Parent aide vs service assistant

The differences between parent aides and service assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a parent aide and a service assistant. Additionally, a parent aide has an average salary of $38,890, which is higher than the $31,928 average annual salary of a service assistant.

The top three skills for a parent aide include child development, community resources and support services. The most important skills for a service assistant are excellent interpersonal, basic math, and customer satisfaction.

Parent aide vs service assistant overview

	Parent Aide	Service Assistant
Yearly salary	$38,890	$31,928
Hourly rate	$18.70	$15.35
Growth rate	12%	12%
Number of jobs	43,481	69,115
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	12	12

Parent aide vs service assistant salary

Parent aides and service assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Parent Aide	Service Assistant
Average salary	$38,890	$31,928
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $55,000	Between $23,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	-	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between parent aide and service assistant education

There are a few differences between a parent aide and a service assistant in terms of educational background:

	Parent Aide	Service Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Psychology	Business
Most common college	California State University - Long Beach	Northwestern University

Parent aide vs service assistant demographics

Here are the differences between parent aides' and service assistants' demographics:

	Parent Aide	Service Assistant
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 12.9% Female, 87.1%	Male, 35.8% Female, 64.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 21.1% Asian, 5.1% White, 56.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.8%	Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.4% Asian, 6.7% White, 54.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.1%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between parent aide and service assistant duties and responsibilities

Parent aide example responsibilities.

Help children/youth in state custody achieve permanency whether through reintegration, adoption or custodianship.
Provide information and support to transitioning foster youth during assessment, case planning or other permanency and transition-relate activities.
Provide interventions for at-risk children with emotional disabilities, including sexual/physical abuse, delay development, autism, and social impairment.

Service assistant example responsibilities.

Manage day-to-day operations including contract management, accounts payable, receivables, payroll and general administrative assistance.
Develop contracting strategy to build capacity and achieve ongoing compliance with Medicare and Medicaid provider network adequacy requirements.
Manage and update company Facebook page with daily updates, finding/sharing relevant and interesting information, and encouraging fan engagement.
Function as part of the trauma team by performing CPR.
Set up and maintain CPR certifications for all instructional aids.
Review supplies, materials, vendor selection for WIS and NICU.

Parent aide vs service assistant skills

Common parent aide skills

Child Development, 14%
Community Resources, 13%
Support Services, 6%
Substance Abuse, 5%
Child Safety, 5%
Home Management, 5%

Common service assistant skills

Excellent Interpersonal, 17%
Basic Math, 13%
Customer Satisfaction, 10%
Math, 7%
Patients, 6%
Veterans, 6%