How To Become A Conference Planner: What It Is and Career Path

What is a conference planner and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Mark Zanter

The average conference planner salary is $57,176. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an business major. It usually takes 1-2 years of experience to become a conference planner. Conference planners with a Certified Manager Certification (CM) certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 18% and produce 22,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

What's a day at work look like for a conference planner?

Mark Zanter

Coordinator, Marshall University

Most of Bachelor's students obtain a Masters degree since that is entry level for teaching in Higher ed. In recent years they have set themselves up as entrepreneurs in music business (writing jingles etc.), working as liturgical musicians, teaching privately, teaching in Higher ed, or working for an Arts Institution. Some will go into other fields like law, medicine, computer science, or public school teaching.

ScoreConference PlannerUS Average

Salary

4.5

Avg. Salary $57,176

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.6

Growth rate 18%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.24%

Asian 5.82%

Black or African American 11.10%

Hispanic or Latino 16.01%

Unknown 4.69%

White 62.14%

Gender

female 84.72%

male 15.28%

Age - 36

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 - 36

Stress level

7.6

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.0

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a conference planner

Explore conference planner education requirements

Most common conference planner degrees

Bachelor's

75.5 %

Associate

9.6 %

Master's

8.5 %

Start to develop specific conference planner skills

Skills	Percentages
Conference Planning	15.62%
Reservations	10.29%
Audio-Visual Equipment	7.85%
Conference Services	7.45%
Event Planning	3.90%

Complete relevant conference planner training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New conference planners 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 conference planner based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real conference planner resumes.

Research conference planner duties and responsibilities

Manage all logistics and communications from beginning to end with clients, including sending invitations, monitoring RSVP, and hosting.
Monitor room blocks for out of town event attendees and design VIP gift baskets.
Direct, plan and organize internal/external meetings, corporate golf outings, banquets and VIP programs.
Develop agenda and itinerary, organize and procure all speaker biographies and materials and logistics for successful program execution.

Prepare your conference planner resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your conference planner 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 conference planner resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable conference planner resume templates

Build a professional conference planner 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 conference planner resume.

Apply for conference planner jobs

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

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

How do conference planners rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Conference planner reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on May 2021

Pros

I was a theater major who received my CMP and realized I could put on a production in the corporate world. Event Planning allows me to utilize my skillset in a way I didn't know was possible. I also have the opportunity to travel and most venues treat you well when you're the planner (if you're the one in charge of the event).

Cons

There is nothing more stressful then this job. As you get closer to an event, the days get longer and the job can become 24/7, especially while the event is happening. If you're looking for a job you clock out from at 5pm, this is not the job for you. You're also in charge of budgets, F&B, Centerpieces, Entertainment, Speakers, Content, App Development, Registration, the list is endless. If you aren't good under pressure, this is not the job for you.

A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2019