Career
Training and development managers
Build the programs that help people get better at their work.
$133,000
Median pay
+6.4%
Job growth, 2025–35
4,100
Openings a year
Bachelor's degree
Typical education
4 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Analyze training needs to develop new training programs or modify and improve existing programs.
- Evaluate instructor performance and the effectiveness of training programs, providing recommendations for improvement.
- Plan, develop, and provide training and staff development programs, using knowledge of the effectiveness of methods such as classroom training, demonstrations, on-the-job training, meetings, conferences, and workshops.
- Confer with management and conduct surveys to identify training needs based on projected production processes, changes, and other factors.
- Conduct orientation sessions and arrange on-the-job training for new hires.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on persuasion & leadership, then people & care?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Analyze training needs to develop new training programs or modify and improve existing programs.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Learning Strategies, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Instructing.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $133,000 a year and 4,100 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Business AdministrationSee the degree →
- Public Relations and AdvertisingSee the degree →
- Human ResourcesSee the degree →
- Organizational Communication, GeneralCIP 09.0901
- Adult and Continuing Education AdministrationCIP 13.0403
- Learning SciencesCIP 13.0607
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Training and Development Specialists$69,280 · +10.8%
- Instructional Coordinators$77,440 · +1.6%
- Industrial-Organizational Psychologists$193,950 · +6.5%
- Management Analysts$101,860 · +10.1%
- Project Management Specialists$102,320 · +6.7%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.