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The differences between program officers and program coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a program officer, becoming a program coordinator takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a program officer has an average salary of $79,553, which is higher than the $45,068 average annual salary of a program coordinator.
The top three skills for a program officer include project management, program management and excellent interpersonal. The most important skills for a program coordinator are customer service, patients, and social work.
| Program Officer | Program Coordinator | |
| Yearly salary | $79,553 | $45,068 |
| Hourly rate | $38.25 | $21.67 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 118,383 | 102,464 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 45 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 12 |
A program officer is an essential part of a foundation or charitable organization. It is up to program officers to supervise program progress and proposals, seek grants, manage projects, and oversee budgets. They generally guarantee that an organization's activities and programs are met with the vision and mission statements of that foundation. It is the program officer's responsibility to complete various tasks in completing the demands of this position. Moreover, their job includes developing their staff, implementation, and daily management of activities.
Program coordinators are mid-level employees who are assigned to work on a program of a specific department. They handle the communications between their department and any other department that they may need to collaborate with. They coordinate action plans and activities to ensure that the departments are aligned. They are present during the planning stage for the program so that they will be familiar with action items. They are directly involved in the implementation by liaising with the involved departments. Program coordinators should have good communication skills, interpersonal skills, and organization skills.
Program officers and program coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Program Officer | Program Coordinator | |
| Average salary | $79,553 | $45,068 |
| Salary range | Between $53,000 And $117,000 | Between $31,000 And $63,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | BNP Paribas | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Government |
There are a few differences between a program officer and a program coordinator in terms of educational background:
| Program Officer | Program Coordinator | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between program officers' and program coordinators' demographics:
| Program Officer | Program Coordinator | |
| Average age | 45 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 47.1% Female, 52.9% | Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 14.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 13.4% Asian, 5.0% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 7.1% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 14% | 11% |