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The differences between senior collection specialists and account specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a senior collection specialist and an account specialist. Additionally, a senior collection specialist has an average salary of $45,150, which is higher than the $42,586 average annual salary of an account specialist.
The top three skills for a senior collection specialist include portfolio, customer service and past due accounts. The most important skills for an account specialist are customer service, patients, and account management.
| Senior Collection Specialist | Account Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $45,150 | $42,586 |
| Hourly rate | $21.71 | $20.47 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 31,192 | 116,010 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
Senior collection specialists lead others by distributing and balancing workload, providing on-the-job training, and demonstrating proper work methods to employees. The specialists determine the most effective and economical means of collecting for each account, compose correspondence requiring knowledge procedure and practices in the collection, and apply standard due diligence practice to collect monies owed. They should have work leadership, know how to gather data, and analyze financial information for decision-making purposes. Also, they apply payments received to proper accounts and make necessary adjustments or corrections.
An account specialist is responsible for reaching out to customers or potential clients through calls, emails, and other forms of correspondence to secure sales and strengthen business relations. An account specialist may also perform other tasks such as arranging appointment schedules with clients, providing price quotes and responding to further inquiries, process orders, generating sales leads, and handling complaints and resolving issues. Furthermore, an account specialist may also be involved in developing strategies, finding new opportunities, producing and completing necessary documents, and preparing reports, all in adherence to the company's policies and regulations.
Senior collection specialists and account specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Collection Specialist | Account Specialist | |
| Average salary | $45,150 | $42,586 |
| Salary range | Between $33,000 And $61,000 | Between $28,000 And $62,000 |
| Highest paying City | Hartford, CT | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Virginia |
| Best paying company | JPMorgan Chase & Co. | Microsoft |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Finance |
There are a few differences between a senior collection specialist and an account specialist in terms of educational background:
| Senior Collection Specialist | Account Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between senior collection specialists' and account specialists' demographics:
| Senior Collection Specialist | Account Specialist | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 40.4% Female, 59.6% | Male, 32.2% Female, 67.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 20.9% Asian, 3.5% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 3.7% White, 60.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |