Career Atlas USA

Career/Technical Education Teachers, Postsecondary

Median salary
$63,820
Average salary
$72,060
Employment
114,110
Projected growth
0.7% growth
Annual openings
8,800
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

What Career/Technical Education Teachers, Postsecondary Do

Teach vocational courses intended to provide occupational training below the baccalaureate level in subjects such as construction, mechanics/repair, manufacturing, transportation, or cosmetology, primarily to students who have graduated from or left high school. Teaching takes place in public or private schools whose primary business is academic or vocational education.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 20242034.

Related work experience
Less than 5 years
On-the-job training
None
Self-employed
0.4%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

How Much Preparation Does This Take?

Job Zone 3 of 5

Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed

Experience
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations.
Education
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Job training
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Source: O*NET Job Zones.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

  • Education and Trainingimportance 4.5/5
  • English Languageimportance 3.8/5
  • Mechanicalimportance 3.7/5
  • Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.7/5
  • Mathematicsimportance 3.7/5
  • Administrativeimportance 3.5/5
  • Engineering and Technologyimportance 3.5/5
  • Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.4/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

  • Contact With Others4.7/5
  • Public Speaking4.5/5
  • E-Mail4.5/5
  • Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.4/5
  • Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.4/5
  • Freedom to Make Decisions4.4/5

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

  • Instructingimportance 4.0/5
  • Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.3/5
  • Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.3/5
  • Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.3/5
  • Coordinationimportance 3.1/5
  • Persuasionimportance 3.0/5
  • Negotiationimportance 3.0/5
  • Service Orientationimportance 3.0/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

  • Dependability
  • Cooperation
  • Social Orientation
  • Empathy
  • Achievement Orientation
  • Attention to Detail
  • Integrity

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

  • SocialHigh
  • InvestigativeMedium
  • RealisticMedium
  • ConventionalMedium
  • ArtisticMedium
  • EnterprisingLow

This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where career/technical education teachers, postsecondary make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

  1. 1St. George, UT8.98× national avg
  2. 2Fayetteville, NC8.03× national avg
  3. 3Goldsboro, NC6.50× national avg
  4. 4College Station-Bryan, TX5.29× national avg
  5. 5Ponce, PR4.89× national avg

Possible Career Moves

A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.

See the full career path from Career/Technical Education Teachers, Postsecondary

Related Education Programs

Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.

Full salary data & percentiles →Best states for this career →Highest-paying states →