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The differences between student development advisors and academic advisers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a student development advisor has an average salary of $103,328, which is higher than the $46,729 average annual salary of an academic adviser.
The top three skills for a student development advisor include C++, java and API. The most important skills for an academic adviser are customer service, student services, and financial aid.
| Student Development Advisor | Academic Adviser | |
| Yearly salary | $103,328 | $46,729 |
| Hourly rate | $49.68 | $22.47 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 105,133 | 23,208 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
The role of a student development advisor involves giving advice to students. Student development advisors aid and guide students in defining and developing realistic educational career plans. They prepare their schedules every quarter of the school year while monitoring the progress of their graduation. The advisors are expected to be knowledgeable, timely, and organized, positive, and encouraging. Also, they serve as students' role models who aim for their success in academics.
An academic adviser is responsible for managing the students' educational goals and future career aspirations by encouraging them to join scholastic activities, conducting one-on-one discussions to identify their challenges and areas of improvement, and developing educational plans to address possible difficulties. Academic advisers also monitor the students' interests and abilities for a career setting, track the students' progress, and create engaging activities to observe the students' personal and social behavior. An academic adviser must have excellent communication skills and extensive knowledge of teaching principles and disciplines to handle different personalities.
Student development advisors and academic advisers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Student Development Advisor | Academic Adviser | |
| Average salary | $103,328 | $46,729 |
| Salary range | Between $80,000 And $132,000 | Between $35,000 And $62,000 |
| Highest paying City | Thousand Oaks, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Eli Lilly and Company | New York Film Academy |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Government |
There are a few differences between a student development advisor and an academic adviser in terms of educational background:
| Student Development Advisor | Academic Adviser | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Business | Psychology |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between student development advisors' and academic advisers' demographics:
| Student Development Advisor | Academic Adviser | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 51.8% Female, 48.2% | Male, 35.3% Female, 64.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 3.7% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 3.7% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |