How to hire a learning specialist

How to hire a learning specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step learning specialist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a learning specialist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new learning specialist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a learning specialist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the learning specialist you need to hire. Certain learning specialist roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect learning specialist also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   This list presents learning specialist salaries for various positions.

   Type of Learning Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Learning Specialist	Training and development specialists plan, conduct, and administer programs that train employees and improve their skills and knowledge.	$17-41
   Trainer Lead	As a training lead, you are responsible for overseeing a company's employee training and development activities. You are also expected to perform various tasks that may include identifying training needs for the organization, supervising trainers' work, and developing effective employee training programs... Show more	$22-53
   Staff Development Coordinator	Staff development coordinators take responsibility for the creation and enactment of employee training programs. These programs should be in alignment with the company's objectives... Show more	$21-42

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Professional Development
   • Project Management
   • Subject Matter Experts
   • PowerPoint
   • Instructional Design
   • Learning Management System
   • Training Programs
   • Learning Solutions
   • HR
   • Product Knowledge
   • Student Learning
   • Social Work
   • Training Materials

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead strategic planning for eLearning initiatives and manage company-wide training for laboratory information system update.
   • Manage the integration of the student information system Jenzabar CX/JICS with Moodle.
   • Lead experiential learning in supervisory skills, conflict management, leadership, team building and organization process effectiveness.
   • Instruct on how to create PowerPoint presentations and debate an argument during an oral defense.
   • Develop individualized education plans for students who receive math intervention services.
   • Tutor and advise undergraduate level courses in introductory statistics and mathematics.

   More learning specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the learning specialist job description is a good way to get more applicants. A learning specialist salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a learning specialist in Missouri may be lower than in New Jersey, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level learning specialist. Additionally, a learning specialist with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average learning specialist salary

   $57,035yearly

   $27.42 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level learning specialist salary

   $37,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 30, 2026

   Average learning specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New Jersey	$87,308	$42
   2	District of Columbia	$84,662	$41
   3	Illinois	$70,705	$34
   4	California	$68,506	$33
   5	Washington	$68,283	$33
   6	New York	$67,393	$32
   7	Virginia	$65,311	$31
   8	Massachusetts	$64,787	$31
   9	Pennsylvania	$59,538	$29
   10	Texas	$58,933	$28
   11	Ohio	$55,595	$27
   12	Kansas	$55,204	$27
   13	Nebraska	$55,122	$27
   14	Montana	$52,847	$25
   15	Wisconsin	$52,713	$25
   16	North Carolina	$51,409	$25
   17	Iowa	$50,754	$24
   18	Indiana	$50,585	$24
   19	Colorado	$50,133	$24
   20	Oregon	$48,649	$23

   Average learning specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$143,097	$68.80	10
   2	Apple	$120,908	$58.13	11
   3	ServiceNow	$107,443	$51.66	8
   4	McKinsey & Company Inc	$104,935	$50.45	23
   5	Booz Allen Hamilton	$102,873	$49.46	41
   6	General Motors	$102,430	$49.25	3
   7	Zebra Technologies	$102,326	$49.20
   8	Pinterest	$100,807	$48.46
   9	Regeneron	$99,071	$47.63
   10	The Aerospace Corporation	$97,220	$46.74	1
   11	Ford Motor	$96,636	$46.46
   12	Baker Hughes	$95,903	$46.11
   13	Aetna	$95,809	$46.06
   14	Dassault Systèmes	$95,067	$45.71
   15	Bristol Community College	$94,928	$45.64
   16	ManTech	$94,063	$45.22	17
   17	Coursera	$93,855	$45.12
   18	Syngenta	$93,760	$45.08
   19	Novavax	$93,104	$44.76
   20	UBS	$92,700	$44.57

4. Writing a learning specialist job description

   A learning specialist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a learning specialist job description:

   Learning specialist job description example

   Rutgers University-Newark is an urban public research university and anchor institution, located in Newark, New Jersey, a city of promise, is seeking a Unit Administrator/Specialist - Learning Specialist. Reporting directly to the Director, Rutgers Learning Center ( RLC ), School of Arts & Sciences, Newark, provides learning assistance to students through personalized programs of academic self-improvement, in group workshops, one-on-one consultations, and remote sessions. Collaborates with Director and campus office to create programming to support students' learning, success, and retention, utilizing best practices in the field. Provides routine and non-routine information and explanations to all clients of the Learning Center, including students, faculty, administrators and visitors. Maintains accurate records on individual and group users. Interacts with academic departments and offices, advisors, and student service programs; conducts outreach presentations on RLC services and learning strategies. May represent the RLC on campus as an ambassador for learning assistance program. Through tutoring and academic coaching, the RLC provides academic support to improve the academic performance, persistence, and success of RU-N undergraduate students. The RLC provides approximately 5000 hours of tutoring to on average 700 to 800 students, and academic coaching in various forms to approximately 400 students per academic year. Must perform all duties in accordance with and knowledge of, administration of, and compliance with all policies, procedures, and processes of RLC , SASN , RU-N, Rutgers, and any and all relevant external regulations. Must be able to maintain a professional demeanor and multitask in a fast-paced, student and service-focused, team environment; to complete work with an understanding of the mission, vision, role, and goals of the Center, SASN , and RU-N; and to complete the tasks and responsibilities of this position with an understanding of how it contributes to the achievement of these goals.
   Minimum Education and Experience
   
   Requires a bachelor's degree in education, communication, psychology, student personnel services, or a related field; or equivalent combination of education and/or two years of relevant experience that demonstrates knowledge and understanding in collegiate learning strategies and methodologies for individuals and groups.
   
   Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
   
   Requires excellent written and oral communication skills; strong organizational skills; the ability to handle and prioritize multiple tasks, and to interact successfully and confidentially with a wide range of individuals at various levels of the University community; and strong computer literacy, including use of databases. Requires excellent problem-solving skills, as well as the ability to multitask and function autonomously with limited supervision. Must be able to work in a fast-paced, deadline-driven, customer-service focused, team environment.
   
   Overview
   
   The Learning Center provides tutoring services for a range of subjects in either small groups or one-on-one. Our tutors are successful undergraduates who are trained to clarify important concepts with the understanding that everyone can learn and improve given sufficient time, attention, and encouragement.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right learning specialist for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with learning specialists they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit learning specialists who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your learning specialist job on Zippia to find and recruit learning specialist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting learning specialists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new learning specialist

   Once you've found the learning specialist candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new learning specialist. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a learning specialist?