Training Specialist: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.
The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.
10% of training specialists earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $38,760
- Hourly
- $18.64
- Source
- BLS May 2025
25% of training specialists earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $50,110
- Hourly
- $24.09
- Source
- BLS May 2025
Half of training specialists earn more than this and half earn less.
- Annual
- $69,280
- Hourly
- $33.31
- Source
- BLS May 2025
75% of training specialists earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $95,050
- Hourly
- $45.70
- Source
- BLS May 2025
90% of training specialists earn less than this amount.
- Annual
- $123,250
- Hourly
- $59.26
- Source
- BLS May 2025
Training Specialists design or conduct work-related training and development programs to improve individual skills or organizational performance. The median pay is $69,280 a year ($33.31 an hour) (BLS, May 2025). The most commonly reported education requirement is a bachelor's degree (78% of workers surveyed by O*NET).
- Median pay
- $69,280
- BLS May 2025
- Employed in the U.S.
- 458,300
- BLS May 2025
- Preparation
- Job Zone 4 of 5
- considerable preparation
- Most common education
- Bachelor's Degree
- 78% of workers
Data Government data groups this job as Training and Development Specialists (O*NET-SOC 13-1151.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.
Training Specialists at a glance
Training and development specialists in the United States earned a median annual wage of $69,280 in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
In its 2025–35 employment projections, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for training and development specialists in the United States.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35
BLS projects employment of training and development specialists in the United States to grow 10.8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 46,000 openings a year on average, including replacement openings.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35
BLS estimates that 69.8% of training and development specialists in the United States had the ability to telework in 2025, a preliminary estimate of whether the job allows it, not a count of remote jobs.
Source: BLS Occupational Requirements Survey, 2025 preliminary
Every page for Training Specialists
What training specialists do day to day
Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).
- Present information with a variety of instructional techniques or formats, such as role playing, simulations, team exercises, group discussions, videos, or lectures.
- Obtain, organize, or develop training procedure manuals, guides, or course materials, such as handouts or visual materials.
- Evaluate modes of training delivery, such as in-person or virtual, to optimize training effectiveness, training costs, or environmental impacts.
- Offer specific training programs to help workers maintain or improve job skills.
- Assess training needs through surveys, interviews with employees, focus groups, or consultation with managers, instructors, or customer representatives.
- Monitor, evaluate, or record training activities or program effectiveness.
- Design, plan, organize, or direct orientation and training programs for employees or customers.
- Develop alternative training methods if expected improvements are not seen.
What the job requires
Data BLS figures for training and development specialists (SOC 13-1151), 2025 preliminary BLS Occupational Requirements Survey.
- Telework available
- 69.8%
- of workers had the ability to telework
- Workday sitting
- 80.4%
- mean share of the day required to sit
- Most common strength level
- Sedentary
- 77.3% of workers
- Can pause work
- 94.1%
- of workers could take short, unscheduled breaks
- Self-paced workload
- 48.8%
- of workers set their own workload
- Employer-changed schedules
- 15.7%
- of workers had schedules changed by the employer week to week
On TryHired lists: Remote careers · Desk jobs.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Requirements Survey. Estimates are preliminary; ranges are shown as published.
Industries that employ it
Data Share of all training specialist jobs in each industry, 2025 (BLS Employment Matrix).
- Professional, scientific, and technical services11.4% of all jobs in this occupation · +18.3% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $89,740
- Educational services; state, local, and private10.8% of all jobs in this occupation · +7.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $80,710
- Food services and drinking places7.2% of all jobs in this occupation · +11.6% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $38,900
- Administrative and support services6.5% of all jobs in this occupation · +8.9% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $68,780
- Government, excluding state and local education and hospitals6.4% of all jobs in this occupation · +8.0% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $76,080
- Management of companies and enterprises4.8% of all jobs in this occupation · +9.9% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $86,600
Sources: BLS 2025–35 National Employment Matrix (share of the occupation's jobs, projected change) and BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates (mean wage). Different industry estimates are not a pay forecast for any person.
Ranked by importance to the job
Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.
Knowledge areas: Education and Training, Customer and Personal Service, English Language, Personnel and Human Resources, Administration and Management, Psychology.
Software training specialists use
Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.
- Learning management system LMSComputer based training softwareIn demand
- Adobe After EffectsVideo creation and editing softwareHot technology
- Adobe Creative Cloud softwareGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
- Adobe IllustratorGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
- Adobe InDesignDesktop publishing softwareHot technology
- Adobe PhotoshopGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
- Epic SystemsMedical softwareHot technology
- IBM SPSS StatisticsAnalytical or scientific softwareHot technology
- Microsoft VisioProcess mapping and design softwareHot technology
- MySQLData base management system softwareHot technology
- Oracle PL/SQLData base management system softwareHot technology
- Adobe AuthorwareComputer based training software
Also called: Computer Training Specialist, Corporate Trainer, Job Training Specialist, Leadership Development Specialist, Learning and Development Consultant, Learning and Development Specialist (L and D Specialist).
How this page is built
Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the cosine similarity of the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level and subtract the average across all occupations, then compare the direction of the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 means unrelated or opposite (negative values are shown as 0). Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.
- How a specific employer defines the job.
- Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
- Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
- O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).
How TryHired builds this data: sources, methods and downloads. Spotted an error? Report a correction.