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What is a campaign director and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read

A Campaign Director is a paid or aide individual whose purpose is to coordinate a political campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, and other activities supporting the effort. They develop and execute a campaign plan, supervise all staff, present any candidate changes for approval and all aspects of the campaign, including day-to-day operations, staff hiring and management, and coordination.

Generally, most of them possess a bachelor's degree, although a master's degree is preferred. Also, you might need to have skills and personal experience in the relevant field.

The graduates who gravitate to this field end up laying claim to annual earnings at $63,475. The current median pay for a campaign director coach ranges from $56,036 to $71,365 in the U.S. However, this figure can vary significantly depending upon your experience and skills.

ScoreCampaign DirectorUS Average
Salary
7.5

Avg. Salary $96,589

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
8.7

Growth rate 8%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
4.5
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.42%

Asian 5.15%

Black or African American 6.10%

Hispanic or Latino 9.23%

Unknown 4.67%

White 74.43%

Gender

female 46.90%

male 53.10%

Age - 41
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41
Stress level
8.7

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
9.4

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
3.8

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Campaign director career paths

Key steps to become a campaign director

  1. Explore campaign director education requirements

    Most common campaign director degrees

    Bachelor's

    76.0 %

    Master's

    14.3 %

    Associate

    5.0 %
  2. Start to develop specific campaign director skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Digital Marketing10.06%
    Strategic Plan9.37%
    Event Planning8.86%
    Flyers7.12%
    Volunteer Recruitment6.76%
  3. Complete relevant campaign director training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New campaign directors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a campaign director based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real campaign director resumes.
  4. Research campaign director duties and responsibilities

    • Promote and manage the scholarship program for psychology department students.
    • Maintain website and Facebook page.
    • Resolve financial issues relate to charitable contributions, provide program budgets, process payroll, and oversight management of operating accounts.
    • Develop messaging for local and statewide campaigns including direct mail, websites, and Facebook pages.
  5. Get campaign director experience

    Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a campaign director. The most common roles before becoming a campaign director include internship, campaign manager team lead and development director.
  6. Prepare your campaign director resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your campaign director resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a campaign director resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable campaign director resume templates

    Build a professional campaign director resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your campaign director resume.
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
    Campaign Director Resume
  7. Apply for campaign director jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a campaign director job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first campaign director job

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Average campaign director salary

The average campaign director salary in the United States is $96,589 per year or $46 per hour. Campaign director salaries range between $62,000 and $148,000 per year.

Average campaign director salary
$96,589 Yearly
$46.44 hourly

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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