What does a bus assistant do?
A bus assistant is primarily responsible for providing support to drivers and passengers. They can have different responsibilities depending on their company or industry of employment. In learning institutions, a bus assistant is in charge of keeping order at school buses, ensuring that the students are all accounted for during field trips, managing routes, and solving issues and concerns if any arise. In public transportation, a bus assistant is in charge of handling tickets and other necessary paperwork, answering the passengers' questions, and assisting the elderly and others with mobility issues.
Bus assistant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real bus assistant resumes:
- Provide appropriate intervention in conflict situations according to ISS standards; notify principal or office when necessary.
- Assist children on bus with ESE problems
Bus assistant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 44% of Bus Assistants are proficient in Restraints, Wheel Chair, and Seat Belts. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Physical health, and Visual ability.
We break down the percentage of Bus Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Restraints, 44%
Seat students safely using needed seat belts, car seats or wheel chair restraints, etc.
- Wheel Chair, 23%
Focused on student safety, made sure wheel chairs were properly fastened in, children buckled in safety seats.
- Seat Belts, 20%
Make sure the students are safe ensuring they are in seat belts from home to school and home.
- Car Seats, 10%
Secure children to safety harness or car seats * Monitor children's safety on school bus
- Safety Regulations, 2%
Monitored passengers at all times to ensure safety regulations and student conduct rules are being followed.
- Tie Downs, 1%
Operated wheelchair lift chair tie downs as necessary.
"restraints," "wheel chair," and "seat belts" are among the most common skills that bus assistants use at work. You can find even more bus assistant responsibilities below, including:
Customer-service skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a bus assistant to have is customer-service skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "bus drivers regularly interact with passengers and must be courteous and helpful." Bus assistants often use customer-service skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "worked as part of an overall team with all operators, staff and customer services support. "
Physical health. Many bus assistant duties rely on physical health. "federal and state regulations do not allow people to become bus drivers if they have a medical condition, such as high blood pressure or epilepsy, which may interfere with their operation of a bus," so a bus assistant will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways bus assistant responsibilities rely on physical health: "maintained accurate and detailed records, attendance, health and safety, emergency contact information and incident reports. "
Visual ability. bus assistants are also known for visual ability, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to bus assistant responsibilities, because "bus drivers must be able to pass vision tests." A bus assistant resume example shows how visual ability is used in the workplace: "ensured the safety and proper transport of special needs children performed daily visual inspections of bus equipment and assistive devices"
The three companies that hire the most bus assistants are:
- National Express318 bus assistants jobs
- Arroyo Seco Junior High2 bus assistants jobs
- Peoria Unified School District2 bus assistants jobs
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Compare different bus assistants
Bus assistant vs. Special education instructional assistant
Special education instructional assistant does work under the supervision of the principal and other administrative workers, especially in school and college. They prepare the material aids which are helping to teach in the classroom. Moreover, they are more inclined upon the progress of students. Conducting the exams, preparing the notes, preparing the result and giving the instruction to the students about their life career and course books etc are the main duties of the special education instructional assistant. They preach, instruct, command and come up with the idea about making the school environment more friendly and viable.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between bus assistants and special education instructional assistant. For instance, bus assistant responsibilities require skills such as "restraints," "wheel chair," "seat belts," and "car seats." Whereas a special education instructional assistant is skilled in "cpr," "instructional materials," "autism," and "behavior management." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Special education instructional assistants earn the highest salaries when working in the education industry, with an average yearly salary of $33,416. On the other hand, bus assistants are paid more in the government industry with an average salary of $27,568.special education instructional assistants tend to reach higher levels of education than bus assistants. In fact, special education instructional assistants are 6.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Bus assistant vs. Assistant language teacher
An assistant language teacher is in charge of performing support tasks for language teachers. Their responsibilities include preparing teaching and coursework materials, assessing student performance, taking attendance records, and holding lectures as a substitute for the teacher. They may also help students who are having trouble following and adjusting to the lessons, assisting them as needed. Above all, an assistant language teacher must monitor the students' progress, all while maintaining a safe and healthy learning environment for everyone.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, bus assistant responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "restraints," "wheel chair," "seat belts," and "car seats." Meanwhile, an assistant language teacher has duties that require skills in areas such as "cpr," "classroom management," "english-language," and "classroom environment." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Assistant language teachers may earn a lower salary than bus assistants, but assistant language teachers earn the most pay in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $31,308. On the other hand, bus assistants receive higher pay in the government industry, where they earn an average salary of $27,568.In general, assistant language teachers achieve similar levels of education than bus assistants. They're 4.5% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Bus assistant vs. Floater/assistant teacher
Floater assistant teachers help a homeroom teacher in their daily undertakings inside the classroom. They provide assistance with evaluating every student's activities and ensure that routines are followed and done on time. They make sure students are taught well and are physically and mentally present in the classroom. Also, the floater assistant teacher helps in maintaining the orderliness of the classroom visited.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, bus assistants are more likely to have skills like "restraints," "wheel chair," "seat belts," and "car seats." But a floater/assistant teacher is more likely to have skills like "cpr," "child care," "patients," and "learning environment."
Most floater/assistant teachers achieve a similar degree level compared to bus assistants. For example, they're 0.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Bus assistant vs. Assistant daycare teacher
An assistant daycare teacher is responsible for performing support tasks in a daycare center. Most of the duties primarily revolve around maintaining a safe and healthy environment for children, preparing meals and learning materials, assisting children during bathroom or hygiene-related activities, and keeping the classroom clean and sanitized. Furthermore, there are instances when an assistant daycare teacher must come up with recreational activities, maintain student records, and help children improve their motor skills and basic knowledge in concepts such as recognizing the alphabet or coloring.
Types of bus assistant
Updated January 8, 2025
