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The differences between mechanic helpers 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 mechanic helper, 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 $31,892 average annual salary of a mechanic helper.
The top three skills for a mechanic helper include hand tools, work ethic and preventive maintenance. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Mechanic Helper | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $31,892 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $15.33 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 48,546 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
The job of a mechanic helper is to support lead mechanics and perform a variety of duties and responsibilities. You will be assisting in the maintenance of cars, such as changing tires and oils, replacing brakes, and diagnosing vehicle issues. In addition, you will be responsible for logging labor costs and inventory use and take vehicles for test drives. Other duties include replacing belts and hoses, assisting the lead mechanic in major projects, and repairing and maintaining cars.
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.
Mechanic helpers and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Mechanic Helper | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $31,892 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $41,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sacramento, CA | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Sierra Pacific Industries | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a mechanic helper and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Mechanic Helper | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Automotive Technology | Nursing |
| Most common college | - | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between mechanic helpers' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Mechanic Helper | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 94.4% Female, 5.6% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 20.2% Asian, 2.3% White, 64.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | 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 | 2% | 8% |