Program support technician vs student technician

The differences between program support technicians and student technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a program support technician and a student technician. Additionally, a program support technician has an average salary of $36,653, which is higher than the $28,926 average annual salary of a student technician.

The top three skills for a program support technician include program support, data entry and DMV. The most important skills for a student technician are java, javascript, and SQL.

Program support technician vs student technician overview

	Program Support Technician	Student Technician
Yearly salary	$36,653	$28,926
Hourly rate	$17.62	$13.91
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	160,368	82,671
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	2	2

What does a program support technician do?

Program support technicians require administrative experience and skills in communication, organization, and proficiency with office software to do their best. This career choice demands showcasing support for users by answering their questions, resolving technical issues, and maintaining the network, software, and computer equipment of the respective company.

What does a student technician do?

A student technician is responsible for assisting the school personnel and faculty on utilizing class technologies and other learning equipment. Student technicians accept school requests for setting-up audio-visual equipment during school events, class presentations, and related technical support services. They run multiple diagnostic tests on the systems before actual usage to prevent any defects and inconsistencies during operations. A student technician must have excellent knowledge of the technology and mechanical processes to identify preventive maintenance efficiently.

Program support technician vs student technician salary

Program support technicians and student technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Program Support Technician	Student Technician
Average salary	$36,653	$28,926
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $52,000	Between $16,000 And $50,000
Highest paying City	Long Beach, CA	Lakewood, NJ
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Vermont
Best paying company	Mandiant	Siemens
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between program support technician and student technician education

There are a few differences between a program support technician and a student technician in terms of educational background:

	Program Support Technician	Student Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Business	Computer Science
Most common college	California State University - Bakersfield	Duke University

Program support technician vs student technician demographics

Here are the differences between program support technicians' and student technicians' demographics:

	Program Support Technician	Student Technician
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 32.2% Female, 67.8%	Male, 60.7% Female, 39.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 14.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 13.2% Asian, 9.6% White, 57.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 14.4% White, 53.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between program support technician and student technician duties and responsibilities

Program support technician example responsibilities.

Manage facility projects, produce facility reports preventive maintenance, work orders and administer maintenance program using CMMS and SCADA.
Prepare and process all payroll and personnel transactions, travel arrangements and reimbursements.
Create PowerPoint presentations for online circulation and print distribution to articulate departmental goals.
Utilize the tracking system to enter all demographics for tenant petitions, capitol improvements, voluntary agreements and substantial rehabilitation cases.
Communicate daily with medical center staff within the VISN, insurance companies, and co-workers.

Student technician example responsibilities.

Set up and manage all Linux labs campus-wide.
Manage encryption key using common asymmetric algorithms and distribute mechanism.
Set up IP's & DNS for machines.
Update department websites using HTML.
Create and maintain databases for various customers with SQL.
Support with setting up PowerPoint presentations and video conferences.

Program support technician vs student technician skills

Common program support technician skills

Program Support, 17%
Data Entry, 10%
DMV, 9%
Office Equipment, 7%
Technical Support, 7%
Motor Vehicle, 6%

Common student technician skills

Java, 9%
JavaScript, 8%
SQL, 8%
GPA, 8%
CSS, 8%
Android, 7%

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Program Support Technician
Program Support Technician vs Student Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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