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The differences between senior program specialists/program specialists and program technicians 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 program specialist/program specialist and a program technician. Additionally, a senior program specialist/program specialist has an average salary of $84,195, which is higher than the $42,891 average annual salary of a program technician.
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 technician are customer service, math, and technical support.
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $84,195 | $42,891 |
| Hourly rate | $40.48 | $20.62 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 95,580 | 83,881 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 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 technician is responsible for resolving computer software and application issues and performing administrative duties for customer support. Program technicians keep a record of resolution reports and customer files, process payments for program installations and updates, and offer new services to the customers according to their needs and account eligibility. A program technician must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in navigating computer systems, to guide the clients with troubleshooting and improving the optimization of applications.
Senior program specialists/program specialists and program technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Technician | |
| Average salary | $84,195 | $42,891 |
| Salary range | Between $57,000 And $123,000 | Between $25,000 And $71,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Mateo, CA | Bellingham, WA |
| Highest paying state | California | Oregon |
| Best paying company | Uber Technologies | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | Government |
There are a few differences between a senior program specialist/program specialist and a program technician in terms of educational background:
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between senior program specialists/program specialists' and program technicians' demographics:
| Senior Program Specialist/Program Specialist | Program Technician | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 37.7% Female, 62.3% | Male, 34.4% Female, 65.6% |
| 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, 11.3% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 6.3% White, 55.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |