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What is an instructional design technologist and how to become one
Instructional design is a branch of education that focuses on creating learning systems and materials. It is integral in developing school curriculums, standardized testing, and any other training or educational programs. Instructional Design Technologists specifically specialize in the emerging eLearning sphere of the discipline. They are heavily involved in designing online courses and designing eLearning platforms for government organizations and corporate enterprises.
Most employers require their Instructional Design Technologists to at least have a college diploma. Employed Instructional Design Technologists commonly hold degrees in Educational Technology, Business, Education, and Computer Science. In fact, many Instructional Design Technologists take the time to hone their craft even longer than most and end up pursuing Master's degrees.
An Instructional Design Technologist in the United States earns an average yearly salary of roughly $67,000. That's more or less $32 an hour. However, top earners can make as much as $87,000 in the right company. Employers like Alstom, NICE, and United Shore tend to pay their Instructional Design Technologists a highly competitive, above-average yearly wage of $75,000 or more.
What general advice would you give to an instructional design technologist?
Anthony Piña Ed.D.
Chief Online Learning Officer/Director of Online Education, Illinois State University
Avg. Salary $64,845
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth rate 7%
Growth rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.77%
Asian 5.74%
Black or African American 9.87%
Hispanic or Latino 16.07%
Unknown 4.38%
White 63.17%
Genderfemale 54.85%
male 45.15%
Age - 44American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 44Stress level is manageable
7.1 - high
Complexity level is challenging
7 - challenging
Work life balance is poor
6.4 - fair
Instructional design technologist career paths
Key steps to become an instructional design technologist
Explore instructional design technologist education requirements
Start to develop specific instructional design technologist skills
Skills Percentages Customer Service 16.31% Professional Development 10.43% Curriculum Design 6.85% Instructional Design 6.03% Subject Matter Experts 4.87% Complete relevant instructional design technologist training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New instructional design technologists 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 an instructional design technologist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real instructional design technologist resumes.Research instructional design technologist duties and responsibilities
- Contribute significantly to cost savings by identifying opportunities to transfer facilitator lead training to eLearning.
- Lead the virtualization of military training exercises and provide periods of instruction using virtual simulations.
- Apply the ADDIE model to design and deliver product and procedural training courses for large commercial card migration project.
- Develop alignment training materials including PowerPoint presentations.
Prepare your instructional design technologist resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your instructional design technologist 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 an instructional design technologist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose from 10+ customizable instructional design technologist resume templates
Build a professional instructional design technologist 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 instructional design technologist resume.
Apply for instructional design technologist jobs
Now it's time to start searching for an instructional design technologist 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 did you land your first instructional design technologist job
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Average instructional design technologist salary
The average instructional design technologist salary in the United States is $64,845 per year or $31 per hour. Instructional design technologist salaries range between $46,000 and $91,000 per year.
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Updated January 8, 2025
