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The differences between volunteers and assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a volunteer, becoming an assistant takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an assistant has an average salary of $37,363, which is higher than the $31,227 average annual salary of a volunteer.
The top three skills for a volunteer include child care, patient charts and patient care. The most important skills for an assistant are patients, customer service, and patient care.
| Volunteer | Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $31,227 | $37,363 |
| Hourly rate | $15.01 | $17.96 |
| Growth rate | 12% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 9,583 | 557,900 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 43 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
Volunteers are usually unpaid individuals who render their service to a company or organization. Most of the time, volunteers are skilled in specific areas needed by the organization but prefer to provide free service. They may be employed in another organization, but they lend their time and talent to another organization or company to give back to the community. They raise funds, create awareness, and work on the ground. Volunteers usually choose a cause or advocacy close to their heart, such as teaching children, taking care of the elderly, coaching sports teams, cleaning up communities, and caring for animals.
An assistant intern is responsible for facilitating administrative and clerical tasks as assigned by the management. Assistant interns' duties include keeping records of meetings, receiving calls and handling customer inquiries, assisting on writing reports and data entry processing, cooperating and providing support for business events, and adhering to company policies and regulatory procedures. Successful assistant interns must have excellent time-management, multi-tasking, and communication skills. They must be a team player and fast-learner to handle various tasks in the corporate industry.
Volunteers and assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Volunteer | Assistant | |
| Average salary | $31,227 | $37,363 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $41,000 | Between $16,000 And $82,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | - | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | - | Latham & Watkins |
| Best paying industry | - | Education |
There are a few differences between a volunteer and an assistant in terms of educational background:
| Volunteer | Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | California State University - Fullerton | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between volunteers' and assistants' demographics:
| Volunteer | Assistant | |
| Average age | 43 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 36.0% Female, 64.0% | Male, 40.7% Female, 59.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 13.2% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 7.3% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 6% |