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The differences between program management specialists and program managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a program manager has an average salary of $96,084, which is higher than the $82,591 average annual salary of a program management specialist.
The top three skills for a program management specialist include project management, DOD and powerpoint. The most important skills for a program manager are project management, program management, and oversight.
| Program Management Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $82,591 | $96,084 |
| Hourly rate | $39.71 | $46.19 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 152,144 | 197,556 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A project management specialist is responsible for overseeing different programs and projects within a company, ensuring efficiency and smooth workflow. Their responsibilities typically revolve around identifying project needs, participating in setting goals and objectives, managing schedules and budgets, performing risk and cost assessments, and producing progress reports and presentations for the directors and other executives. Furthermore, a project management specialist may also perform research and analysis to find new business opportunities and liaise with clients to generate sales.
A program manager is responsible for monitoring the project's progress, improving and developing new strategies, and coordinate various projects across the organization to ensure the success of the business objective. Program managers also manage the program's expenses, ensuring that the projects adhere to the budget goals without compromising the quality and accuracy of the result. A program manager should regularly connect with the different teams of every project under the program to keep track of the processes and procedures for the timely delivery of the product.
Program management specialists and program managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Program Management Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Average salary | $82,591 | $96,084 |
| Salary range | Between $55,000 And $122,000 | Between $65,000 And $141,000 |
| Highest paying City | Worcester, MA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | California |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a program management specialist and a program manager in terms of educational background:
| Program Management Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between program management specialists' and program managers' demographics:
| Program Management Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 39.9% Female, 60.1% | Male, 52.9% Female, 47.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 65.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |