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Technician's helper vs library specialist

The differences between technician's helpers and library specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a technician's helper has an average salary of $36,448, which is higher than the $32,884 average annual salary of a library specialist.

The top three skills for a technician's helper include customer service, HVAC and safety regulations. The most important skills for a library specialist are library materials, library services, and library resources.

Technician's helper vs library specialist overview

Technician's HelperLibrary Specialist
Yearly salary$36,448$32,884
Hourly rate$17.52$15.81
Growth rate-4%-4%
Number of jobs81,56419,984
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age5047
Years of experience12-

What does a technician's helper do?

A technician's helper primarily performs support tasks to assist technicians in carrying out various installations and repairs, learning technical skills along the way. They usually prepare and arrange tools and equipment, set-up and clean work areas, understand blueprints and schematics, troubleshoot issues, assemble materials, and fix and replace components under the technician's supervision. There are also times when they must coordinate with clients to identify their needs and preferences. Moreover, depending on their organization of employment, a technician's helper may also perform minimal clerical tasks such as handling calls, answering inquiries, or purchasing the necessary materials.

What does a library specialist do?

Library specialists are professionals who are responsible for assisting library patrons by performing a variety of tasks assigned by librarians. These specialists are required to perform duties such as telephone calls, responding to the questions of patrons, and assisting teachers and their students. They must help library patrons find resources that can include reference materials, electronic journals, and audiovisual equipment. Library specialists must also catalog and process other print and non-print materials while using a pushcart to re-shelve or deliver library books.

Technician's helper vs library specialist salary

Technician's helpers and library specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Technician's HelperLibrary Specialist
Average salary$36,448$32,884
Salary rangeBetween $22,000 And $58,000Between $24,000 And $43,000
Highest paying CityMerced, CABerkeley, CA
Highest paying stateDelawareWashington
Best paying companyPNM ResourcesBrown University
Best paying industryTechnologyEducation

Differences between technician's helper and library specialist education

There are a few differences between a technician's helper and a library specialist in terms of educational background:

Technician's HelperLibrary Specialist
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common majorAutomotive TechnologyEnglish
Most common collegeStanford UniversityNew York University

Technician's helper vs library specialist demographics

Here are the differences between technician's helpers' and library specialists' demographics:

Technician's HelperLibrary Specialist
Average age5047
Gender ratioMale, 87.7% Female, 12.3%Male, 31.6% Female, 68.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 5.0% White, 64.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.8% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage11%11%

Differences between technician's helper and library specialist duties and responsibilities

Technician's helper example responsibilities.

  • Install, manage, and troubleshoot CAT3, CAT5, CAT6, and fiber optic infrastructures throughout the greater Tulsa area.
  • Network and telephone cabling CAT3, CAT5, CAT5E, CAT6 and custom wiring for various vendor supply equipment.
  • Install furnaces, condensers, water heaters, duct work, gas lines, line sets.
  • Skil in small brazing and soldering.
  • Work with various aspects of welding and brazing.
  • Install and maintain digital/analog broadband services, ranging from DS0 to OC-N levels to copper and optical facilities for large-scale clients.
  • Show more

Library specialist example responsibilities.

  • Search, edit, and incorporate new OCLC catalog records into OPAC.
  • Access and search OCLC for bibliographic records to copy catalog and process new materials.
  • Derive original cataloging and edit existing cataloging records following local and national standards.
  • Participate in group tasks as needed, including original and copy cataloging, inventory and staff development workshops
  • Convert documents to HTML for submission to the on line library.
  • Correct HTML, CSS, and Javascript relate programming errors on student websites.
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Technician's helper vs library specialist skills

Common technician's helper skills
  • Customer Service, 56%
  • HVAC, 8%
  • Safety Regulations, 6%
  • Facilitate Repair, 4%
  • Routine Maintenance, 4%
  • Hand Tools, 3%
Common library specialist skills
  • Library Materials, 12%
  • Library Services, 9%
  • Library Resources, 5%
  • Library Policies, 5%
  • University Libraries, 5%
  • Electronic Resources, 4%

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