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The differences between media specialists and media technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a media specialist, becoming a media technician takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a media specialist has an average salary of $50,832, which is higher than the $45,576 average annual salary of a media technician.
The top three skills for a media specialist include digital marketing, video production and customer service. The most important skills for a media technician are video production, troubleshoot, and technical support.
| Media Specialist | Media Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $50,832 | $45,576 |
| Hourly rate | $24.44 | $21.91 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 39,401 | 38,422 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
Media specialists are individuals who establish and administer content on various social media platforms. The job involves monitoring site metrics, overseeing creative design, and responding to reader comments. Specialists offer advice to administrators and teachers on the use of non-print social media. They work for huge enterprises with multimedia departments, new media departments, and in-house websites. The skills the job requires include trend awareness, social media ads, community management, strong visual aesthetic, and understanding SEO.
Media technicians are professionals who are responsible for setting up and operating audio-visual and computer media equipment and materials. To enhance meetings, lectures, seminars, these technicians are required to schedule and assist the usage of equipment in academic or business settings. They must identify and perform troubleshooting with technical difficulties with online streaming and must effectively communicate with the staff from the information technology (IT) department. Media technicians must also identify sound or multimedia requirements for a given task and perform appropriate actions to produce this sound or media.
Media specialists and media technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Media Specialist | Media Technician | |
| Average salary | $50,832 | $45,576 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $73,000 | Between $29,000 And $70,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Stamford, CT |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Delaware |
| Best paying company | BP America Inc | Zoetis |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Professional |
There are a few differences between a media specialist and a media technician in terms of educational background:
| Media Specialist | Media Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Communication | Communication |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Johns Hopkins University |
Here are the differences between media specialists' and media technicians' demographics:
| Media Specialist | Media Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 52.9% Female, 47.1% | Male, 69.7% Female, 30.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.2% Asian, 5.3% White, 66.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 6.5% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 5.1% White, 62.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 8% |