Teach or instruct vocational or occupational subjects at the postsecondary level (but at less than the baccalaureate) to students who have graduated or left high school. Includes correspondence school, industrial, and commercial instructors; and adult education teachers and instructors who prepare persons to operate industrial machinery and equipment and transportation and communications equipment. Teaching may take place in public or private schools whose primary business is education or in a school associated with an organization whose primary business is other than education.
U.S. Workers
111,150
Median Salary
$61,490
10-Year Growth
+0.7%
Annual Openings
8,800
Typical entry: Bachelor's degree
20 of 20 tasks have some AI capability
Exposure Trend
This score reflects estimated AI technical capability for tasks in this occupation. It does not predict employment changes, and it does not account for company-specific constraints, regulation, or adoption barriers.
Prepare reports and maintain records, such as student grades, attendance rolls, and training activity details.
AI: Fully automatable - Preparing reports and maintaining records like grades, attendance, and activity logs is routine data work that software and AI can fully automate reliably.
Develop teaching aids, such as instructional software, multimedia visual aids, or study materials.
AI: Fully automatable - AI can generate instructional software prototypes, multimedia, slides, videos, and study materials end-to-end with minimal human input.
Prepare outlines of instructional programs and training schedules and establish course goals.
AI: Fully automatable - AI can produce detailed instructional outlines, schedules, and measurable course goals quickly and reliably, which are routine planning tasks well within current capability.
Provide individualized instruction and tutorial or remedial instruction.
AI: Fully automatable - AI-driven adaptive tutoring systems can provide individualized remediation and personalized practice effectively, though some learners still benefit from human mentorship and emotional support.
Review enrollment applications and correspond with applicants to obtain additional information.
AI: Fully automatable - AI can screen applications for completeness, assess eligibility against rule sets, and automatically generate and send requests for missing information, allowing full automation of this administrative task in many contexts.
Arrange for lectures by experts in designated fields.
AI: Fully automatable - AI can identify subject-matter experts, manage outreach and scheduling via calendars and email automation, and handle logistical arrangements, enabling full automation of lecture coordination tasks.
Supervise and monitor students' use of tools and equipment.
AI: Partial - AI and sensors/cameras can monitor tool use and detect unsafe conditions, but cannot physically intervene, assume legal responsibility, or fully replicate human supervision for safety-critical hands-on work.
Observe and evaluate students' work to determine progress, provide feedback, and make suggestions for improvement.
AI: Partial - AI can observe many student outputs, provide automated evaluation and feedback, and detect patterns of progress, but often lacks the nuanced judgment and contextual understanding needed for hands-on skill assessment.
Determine training needs of students or workers.
AI: Partial - AI can analyze assessment data and recommend individualized training plans, but may miss interpersonal, motivational, and organizational factors that humans use to determine training needs.
Administer oral, written, or performance tests to measure progress and to evaluate training effectiveness.
AI: Partial - AI can generate and grade written and some oral exams and provide remote proctoring, but cannot fully administer and validate in-person performance tests and maintain integrity across all formats.
Conduct on-the-job training classes or training sessions to teach and demonstrate principles, techniques, procedures, or methods of designated subjects.
AI: Partial - AI can deliver instruction and simulated demonstrations and provide step-by-step guidance, but cannot fully replicate in-person, hands-on workplace supervision and tactile demonstrations.
Integrate academic and vocational curricula so that students can obtain a variety of skills.
AI: Partial - AI can map standards and generate integrated curricula proposals, but human educators are required to make contextual, institutional, and stakeholder decisions.
Develop curricula and plan course content and methods of instruction.
AI: Partial - AI can draft curricula, learning outcomes, and instructional methods rapidly, yet human judgment is still needed for alignment with local constraints and accreditation.
Participate in conferences, seminars, and training sessions to keep abreast of developments in the field, and integrate relevant information into training programs.
AI: Partial - AI can monitor literature, summarize conference outputs, and suggest curricular updates, but cannot fully replace human networking, interpretation, and professional judgment.
Present lectures and conduct discussions to increase students' knowledge and competence using visual aids, such as graphs, charts, videotapes, and slides.
AI: Partial - AI can generate and present lectures with rich visual aids and moderate discussion facilitation, but lacks the nuanced classroom management and deep Socratic probing of experienced instructors.
Select and assemble books, materials, supplies, and equipment for training, courses, or projects.
AI: Partial - AI can research and recommend curated lists of books, materials, and equipment and even generate procurement lists, but final selection and physical assembly often require human decision-making and handling.
Supervise independent or group projects, field placements, laboratory work, or other training.
AI: Partial - AI can advise, monitor project artifacts, and give feedback remotely, but cannot physically supervise hands-on laboratory work or field placements or handle real-world safety and logistics.
Advise students on course selection, career decisions, and other academic and vocational concerns.
AI: Partial - AI can provide data-driven course and career recommendations and simulate advising conversations but lacks the full human judgment, contextual nuance, and empathetic accountability needed for comprehensive counseling.
Acquire, maintain, and repair laboratory equipment and tools.
AI: Partial - AI can assist with diagnostics, troubleshooting guides, parts identification, and remote instructions but cannot reliably perform the varied hands-on maintenance and repairs across laboratory equipment.
Serve on faculty and school committees concerned with budgeting, curriculum revision, and course and diploma requirements.
AI: Partial - AI can analyze budgets, model scenarios, and draft curriculum proposals to support committees, but it cannot replace human deliberation, stakeholder negotiation, and accreditation responsibility on faculty committees.