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The differences between student support specialists and residential 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 residential specialist. Additionally, a student support specialist has an average salary of $43,449, which is higher than the $33,451 average annual salary of a residential specialist.
The top three skills for a student support specialist include student support, social work and support services. The most important skills for a residential specialist are mental health, crisis intervention, and CPR.
| Student Support Specialist | Residential Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $43,449 | $33,451 |
| Hourly rate | $20.89 | $16.08 |
| Growth rate | 12% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 104,264 | 49,467 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| 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.
The residential specialist job is to provide quality support services to consumers that enhance physical, emotional, intellectual, vocational, communication, and social skills according to the individual's needs, abilities, and choices. Their duties and responsibilities include following the guidelines given by their agencies and assisting clients as needed according to their daily plan and schedule.
Student support specialists and residential specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Student Support Specialist | Residential Specialist | |
| Average salary | $43,449 | $33,451 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $65,000 | Between $25,000 And $44,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | California |
| Best paying company | Boston Public Schools | University of California, Berkeley |
| Best paying industry | Media | Non Profits |
There are a few differences between a student support specialist and a residential specialist in terms of educational background:
| Student Support Specialist | Residential Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Psychology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between student support specialists' and residential specialists' demographics:
| Student Support Specialist | Residential Specialist | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 37.5% Female, 62.5% | Male, 29.7% Female, 70.3% |
| 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, 12.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |