How To Become A College Administrator: What It Is and Career Path

What is a college administrator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted expert

Eileen Cyr Ed.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a college administrator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $19.73 an hour? That's $41,036 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 7% and produce 15,500 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a college administrator?

Eileen Cyr Ed.D.

Professor, Springfield College

Use every resource at their disposal to increase their understanding of SEL and FACE. Build a resume that provides evidence of their ability to thrive in both a virtual and face to face classroom. Be prepared to engage with online platforms like Zoom, Nearpod, Jamboard, Padlet, and google slides.

Breathe - the airline advice of putting on your oxygen mask before assisting others is 100% applicable to today's teachers.

ScoreCollege AdministratorUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $41,036

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.1

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.69%

Asian 4.19%

Black or African American 12.61%

Hispanic or Latino 13.31%

Unknown 3.97%

White 65.22%

Gender

female 66.23%

male 33.77%

Age - 47

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 - 47

Stress level

8.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.8

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a college administrator

Explore college administrator education requirements

Most common college administrator degrees

Bachelor's

59.2 %

Master's

16.0 %

Associate

15.2 %

Start to develop specific college administrator skills

Skills	Percentages
Financial Aid	43.84%
Alumni	40.04%
Human Resources	8.53%
Academic Programs	7.60%

Complete relevant college administrator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New college administrators 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 college administrator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real college administrator resumes.

Research college administrator duties and responsibilities

Direct Medicaid health plan management division activities (manage care program operations, quality improvement, and contract administration).
Lead and develop the technical strategy for improving architectural and design elements of SharePoint to enhance utilization and drive user functionality.
Coordinate DoD security inspections and develop local policies and processes used to implement these regulations.

Prepare your college administrator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your college administrator resume.

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Choose from 10+ customizable college administrator resume templates

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