Residence life director vs department chairperson

The differences between residence life directors and department chairpeople can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a residence life director and a department chairperson. Additionally, a department chairperson has an average salary of $98,438, which is higher than the $52,520 average annual salary of a residence life director.

The top three skills for a residence life director include residence life, phone calls and student development. The most important skills for a department chairperson are curriculum development, professional development, and classroom management.

Residence life director vs department chairperson overview

	Residence Life Director	Department Chairperson
Yearly salary	$52,520	$98,438
Hourly rate	$25.25	$47.33
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	17,490	33,511
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

Residence life director vs department chairperson salary

Residence life directors and department chairpeople have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Residence Life Director	Department Chairperson
Average salary	$52,520	$98,438
Salary range	Between $32,000 And $84,000	Between $50,000 And $191,000
Highest paying City	New Haven, CT	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	California
Best paying company	Point B	Marshall University
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between residence life director and department chairperson education

There are a few differences between a residence life director and a department chairperson in terms of educational background:

	Residence Life Director	Department Chairperson
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Most common major	Business	Education
Most common college	Northwestern University	University of Pennsylvania

Residence life director vs department chairperson demographics

Here are the differences between residence life directors' and department chairpeople' demographics:

	Residence Life Director	Department Chairperson
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 44.0% Female, 56.0%	Male, 45.5% Female, 54.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 4.6% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.5% Asian, 4.2% White, 64.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between residence life director and department chairperson duties and responsibilities

Residence life director example responsibilities.

Motivate, train and lead a team of nine ministry coordinators.
Provide leadership, oversight, and administration of innovative student-centered activities.
Provide clinical oversight of family-centered services that include capacity building, needs assessment, program and policy development and evaluation.
Cultivate, coordinate, and assist in the development of student leadership and responsibility through programming and direct involvement with students.

Department chairperson example responsibilities.

Manage the club's Facebook/Twitter accounts.
Lead meetings with ESL department teachers in which teachers collaborate on unit plan ideas, classroom strategies and student needs.
Manage the development of an alumni newsletter and coordinate with alumni to provide relevant content.
Manage both individual and organizational achievements for the members through involvement with the community, philanthropies, campus involvement, and scholarship
Negotiate and obtain clinical sites for PN and ADN programs.
Develop and deliver dynamic, rigorous lessons for high school economics classes.

Residence life director vs department chairperson skills

Common residence life director skills

Residence Life, 7%
Phone Calls, 6%
Student Development, 6%
Oversight, 6%
Student Affairs, 6%
Student Conduct, 4%

Common department chairperson skills

Curriculum Development, 15%
Professional Development, 14%
Classroom Management, 13%
Rehabilitation, 7%
Student Learning, 5%
Colleges, 4%

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Residence Life Director
Residence Life Director vs Department Chairperson

Updated January 8, 2025

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