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The differences between programming specialists and support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a programming specialist, becoming a support specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a programming specialist has an average salary of $55,521, which is higher than the $40,782 average annual salary of a support specialist.
The top three skills for a programming specialist include social work, customer service and veterans. The most important skills for a support specialist are customer service, patients, and mental health.
| Programming Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $55,521 | $40,782 |
| Hourly rate | $26.69 | $19.61 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 39,636 | 125,740 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 44 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
A programming specialist is responsible for the overall planning and supervising of programs, mostly in a non-profit organization. It is a programming specialist's job to allocate and manage the budget, hire staff, train volunteers, and ensure that goals are met. It is also their duty to devise strategies and come up with materials that would raise awareness for the program and its cause. Furthermore, a programming specialist is in charge of reaching out to people who will be a valuable asset for the program, such as speakers and educators.
A support specialist is responsible for assisting technical and administrative support, depending on the business need. Support specialists must have extensive knowledge of the services of the organization they work for to assist customers with their inquiries and resolve complaints efficiently. A support specialist maintains documents of issue resolution, providing recommendations to improve business strategies and procedures. Support specialists must be well-versed on technology systems, perform basic troubleshooting, and secure databases. They should also have impeccable customer service and communication skills to attend with customers' needs and requests.
Programming specialists and support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Programming Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $55,521 | $40,782 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $86,000 | Between $25,000 And $64,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New York |
| Best paying company | Meta | Microsoft |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a programming specialist and a support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Programming Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between programming specialists' and support specialists' demographics:
| Programming Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 44 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 30.7% Female, 69.3% | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 6.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 5.9% White, 58.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 10.4% White, 56.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 11% |