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The differences between technical support assistants and technical support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a technical support assistant and a technical support specialist. Additionally, a technical support specialist has an average salary of $48,667, which is higher than the $44,005 average annual salary of a technical support assistant.
The top three skills for a technical support assistant include troubleshoot, phone calls and data entry. The most important skills for a technical support specialist are customer service, technical support, and troubleshoot.
| Technical Support Assistant | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $44,005 | $48,667 |
| Hourly rate | $21.16 | $23.40 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 153,404 | 157,425 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.6 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A technical support assistant assists and supports technical staff members in their daily activities. These professionals execute technical support tasks for the client-server. Besides providing technical support for desktop applications, technical support assistants also help technicians resolve and troubleshoot technical issues. Moreover, technical support assistants answer and reply to emails and customer calls concerning their technical problems. They ensure the technical staff follows the required guidelines and procedures and update themselves on the technical aspects' solutions and latest trends.
A technical support specialist is responsible for assisting customer's and businesses' concerns and system issues by performing troubleshooting and remote solutions. These specialists must have extensive knowledge of system applications, including software and hardware database to handle complex processes that might affect the end user's experience or the business' daily operations. Technical support specialists should maintain excellent communication skills to guide the client and business on solving network problems. They must also document concerns and progress promptly for reference and quality checks.
Technical support assistants and technical support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Technical Support Assistant | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $44,005 | $48,667 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $64,000 | Between $30,000 And $76,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Autodesk | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a technical support assistant and a technical support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Technical Support Assistant | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between technical support assistants' and technical support specialists' demographics:
| Technical Support Assistant | Technical Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.8% Female, 38.2% | Male, 75.4% Female, 24.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 14.4% White, 54.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 11.3% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |