Library page vs reference assistant

The differences between library pages and reference assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a library page has an average salary of $30,218, which is higher than the $27,874 average annual salary of a reference assistant.

The top three skills for a library page include customer service, library patrons and library system. The most important skills for a reference assistant are library materials, library patrons, and interlibrary loan.

Library page vs reference assistant overview

	Library Page	Reference Assistant
Yearly salary	$30,218	$27,874
Hourly rate	$14.53	$13.40
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	848	658
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	-	-

Library page vs reference assistant salary

Library pages and reference assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Library Page	Reference Assistant
Average salary	$30,218	$27,874
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $39,000	Between $21,000 And $36,000
Highest paying City	Daly City, CA	-
Highest paying state	Alaska	-
Best paying company	Ramsey County	-
Best paying industry	Education	-

Differences between library page and reference assistant education

There are a few differences between a library page and a reference assistant in terms of educational background:

	Library Page	Reference Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
Most common major	English	English
Most common college	Northwestern University	New York University

Library page vs reference assistant demographics

Here are the differences between library pages' and reference assistants' demographics:

	Library Page	Reference Assistant
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 30.2% Female, 69.8%	Male, 32.3% Female, 67.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 6.3% White, 63.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between library page and reference assistant duties and responsibilities

Library page example responsibilities.

Perform check-in and check-out of library books on a daily basis.
Coordinate seating for VIP guests.
Gain familiarity with a vast array of works of fiction and nonfiction.
Issue library cards, check-in and check-out library materials, answer incoming calls.
Sort & organize various library materials consisting of books, magazines, CDs, etc.
Locate library materials for patrons, including books, periodicals, tape cassettes, DVDs, etc.

Reference assistant example responsibilities.

Construct and manage subject LibGuides.
Manage yearly budget for DVDs.
Search for and retrieve cases from online databases such as Westlaw and Lexis-Nexis.
Prepare library libguides and bibliographies on various areas of law.
Train fellow staff members in inter-library loan procedures and online database, OCLC.
Process requests for journal articles and books from RapidILL, OCLC, and DOCLINE.

Library page vs reference assistant skills

Common library page skills

Customer Service, 21%
Library Patrons, 10%
Library System, 8%
Photocopying, 6%
Shelve Library Materials, 5%
Public Library, 4%

Common reference assistant skills

Library Materials, 8%
Library Patrons, 7%
Interlibrary Loan, 6%
Reference Desk, 6%
Reference Services, 6%
Library Resources, 5%