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The differences between manufacturing technicians and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a manufacturing technician, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a certified medical technician has an average salary of $38,859, which is higher than the $37,853 average annual salary of a manufacturing technician.
The top three skills for a manufacturing technician include GMP, continuous improvement and hand tools. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Manufacturing Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $37,853 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $18.20 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 76,490 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 45 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
A manufacturing technician, or often called a manufacturing production technician, is an individual who is responsible for setting and testing manufacturing machinery or equipment. To set up the machines, manufacturing technicians will use electronic, electrical, mechanical, or computer technologies. They are responsible for gathering data from their part in the manufacturing process and reporting it to their production or manufacturing engineers. When handling machines or equipment, manufacturing technicians must strictly follow their health and safety procedures and protocols.
Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.
Manufacturing technicians and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Manufacturing Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $37,853 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $52,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Framingham, MA | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Qorvo | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a manufacturing technician and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Manufacturing Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Nursing |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between manufacturing technicians' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Manufacturing Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 45 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 74.4% Female, 25.6% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 8.9% White, 59.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |