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What does a lead instructor do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read
Quoted expert
Helen Callus

A lead instructor's responsibilities vary depending on the line of work or industry. Most of the time, a lead instructor must devise plans and strategies on educating students or trainees on a particular subject. Aside from providing various learning materials, one must also conduct different assessment activities ranging from oral, written, or practical tests and grade them accordingly. Furthermore, it is essential to maintain a healthy and safe environment for students, prioritizing everyone's interpersonal and academic progress throughout the school year or course.

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Lead instructor responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real lead instructor resumes:

  • Receive laudatory comments from TRADOC accreditation team review for all courses manage.
  • Design, create and manage Moodle LMS for surface data acquisition service training.
  • Manage class rosters, paperwork, and BLS certification cards for all participants and classes.
  • Manage phone, accounting, inventory, customer service, payroll, staff schedules, marketing, hiring and training.
  • Manage the ESL program and develop curriculum
  • Manage IEP findings conduct classroom observations for techniques and developmental progression.
  • Create worksheets, PowerPoint presentations, and extra study aids to facilitate good study habits.
  • Host biweekly review sessions for anatomy and physiology.
  • Create educational group activities for anatomy and physiology students
  • Program involve addition lectures, individual study sessions and mathematics lessons necessary to succeed in chemistry.1978-1981
  • Instruct CPR to staff and students alike.
  • Conduct firearms and CPR classes on various platforms.
  • Conduct train the trainer sessions for multiple locations via webcasts.
  • Increase revenue stream thru the development of session recording for eLearning.
  • Hire to instruct pre-calculus and chemistry in conjunction with faculty members.

Lead instructor skills and personality traits

We calculated that 24% of Lead Instructors are proficient in Classroom Management, Curriculum Development, and Professional Development. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Speaking skills, and Writing skills.

We break down the percentage of Lead Instructors that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Classroom Management, 24%

    Support professors in developing and implementing positive classroom management strategies following the procedures and policies of DMC college.

  • Curriculum Development, 13%

    Collaborated with the GPC President and Artistic Director on company direction, expansion opportunities, curriculum development, and marketing strategy.

  • Professional Development, 7%

    Rated employees efficiency; conducted performance and professional counseling and mentored employees to seek professional development opportunities both internal and external.

  • Mathematics, 6%

    Program involved addition lectures, individual study sessions and mathematics lessons necessary to succeed in chemistry.1978-1981

  • CPR, 5%

    Lead certified instructor for American Heart Association adult, child and infant CPR with AED, as well as First Aid.

  • Course Content, 4%

    Provided course content, assessment and test development, while leveraging cutting-edge delivery methods for instruction

Most lead instructors use their skills in "classroom management," "curriculum development," and "professional development" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential lead instructor responsibilities here:

Interpersonal skills. The most essential soft skill for a lead instructor to carry out their responsibilities is interpersonal skills. This skill is important for the role because "postsecondary teachers need to work well with others for tasks such as instructing students and serving on committees." Additionally, a lead instructor resume shows how their duties depend on interpersonal skills: "used proficient skills in communication, interpersonal, relationship building, consulting, teamwork and leadership to positively impact change management. "

Speaking skills. Another essential skill to perform lead instructor duties is speaking skills. Lead instructors responsibilities require that "postsecondary teachers need good communication skills to present lectures and provide feedback to students." Lead instructors also use speaking skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "created, developed, and presented complex training programs. "

Writing skills. lead instructors are also known for writing skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to lead instructor responsibilities, because "postsecondary teachers need strong writing ability to publish original research and analysis." A lead instructor resume example shows how writing skills is used in the workplace: "developed course documentation to include editing and writing material that could be taught in the classroom environment. "

See the full list of lead instructor skills

The three companies that hire the most lead instructors are:

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Compare different lead instructors

Lead instructor vs. Associate professor

An associate professor works as a teacher at higher education institutions like universities and colleges. Normally, associate professors teach classes pertinent to a certain field of their expertise. They teach and speak in seminars, conduct research, supervise students, and attend conferences. Among their other responsibilities are advising teaching assistants, discussing administrative tasks, and collaborating with their colleagues. They are expected to have great knowledge of the subject they are teaching and good communication skills.

If we compare the average lead instructor annual salary with that of an associate professor, we find that associate professors typically earn a $53,071 higher salary than lead instructors make annually.Even though lead instructors and associate professors are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require curriculum development, professional development, and mathematics in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a lead instructor are more likely to require skills like "classroom management," "cpr," "training programs," and "role model." On the other hand, a job as an associate professor requires skills like "patients," "public health," "philosophy," and "pediatrics." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Associate professors really shine in the education industry with an average salary of $106,108. Comparatively, lead instructors tend to make the most money in the government industry with an average salary of $47,873.The education levels that associate professors earn slightly differ from lead instructors. In particular, associate professors are 11.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a lead instructor. Additionally, they're 23.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Lead instructor vs. Adjunct professor

Adjunct professors are instructors who are employed on a contractual basis, commonly in part-time positions. They teach courses in the same manner as full-time professors do, but they are free from some of the duties of those fully employed university instructors or in tenure-track positions. They create, develop, distribute, review, and manage course syllabus materials. They teach students, evaluate their performance, and maintain records of attendance, engagement, and progress. They may also facilitate lectures, conduct seminars, and do other administrative tasks within the department. Most adjunct professors enjoy teaching as part-time because they have more flexibility in terms of schedule, can avoid the dilemma of the higher education system and it's known to be less stressful and demanding.

Adjunct professor positions earn higher pay than lead instructor roles. They earn a $48,600 higher salary than lead instructors per year.A few skills overlap for lead instructors and adjunct professors. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "curriculum development," "professional development," and "mathematics. "

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that lead instructor responsibilities requires skills like "classroom management," "cpr," "training programs," and "role model." But an adjunct professor might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "semester," "blackboard," "philosophy," and "undergraduate courses."

Adjunct professors earn a higher average salary than lead instructors. But adjunct professors earn the highest pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $73,962. Additionally, lead instructors earn the highest salaries in the government with average pay of $47,873 annually.In general, adjunct professors achieve higher levels of education than lead instructors. They're 20.3% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 23.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for lead instructors in the next 3-5 years?

Helen Callus

Professor of Viola, Northwestern University

For many of us instrumental professors (but not all, due to the limitations of the instrument's nature like percussion or piano), we had already been teaching remotely for some years, and been able to adjust to the current restrictions without impacting our student's experiences in lessons. Teaching remotely will be a part of the future - saving students the cost of travel, hotels, time. We are trying to find creative ways to do things we couldn't otherwise do in person, like having a busy guest from Europe, unable to fly in person but teaching a class via Zoom.

I imagine this might become part of the framework that we offer in the future. Students should understand how to present themselves in these situations, understanding sound and picture quality devices (what microphones and cameras are best), internet speeds, ethernet cables, router devices, lighting, etc. But it is an excellent opportunity to understand the media of film/video and how to create best a sound video recording for competitions, summer festivals, or college applications. We were already using that medium for prescreens, so this is a chance to refine that skill as, without doubt, that will be a part of our future.

Lead instructor vs. Instructor, adjunct faculty

An adjunct faculty member works in a state university or college. They typically work on a part-time or contractual basis. Although they work in a university, they have limited responsibilities compared to those who work as a regular instructor, but they still need appropriate work etiquette and a love of teaching and working with students. Like any other instructor, they develop learning material, conduct lectures, prepare exams, and assess students' grades.

On average scale, instructors, adjunct faculty bring in higher salaries than lead instructors. In fact, they earn a $2,004 higher salary per year.Using the responsibilities included on lead instructors and instructors, adjunct faculty resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "curriculum development," "professional development," and "mathematics.rdquo;

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from lead instructor resumes include skills like "classroom management," "cpr," "training programs," and "role model," whereas an instructor, adjunct faculty is more likely to list skills in "course syllabus," "learning outcomes," "learning environment," and "undergraduate courses. "

Instructors, adjunct faculty make a very good living in the education industry with an average annual salary of $54,888. On the other hand, lead instructors are paid the highest salary in the government industry, with average annual pay of $47,873.instructors, adjunct faculty typically earn higher educational levels compared to lead instructors. Specifically, they're 17.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 4.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Lead instructor vs. Vocational training instructor

A vocational training instructor is responsible for teaching students with the subject expertise needed to land a job for a specific industry requirement. Vocational training instructors are the same as regular instructors as they also identify the students' strengths and weaknesses, manage their learning expectations, and develop personalized teaching plans to address difficulties. They conduct examinations and regular assessments to test the students' knowledge and learning, which is crucial to determine their level of moving up.

Vocational training instructors tend to earn a higher pay than lead instructors by an average of $6,073 per year.While both lead instructors and vocational training instructors complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like curriculum development, professional development, and cpr, the two careers vary in some skills.Each job also requires different skills to carry out their responsibilities. A lead instructor uses "classroom management," "mathematics," "student learning," and "role model." Vocational training instructors are more likely to have duties that require skills in "customer service," "training courses," "instructional methods," and "logistics. "vocational training instructors enjoy the best pay in the government industry, with an average salary of $67,279. For comparison, lead instructors earn the highest salary in the government industry.vocational training instructors reach similar levels of education compared to lead instructors, in general. The difference is that they're 1.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.6% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of lead instructor

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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