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The differences between section chiefs and assistant directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a section chief, becoming an assistant director takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a section chief has an average salary of $78,816, which is higher than the $63,063 average annual salary of an assistant director.
The top three skills for a section chief include safety procedures, training programs and professional development. The most important skills for an assistant director are customer service, CPR, and child care.
| Section Chief | Assistant Director | |
| Yearly salary | $78,816 | $63,063 |
| Hourly rate | $37.89 | $30.32 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 13,655 | 25,087 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 49 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
A section chief's job varies with the type of organization. In most cases, a section chief is the head of a given section in an organization that is tasked with performing certain duties. A section chief is the head of a unit and provides leadership, motivation, and management of a section of employees. Their duties and responsibilities include reviewing and overseeing budgets, expenditure, and section activities.
Assistant directors are employees in show business who directly support directors. They may be working on a film, television show, or theatre production. Assistant directors are the second-in-command on the set. They take over for the director when he/she or she is unable to work. Assistant directors should be familiar with the script and the scenes. They are usually heavily involved in the conception of the production. They ensure that the plans are executed well by assisting in the selection of the cast and crew, production sets, and other set providers. They also make sure that shoot days or performance days go without a hitch by ironing out all the details in advance and preparing alternatives.
Section chiefs and assistant directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Section Chief | Assistant Director | |
| Average salary | $78,816 | $63,063 |
| Salary range | Between $37,000 And $163,000 | Between $37,000 And $105,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | California |
| Best paying company | Learjet | Mayer Brown |
| Best paying industry | Government | - |
There are a few differences between a section chief and an assistant director in terms of educational background:
| Section Chief | Assistant Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between section chiefs' and assistant directors' demographics:
| Section Chief | Assistant Director | |
| Average age | 49 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.4% Female, 11.6% | Male, 38.3% Female, 61.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 2.1% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 14% |