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The differences between office support specialists and information technology/support technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an office support specialist and an information technology/support technician. Additionally, an information technology/support technician has an average salary of $45,591, which is higher than the $36,549 average annual salary of an office support specialist.
The top three skills for an office support specialist include customer service, data entry and phone calls. The most important skills for an information technology/support technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and computer system.
| Office Support Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $36,549 | $45,591 |
| Hourly rate | $17.57 | $21.92 |
| Growth rate | -5% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 130,301 | 161,748 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Average age | 47 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An office support specialist is in charge of performing clerical tasks to help offices maintain a smooth workflow. Among their responsibilities include preparing and processing documents, answering calls and correspondence, disseminating and organizing files, monitoring the inventory of office supplies, and processing procurement requests should there be any. They may also assist staff with projects and programs, greet visitors, and coordinate with different company departments. Furthermore, an office support specialist must enforce the company's policies and regulations.
An information technology (IT) support technician is an individual who is responsible for providing support and troubleshoots software and hardware problems faced by customers. As for larger organizations that have their own IT department, technicians must work together internally with their IT staff members. IT support technicians are involved in inspecting and resolving minor local area network and wireless network issues, which include TCP/IP, DHCP, and VPN. They are also required to obtain an associate's degree in computer science or related field.
Office support specialists and information technology/support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Office Support Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $36,549 | $45,591 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $45,000 | Between $31,000 And $66,000 |
| Highest paying City | Billerica, MA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Pennsylvania |
| Best paying company | Anne Arundel County Public Schools | Microsoft |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between an office support specialist and an information technology/support technician in terms of educational background:
| Office Support Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between office support specialists' and information technology/support technicians' demographics:
| Office Support Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Average age | 47 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 17.8% Female, 82.2% | Male, 85.4% Female, 14.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 6.8% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 13.2% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 11% |