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The differences between materials specialists and specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a specialist has an average salary of $58,013, which is higher than the $44,143 average annual salary of a materials specialist.
The top three skills for a materials specialist include customer service, logistics and data entry. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.
| Materials Specialist | Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $44,143 | $58,013 |
| Hourly rate | $21.22 | $27.89 |
| Growth rate | 1% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 38,001 | 358,433 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 38 | 42 |
| Years of experience | - | 2 |
A materials specialist is responsible for researching efficient and high-quality materials for production and manufacturing processes, following the designs and specifications of the engineering team and design analysts. Materials specialists identify cost-reduction materials by coordinating with trusted suppliers and vendors and determine the suitability of these items in the supply chain. They conduct data and statistical analysis to develop strategic techniques that would minimize the company's expenditures and cost. A materials specialist must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in writing expense reports and discuss findings to the senior management.
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.
Materials specialists and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Materials Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average salary | $44,143 | $58,013 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $79,000 | Between $32,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Diego, CA | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Apple | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Technology | - |
There are a few differences between a materials specialist and a specialist in terms of educational background:
| Materials Specialist | Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between materials specialists' and specialists' demographics:
| Materials Specialist | Specialist | |
| Average age | 38 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 64.4% Female, 35.6% | Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 6.6% White, 57.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | 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 | 6% | 11% |