Service administrator vs program administrator

The differences between service administrators and program administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a service administrator and a program administrator. Additionally, a service administrator has an average salary of $54,573, which is higher than the $50,715 average annual salary of a program administrator.

The top three skills for a service administrator include customer service, patients and data entry. The most important skills for a program administrator are customer service, oversight, and patients.

Service administrator vs program administrator overview

	Service Administrator	Program Administrator
Yearly salary	$54,573	$50,715
Hourly rate	$26.24	$24.38
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	57,561	119,898
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

What does a service administrator do?

A service administrator is responsible for assisting the customers' inquiries and concerns, recommending service alternatives, processing refunds, and escalating high-level complaints to the service manager for immediate resolution. Service administrators receive and process orders, take customers' special instructions, and ensure that they get the highest customer satisfaction, generate more revenues, and improve the company's branding recognition. A service administrator also informs the customer of promotional offers and new services by utilizing sales pitches and other marketing strategies. They should have excellent communication and customer service skills to keep a customer's loyalty.

What does a program administrator do?

Program administrators are responsible for planning, directing, and coordinating their organization's program or service. Their duties and responsibilities may vary depending on the industry they work at, such as educational, community, and social services. Among these duties are selecting and supervising the staff to manage a certain program or project, managing the program's budget, and evaluating the success of a program. To become successful in this role, a program administrator must have in-depth knowledge of project management disciplines, leadership skills, and decision-making and problem-solving skills.

Service administrator vs program administrator salary

Service administrators and program administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Service Administrator	Program Administrator
Average salary	$54,573	$50,715
Salary range	Between $33,000 And $88,000	Between $34,000 And $73,000
Highest paying City	Sunnyvale, CA	Urban Honolulu, HI
Highest paying state	California	Hawaii
Best paying company	VMware	Meta
Best paying industry	Finance	Government

Differences between service administrator and program administrator education

There are a few differences between a service administrator and a program administrator in terms of educational background:

	Service Administrator	Program Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Service administrator vs program administrator demographics

Here are the differences between service administrators' and program administrators' demographics:

	Service Administrator	Program Administrator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 32.4% Female, 67.6%	Male, 30.6% Female, 69.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 64.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 64.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between service administrator and program administrator duties and responsibilities

Service administrator example responsibilities.

Manage Sr. Director's calendar and key staff members to include meetings, events and travel.
Convert complex business logic into SQL store procedures and user-define functions to achieve functionality require by the UI team.
Manage facilities maintenance/upgrades, and systems such as electronic medical records (EMR), billing, transcription and phones.
Manage multi-million dollar DOD contract, establish team goals and manage team deliverables to ensure objectives are consistently meet or exceed.
Manage all accounting functions utilizing QuickBooks of revenues
Assist users with configuring and managing SharePoint servers.

Program administrator example responsibilities.

Manage monetary, laptop and training supports for members living with HIV.
Manage overall document inventory and wiki updates via SharePoint.
Manage CRM and SharePoint systems for online recruiting technology company.
Manage co-op vendor and provide overall program direction for Toyota dealers and regional offices nationwide.
Develop and implement administrative procedures for new mental health management unit providing day services to elderly patients.
Invoice clients using QuickBooks software.

Service administrator vs program administrator skills

Common service administrator skills

Customer Service, 22%
Patients, 7%
Data Entry, 5%
CMS, 5%
Repair Orders, 4%
PowerPoint, 4%

Common program administrator skills

Customer Service, 7%
Oversight, 7%
Patients, 6%
Project Management, 6%
PowerPoint, 4%
Client Facing, 4%

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Service Administrator vs Program Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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