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The differences between prevention specialists and certified medical 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 prevention specialist, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a prevention specialist has an average salary of $49,353, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.
The top three skills for a prevention specialist include social work, patients and mental health. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Prevention Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $49,353 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $23.73 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 21,954 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 49 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
Prevention specialists are professionals who are work with at-risk youth by conducting education about substance abuse and other high-risk activities. These specialists must plan and implement programs in schools or communities to encourage young adults to have a drug and alcohol-free lifestyle. They are required to work with families who are involved with child abuse and domestic violence while facilitating training for rape crisis workers. Prevention specialists must also provide education on mental health promotion by conducting assessments to individuals and families.
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.
Prevention specialists and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Prevention Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $49,353 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $33,000 And $73,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Mentor, OH | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | Maine | Alaska |
| Best paying company | AbbVie | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a prevention specialist and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Prevention Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Nursing |
| Most common college | California State University - Bakersfield | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between prevention specialists' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Prevention Specialist | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 49 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 33.1% Female, 66.9% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 7.3% Hispanic or Latino, 11.7% Asian, 1.2% White, 72.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.8% | 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 | 18% | 8% |