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The differences between quality consultants and quality assurance auditors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a quality consultant has an average salary of $79,541, which is higher than the $77,535 average annual salary of a quality assurance auditor.
The top three skills for a quality consultant include healthcare, data collection and project management. The most important skills for a quality assurance auditor are patients, ISO, and clinical trials.
| Quality Consultant | Quality Assurance Auditor | |
| Yearly salary | $79,541 | $77,535 |
| Hourly rate | $38.24 | $37.28 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 88,944 | 79,931 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 55% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A quality consultant specializes in developing and recommending strategies to optimize a company's production and quality assurance operations. Their responsibilities typically revolve around understanding the company's project goals and requirements, performing extensive research and analysis, gathering and analyzing product data, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of current quality control procedures, and studying the clients' feedback. Through their research findings, a consultant draws and presents conclusions, along with recommendations and solutions against vulnerable areas. Moreover, a quality consultant may enhance policies and regulations, suggesting new ones when necessary.
Quality assurance (QA) analysts are responsible for testing company products and processes. Through testing, QA analysts ensure that the product or process is ready for production. They check whether the process meets company standards and guidelines, as well as any standards related to the industry they are in. QA analysts are in charge of determining the root cause of any problems that they may encounter. They also try to solve these as soon as possible. They also ensure that the company's products meet user expectations as well as the company's brand promise.
Quality consultants and quality assurance auditors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Consultant | Quality Assurance Auditor | |
| Average salary | $79,541 | $77,535 |
| Salary range | Between $61,000 And $103,000 | Between $49,000 And $122,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Aetna | Regeneron |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Pharmaceutical |
There are a few differences between a quality consultant and a quality assurance auditor in terms of educational background:
| Quality Consultant | Quality Assurance Auditor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 55% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between quality consultants' and quality assurance auditors' demographics:
| Quality Consultant | Quality Assurance Auditor | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.8% Female, 42.2% | Male, 46.0% Female, 54.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 8.8% White, 70.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 12.2% White, 63.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 7% |