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The differences between loan specialists and specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a loan specialist, becoming a specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a specialist has an average salary of $58,013, which is higher than the $43,081 average annual salary of a loan specialist.
The top three skills for a loan specialist include loan applications, customer service and financial statements. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.
| Loan Specialist | Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $43,081 | $58,013 |
| Hourly rate | $20.71 | $27.89 |
| Growth rate | -3% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 29,041 | 358,433 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
A loan specialist is in charge of processing loans to make transactions easier for the clients. They usually work in banks, lending firms, and other financial institutions. One of their primary responsibilities is to guide clients to understand what program works best for them, assist in filling out forms, gathering requirements, and verifying authenticity. There are also instances where a loan specialist must discern whether a client can uphold financial obligations using the information collected. Furthermore, it is also their responsibility to produce and submit reports to creditors or lenders.
Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.
Loan specialists and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Loan Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average salary | $43,081 | $58,013 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $68,000 | Between $32,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | Mount Laurel, NJ | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Maryland | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | FNB | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Finance | - |
There are a few differences between a loan specialist and a specialist in terms of educational background:
| Loan Specialist | Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between loan specialists' and specialists' demographics:
| Loan Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 30.9% Female, 69.1% | Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 7.3% White, 58.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 11% |