Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

Median salary

$64,370

Average salary

$72,030

Employment

620,090

Projected growth

2% decline

Annual openings

40,500

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

What Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education Do

Teach one or more subjects to students at the middle, intermediate, or junior high school level.

See full salary breakdown & percentiles →

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
Self-employed: 0.6%

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 4.5/5
English Languageimportance 4.3/5
Philosophy and Theologyimportance 3.8/5
Mathematicsimportance 3.7/5
Psychologyimportance 3.3/5
Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.2/5
History and Archeologyimportance 3.2/5
Public Safety and Securityimportance 3.2/5

Work Environment

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

E-Mail4.9/5
Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.8/5
Contact With Others4.8/5
Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team4.6/5
Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.6/5
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.5/5

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.

Special Education Teachers, Middle School98% skill match
Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education98% skill match
Human Resources Specialists98% skill match
Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors98% skill match
Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors97% skill match
Interpreters and Translators97% skill match
Tutors97% skill match
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks97% skill match

Transferable Skills

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

Instructingimportance 4.3/5
Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.9/5
Coordinationimportance 3.8/5
Time Managementimportance 3.8/5
Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.6/5
Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.6/5
Service Orientationimportance 3.3/5
Persuasionimportance 3.1/5

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.

Dependability
Integrity
Social Orientation
Cooperation
Empathy
Optimism
Perseverance

Career Interests

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

SocialHigh
ArtisticMedium
ConventionalMedium
InvestigativeMedium
EnterprisingLow
RealisticLow

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 middle school teachers, except special and career/technical education make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

1Hinesville, GA3.14× national avg
2Midland, TX2.41× national avg
3McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX2.31× national avg
4Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH2.29× national avg
5Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY2.22× national avg

Possible Career Moves

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

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical EducationLateral Move
Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special EducationLateral Move
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special EducationLateral Move
Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language InstructorsLateral Move

See the full career path from Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education →

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.