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The differences between senior art directors and associate creative directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a senior art director and an associate creative director. Additionally, an associate creative director has an average salary of $141,099, which is higher than the $103,294 average annual salary of a senior art director.
The top three skills for a senior art director include graphic design, photography and creative concepts. The most important skills for an associate creative director are graphic design, digital marketing, and creative concepts.
| Senior Art Director | Associate Creative Director | |
| Yearly salary | $103,294 | $141,099 |
| Hourly rate | $49.66 | $67.84 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 9,098 | 8,945 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A senior art director is responsible for monitoring the creative art department's operations, ensuring the adequacy of resources and materials, as well as high-quality outputs based on clients' specifications and business requirements. Senior art directors implement strategic project management procedures to offer deliverables within the budget goals and set timeframe. They coordinate with the clients for progress updates and inform them of any adjustments as needed. A senior art director should have a keen eye for details and knowledge of various art software applications to assist the team, especially when doing revisions.
An associate creative director helps the creative director in creating design concepts and directions for multiple design projects, marketing materials, and campaigns. Other tasks include researching marketing trends and strategies and overseeing multiple design projects. The skills that an associate creative director should possess to accomplish his/her or her responsibilities include good interpersonal skills and knowledge of social media platforms and trends. The requirements to qualify for the job including possessing a degree in advertising, fine arts, or related fields and experience in supervising staff.
Senior art directors and associate creative directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Art Director | Associate Creative Director | |
| Average salary | $103,294 | $141,099 |
| Salary range | Between $63,000 And $167,000 | Between $87,000 And $226,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | DoorDash | The Howard Hughes |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Media |
There are a few differences between a senior art director and an associate creative director in terms of educational background:
| Senior Art Director | Associate Creative Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 83% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between senior art directors' and associate creative directors' demographics:
| Senior Art Director | Associate Creative Director | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 65.4% Female, 34.6% | Male, 68.6% Female, 31.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 7.5% White, 68.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 7.7% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |