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The differences between work study students and office 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 work study student and an office specialist. Additionally, an office specialist has an average salary of $33,477, which is higher than the $24,582 average annual salary of a work study student.
The top three skills for a work study student include work-study, customer service and veterans. The most important skills for an office specialist are customer service, data entry, and patients.
| Work Study Student | Office Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $24,582 | $33,477 |
| Hourly rate | $11.82 | $16.09 |
| Growth rate | -5% | -5% |
| Number of jobs | 14,836 | 98,760 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 44% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Work-study students are students who do part-time jobs to support their living and educational expenses. Usually, they offer their services in an organization related to their field of study. Work-study jobs are available either on or off-campus, depending on the student's application and the campus or employer's needs. They must be able to display excellent time-management skills to handle and balance work time and school responsibilities. A work-study student should also be fast-learner and open to constructive feedback to improve their job performance.
An office specialist is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the organization's daily operations. Office specialists must be highly organizational, as well as having excellent time-management skills to handle work units. They have duties including data entry procedures, greeting visitors, responding to customers' inquiries through phone calls and e-mails, and filing and sorting documents. Office specialists are responsible for creating meeting reports, scheduling appointments, evaluating financial statements, coordinating with other staff for event planning, and assisting the senior management with complex functions.
Work study students and office specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Work Study Student | Office Specialist | |
| Average salary | $24,582 | $33,477 |
| Salary range | Between $16,000 And $36,000 | Between $25,000 And $43,000 |
| Highest paying City | Denver, CO | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Colorado | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | University of California | Brookhaven National Laboratory |
| Best paying industry | Education | Finance |
There are a few differences between a work study student and an office specialist in terms of educational background:
| Work Study Student | Office Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 44% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY at Binghamton | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between work study students' and office specialists' demographics:
| Work Study Student | Office Specialist | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 33.4% Female, 66.6% | Male, 18.3% Female, 81.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.6% Asian, 8.2% White, 57.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 8.1% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 19.8% Asian, 8.4% White, 57.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |