Pattern technician vs fashion designer

The differences between pattern technicians and fashion designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a pattern technician and a fashion designer. Additionally, a fashion designer has an average salary of $54,265, which is higher than the $52,879 average annual salary of a pattern technician.

The top three skills for a pattern technician include CAD, digitizing and . The most important skills for a fashion designer are fashion design, sketch, and apparel.

Pattern technician vs fashion designer overview

	Pattern Technician	Fashion Designer
Yearly salary	$52,879	$54,265
Hourly rate	$25.42	$26.09
Growth rate	1%	3%
Number of jobs	23,931	49,476
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	47	37
Years of experience	6	6

Pattern technician vs fashion designer salary

Pattern technicians and fashion designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Pattern Technician	Fashion Designer
Average salary	$52,879	$54,265
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $76,000	Between $37,000 And $78,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	Nevada
Best paying company	-	Ralph Lauren
Best paying industry	-	Retail

Differences between pattern technician and fashion designer education

There are a few differences between a pattern technician and a fashion designer in terms of educational background:

	Pattern Technician	Fashion Designer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Graphic Design	Graphic Design
Most common college	Harvard University	Cornell University

Pattern technician vs fashion designer demographics

Here are the differences between pattern technicians' and fashion designers' demographics:

	Pattern Technician	Fashion Designer
Average age	47	37
Gender ratio	Male, 36.6% Female, 63.4%	Male, 17.3% Female, 82.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 12.9% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 11.6% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	18%

Differences between pattern technician and fashion designer duties and responsibilities

Pattern technician example responsibilities.

Manage team processes and production of costumes with other pattern makers and technical designers to ensure deadlines are meet.
Create design block patterns to follow designer's sketch and revise them after reviewing with designer.
Compose written reports of data collect from patient evaluation and present to department chief for thorough analysis of patient diagnosis.
Supervise and train less experience personnel in operation of laboratory standards, developing calibration procedures and OSHA safety policies.

Fashion designer example responsibilities.

Customize technical packages with POM specifications, manage grading standards, assisting in costing the BOM, etc.
Manage and facilitate fittings and quick changes, organizing wardrobe, transferring and directing costumes to desire locations.
Develop marketing and brand awareness initiatives through social media outlets; create and manage company Facebook and Houzz profiles.
Create packages containing new design ideas, swatches of fabrics and embroideries, pictures, cad and presentations.
Key player in implementation of PLM system.
Design and develop a variety of apparel, including menswear and women's clothing, for various purposes and client types.

Pattern technician vs fashion designer skills

Common pattern technician skills

CAD, 62%
Digitizing, 38%

Common fashion designer skills

Fashion Design, 14%
Sketch, 12%
Apparel, 6%
Design Concepts, 5%
Adobe Illustrator, 5%
CAD, 4%