Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between water technicians and certification specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a certification specialist has an average salary of $45,265, which is higher than the $38,723 average annual salary of a water technician.
The top three skills for a water technician include customer service, work ethic and hand tools. The most important skills for a certification specialist are patients, medical terminology, and surgical procedures.
| Water Technician | Certification Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $38,723 | $45,265 |
| Hourly rate | $18.62 | $21.76 |
| Growth rate | -7% | 11% |
| Number of jobs | 34,702 | 43,565 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Average age | 47 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 12 | - |
Typically working at water treatment facilities, a water technician specializes in installing and repairing equipment to ensure the good quality of water and consumers' safety. It is their duty to operate tools and equipment, gather and analyze samples to detect any contaminants, participate in adjusting chemical levels, and perform regular maintenance checks on machines to ensure efficiency. They must also keep records of all operations, producing progress reports as needed. Furthermore, it is essential to maintain an active communication line with co-workers for a smooth workflow.
A certification specialist is primarily in charge of conducting inspections and assessments, ensuring operations and procedures comply with certification guidelines and requirements. Although their responsibilities may vary upon their industry or organization of employment, it usually entails reviewing certification applications and system plans, arranging schedules and tests, organizing orientations, providing advice or guidance to new members of the workforce, and implementing strategies. Moreover, they also perform administrative support tasks such as processing the necessary documents, facilitating activities, and coordinating with internal and external parties.
Water technicians and certification specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Water Technician | Certification Specialist | |
| Average salary | $38,723 | $45,265 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $53,000 | Between $25,000 And $81,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redmond, WA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Idaho | New York |
| Best paying company | Vishay | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Government | Insurance |
There are a few differences between a water technician and a certification specialist in terms of educational background:
| Water Technician | Certification Specialist | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Duke University | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between water technicians' and certification specialists' demographics:
| Water Technician | Certification Specialist | |
| Average age | 47 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% | Male, 26.3% Female, 73.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 1.8% White, 70.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.4% | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 8.8% White, 70.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 11% |