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Art teacher vs art therapy specialist

The differences between art teachers and art therapy specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an art teacher has an average salary of $50,188, which is higher than the $47,464 average annual salary of an art therapy specialist.

The top three skills for an art teacher include classroom management, professional development and art curriculum. The most important skills for an art therapy specialist are patients, mental health, and art therapy sessions.

Art teacher vs art therapy specialist overview

Art TeacherArt Therapy Specialist
Yearly salary$50,188$47,464
Hourly rate$24.13$22.82
Growth rate4%4%
Number of jobs69,82013,226
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age4243
Years of experience-2

What does an art teacher do?

An art teacher is responsible for teaching students of art history, disciplines, and techniques to bring out the learners' maximum potential and creativity. Art teachers develop engaging plans for art strategies, ensuring the adequacy of art tools and materials for the learners' use, and design art development courses. An art teacher must have excellent knowledge of the art industry and communication and organization skills to address the different learning methods of the students and identify their areas of improvement.

What does an art therapy specialist do?

An Art Therapy Specialist uses visual art media for helping patients surpass their emotional and behavioral issues. They assess the needs of clients through listening and providing guidance, as well as evaluate and understand their feelings or temperament.

Art teacher vs art therapy specialist salary

Art teachers and art therapy specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Art TeacherArt Therapy Specialist
Average salary$50,188$47,464
Salary rangeBetween $40,000 And $62,000Between $34,000 And $65,000
Highest paying CityNew York, NYLos Angeles, CA
Highest paying stateConnecticutAlaska
Best paying companyBrooklyn Friends SchoolActivision Blizzard
Best paying industryEducationEducation

Differences between art teacher and art therapy specialist education

There are a few differences between an art teacher and an art therapy specialist in terms of educational background:

Art TeacherArt Therapy Specialist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common majorFine ArtsRehabilitation Science
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaDuke University

Art teacher vs art therapy specialist demographics

Here are the differences between art teachers' and art therapy specialists' demographics:

Art TeacherArt Therapy Specialist
Average age4243
Gender ratioMale, 25.5% Female, 74.5%Male, 17.5% Female, 82.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 3.7% White, 69.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 10.2% Asian, 3.3% White, 74.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage9%9%

Differences between art teacher and art therapy specialist duties and responsibilities

Art teacher example responsibilities.

  • Manage classes Pre-K through 6th grade on a daily basis for schedules, field trips, and arts and crafts.
  • Lead kids through snack, game time, homework time, an art lesson, and manage a gallery wall.
  • Lead debates with advance students on topics including globalization, economics, and political history.
  • Travel to local elementary schools and teach fine art lessons that incorporate history, math, and science.
  • plan and teach art to grades k-6
  • Teach visual arts to students grade k-8.
  • Show more

Art therapy specialist example responsibilities.

  • Manage Facebook account composing creative content for daily posts to increase audience engagement
  • Assist therapist with ADL retraining and training of patients while in the hospital.
  • Create and execute art therapy program in an extend care and rehabilitation facility.
  • Utilize twitter and Facebook to gather general information regarding professional use of social media such as LinkedIn.
  • Develop, coordinate and implement art therapy sessions for adult & adolescent mentally ill patients; complete appropriate individual assessments.
  • Design vision boards and layouts for marketing documents in InDesign.
  • Show more

Art teacher vs art therapy specialist skills

Common art teacher skills
  • Classroom Management, 21%
  • Professional Development, 6%
  • Art Curriculum, 5%
  • Student Learning, 4%
  • Art History, 4%
  • K-12, 4%
Common art therapy specialist skills
  • Patients, 23%
  • Mental Health, 13%
  • Art Therapy Sessions, 9%
  • Rehabilitation, 6%
  • Social Work, 5%
  • Crisis Intervention, 4%

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