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The differences between student support specialists and community support 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 student support specialist and a community support specialist. Additionally, a student support specialist has an average salary of $43,449, which is higher than the $39,320 average annual salary of a community support specialist.
The top three skills for a student support specialist include student support, social work and support services. The most important skills for a community support specialist are social work, mental health, and rehabilitation.
| Student Support Specialist | Community Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $43,449 | $39,320 |
| Hourly rate | $20.89 | $18.90 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 104,264 | 111,431 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A student support specialist provides ample counsel and advice for students in an educational institution. Student support's responsibility is to help students adjust, adapt, and advance through their learning life in school or university and provide care and support for them to grow. The student support specialist also connects students to relevant benefits, government educational benefits, and other help and benefits provided by the educational institution and its faculty. The student support specialist aims to help students in their studies and see them achieve their goals.
A community support specialist is responsible for supporting and providing care services for citizens with mental health conditions and other medical illnesses. Community support specialists coordinate with organizations and health institutions to generate resources that would help the patients in their daily activities, medications, and treatment plans. They also strategize community events and activities to observe the patients' social and personal behaviors and endorse them to a mental health professional for in-depth examination and counseling.
Student support specialists and community support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Student Support Specialist | Community Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $43,449 | $39,320 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $65,000 | Between $27,000 And $56,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New York | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Boston Public Schools | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Media | Non Profits |
There are a few differences between a student support specialist and a community support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Student Support Specialist | Community Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Business | Psychology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between student support specialists' and community support specialists' demographics:
| Student Support Specialist | Community Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 37.5% Female, 62.5% | Male, 28.8% Female, 71.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 7.0% White, 54.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% | Black or African American, 12.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 7.0% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |