Coaches and Scouts

Median salary

$47,320

Average salary

$60,160

Employment

248,950

Projected growth

6.4% growth

Annual openings

41,800

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

What Coaches and Scouts Do

Instruct or coach groups or individuals in the fundamentals of sports for the primary purpose of competition. Demonstrate techniques and methods of participation. May evaluate athletes' strengths and weaknesses as possible recruits or to improve the athletes' technique to prepare them for competition. Those required to hold teaching certifications should be reported in the appropriate teaching category.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
Self-employed: 10.2%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

How Much Preparation Does This Take?

Job Zone 4 of 5

Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed

Experience: A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations.
Education: Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Job training: Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Source: O*NET Job Zones.

Key Knowledge Areas

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

Education and Trainingimportance 3.8/5
English Languageimportance 3.7/5
Administration and Managementimportance 3.6/5
Psychologyimportance 3.6/5
Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.5/5
Communications and Mediaimportance 3.3/5
Personnel and Human Resourcesimportance 3.2/5
Public Safety and Securityimportance 3.1/5

Work Environment

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

Contact With Others4.8/5
E-Mail4.7/5
Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.4/5
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.3/5
Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.2/5
Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.2/5

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.

Pharmacists97% skill match
Veterinarians96% skill match
Social and Community Service Managers96% skill match
Archivists96% skill match
Residential Advisors96% skill match
Recreation Workers96% skill match
Instructional Coordinators96% skill match
First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers96% skill match

Transferable Skills

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

Instructingimportance 4.8/5
Social Perceptivenessimportance 4.0/5
Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 4.0/5
Coordinationimportance 3.9/5
Persuasionimportance 3.9/5
Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.9/5
Systems Analysisimportance 3.9/5
Time Managementimportance 3.9/5

Software & Technologies

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

Hot Technologies

Other Software Used

Work Style

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

Leadership Orientation
Dependability
Achievement Orientation
Social Orientation
Self-Confidence
Cooperation
Stress Tolerance

Career Interests

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

SocialHigh
EnterprisingHigh
RealisticMedium
ConventionalMedium
ArtisticLow
InvestigativeLow

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 coaches and scouts make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

1Harrisonburg, VA4.86× national avg
2Gainesville, FL4.33× national avg
3Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA3.23× national avg
4Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA3.16× national avg
5Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA3.11× national avg

Possible Career Moves

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

Recreation and Fitness Studies Teachers, PostsecondaryCareer Change
Recreational TherapistsCareer Change
Social and Community Service ManagersCareer Change
Instructional CoordinatorsCareer Change

See the full career path from Coaches and Scouts →

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.