Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between senior program specialists/program specialists and program managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a program manager has an average salary of $96,084, which is higher than the $84,195 average annual salary of a senior program specialist/program specialist.
The top three skills for a senior program specialist/program specialist include project management, process improvement and powerpoint. The most important skills for a program manager are project management, program management, and oversight.
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $84,195 | $96,084 |
| Hourly rate | $40.48 | $46.19 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 95,580 | 197,556 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 43 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 12 | - |
A senior program specialist must have multi-dimensional skills to handle programs. They work under the supervision of a program leader, associate director, or senior program director. They conduct critical research, manage contracts, and identify possible partners. They also give training to junior specialists in their company.
A program manager is responsible for monitoring the project's progress, improving and developing new strategies, and coordinate various projects across the organization to ensure the success of the business objective. Program managers also manage the program's expenses, ensuring that the projects adhere to the budget goals without compromising the quality and accuracy of the result. A program manager should regularly connect with the different teams of every project under the program to keep track of the processes and procedures for the timely delivery of the product.
Senior program specialists/program specialists and program managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Average salary | $84,195 | $96,084 |
| Salary range | Between $57,000 And $123,000 | Between $65,000 And $141,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Mateo, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Uber Technologies | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior program specialist/program specialist and a program manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior program specialists/program specialists' and program managers' demographics:
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Manager | |
| Average age | 43 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 37.7% Female, 62.3% | Male, 52.9% Female, 47.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 15.0% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 7.1% White, 50.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2% | Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |