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The differences between trainees and 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 trainee and a specialist. Additionally, a specialist has an average salary of $58,013, which is higher than the $39,185 average annual salary of a trainee.
The top three skills for a trainee include customer service, CDL and training programs. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.
| Trainee | Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $39,185 | $58,013 |
| Hourly rate | $18.84 | $27.89 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 51,490 | 358,433 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 43 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Trainees' general responsibility is to familiarize themselves with the best practices and processes of their chosen careers. Some of the trainee's duties include shadowing with a tenured employee to understand various tasks, taking practical examinations to test knowledge extent, maintaining the eagerness to learn and a positive working attitude, assisting with customer inquiries, escalating concerns, and maintaining record progress. A trainee should be a team player, a fast learner, and the ability to handle constructive criticisms for improvement.
Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.
Trainees and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Trainee | Specialist | |
| Average salary | $39,185 | $58,013 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $55,000 | Between $32,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, CA | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Clifford Chance | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Finance | - |
There are a few differences between a trainee and a specialist in terms of educational background:
| Trainee | Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between trainees' and specialists' demographics:
| Trainee | Specialist | |
| Average age | 43 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 56.4% Female, 43.6% | Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 13.8% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 11% |