. They also attend conferences and train instructors in utilizing learning materials. A learning design specialist must have excellent communication skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the learning practices, to recommend teaching methods based on the curriculum's standards.

What does a design specialist do?

A design specialist is responsible for creating engaging visual images and digital content to improve customers' brand awareness about the organization's products and services. Design specialists may also work for media production, creating graphic animations for viewers depending on production requirements and media demands. A design specialist must have excellent knowledge of utilizing various software tools and programs, coordinating with the whole design team on adjusting plans, improving layouts according to budget limitations, and submitting deliverables within the set deadlines.

Learning design specialist vs design specialist salary

Learning design specialists and design specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Learning Design Specialist	Design Specialist
Average salary	$72,967	$56,917
Salary range	Between $58,000 And $91,000	Between $35,000 And $91,000
Highest paying City	Olympia, WA	Menlo Park, CA
Highest paying state	Wyoming	New York
Best paying company	McKinsey & Company Inc	BP America Inc
Best paying industry	Hospitality	-

Differences between learning design specialist and design specialist education

There are a few differences between a learning design specialist and a design specialist in terms of educational background:

	Learning Design Specialist	Design Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common major	Business	Graphic Design
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Cornell University

Learning design specialist vs design specialist demographics

Here are the differences between learning design specialists' and design specialists' demographics:

	Learning Design Specialist	Design Specialist
Average age	44	42
Gender ratio	Male, 34.3% Female, 65.7%	Male, 55.1% Female, 44.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 6.3% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 5.9% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 1.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 4.6% White, 82.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	12%	23%

Differences between learning design specialist and design specialist duties and responsibilities

Learning design specialist example responsibilities.

Mentore designers and manage a portfolio of design projects including classroom, elearning, blend and virtual projects.
Lead experiential learning in supervisory skills, conflict management, leadership, team building and organization process effectiveness.
Collaborate with internal SMEs and customers around the world.
Work with various faculty, SMEs, trainers and program managers.
Design new or modify existing materials as required and ensure SCORM compliance.
Utilize SolidWorks to design 3-D major transmission parts such as rollers and synchronous belt etc.

Design specialist example responsibilities.

Manage a program of training for designers without cad to get this training.
Develop construction drawings using AutoCAD; coordinate bid process and vendor selection; and manage construction process through final punch list.
Provide HTML support to the marketing department.
Update and maintain corporate website with Dreamweaver.
Create and maintain business's customer database in QuickBooks.
Implement front end GUI with JavaScript for client side validations.

Learning design specialist vs design specialist skills

Common learning design specialist skills

Blended Learning, 11%
Instructional Design, 11%
Subject Matter Experts, 10%
Led Training, 6%
Project Management, 5%
Course Content, 5%

Common design specialist skills

Customer Service, 13%
Sketch, 7%
CAD, 6%
Product Knowledge, 6%
Adobe Creative Suite, 5%
Graphic Design, 5%

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Learning Design Specialist
Learning Design Specialist vs Design Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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