School administrator vs high school principal

The differences between school administrators and high school principals can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a school administrator and a high school principal. Additionally, a high school principal has an average salary of $96,329, which is higher than the $48,331 average annual salary of a school administrator.

The top three skills for a school administrator include student issues, student attendance and curriculum development. The most important skills for a high school principal are student achievement, curriculum development, and staff development.

School administrator vs high school principal overview

	School Administrator	High School Principal
Yearly salary	$48,331	$96,329
Hourly rate	$23.24	$46.31
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	73,018	61,948
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

School administrator vs high school principal salary

School administrators and high school principals have different pay scales, as shown below.

	School Administrator	High School Principal
Average salary	$48,331	$96,329
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $73,000	Between $70,000 And $131,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	East Palo Alto, CA
Highest paying state	New York	Washington
Best paying company	KIPP Northern California Public Schools	Jo-Ann Stores
Best paying industry	Professional	Education

Differences between school administrator and high school principal education

There are a few differences between a school administrator and a high school principal in terms of educational background:

	School Administrator	High School Principal
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 54%	Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Most common major	Education	Educational Leadership
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

School administrator vs high school principal demographics

Here are the differences between school administrators' and high school principals' demographics:

	School Administrator	High School Principal
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 40.6% Female, 59.4%	Male, 64.1% Female, 35.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.4% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.1% Asian, 4.3% White, 64.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 4.4% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between school administrator and high school principal duties and responsibilities

School administrator example responsibilities.

Manage social media profiles through Facebook for important details and dates pertaining to HeartChase.
Provide administrative duties for Pre-K to 7th grade.
Perform presentations using Smartboard, Powerpoint, and Smilebox.
Lead teacher for pre-k class specializing in children with special needs.
Spearhead efforts to raise student literacy and math scores on standardize tests.
Assist or lead meetings including faculty, IEP, and RTI small group.

High school principal example responsibilities.

Facilitate teacher lead PBIS committee to implement effective school wide discipline campaigns and activities for students.
Create a PBIS system for teachers on how to manage behavior on a daily basis and reward positive outcomes.
Lead counselor meetings, IEP's, conduct parent/teacher meetings.
Assist in coordinating, developing, monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of the IEP.
Co-Design kindergarten readiness program that will bring in-home and wrap around services to academically at-risk kindergarten students.
Result in international interest in available ESL programs.

School administrator vs high school principal skills

Common school administrator skills

Student Issues, 21%
Student Attendance, 19%
Curriculum Development, 9%
Classroom Management, 6%
School Administration, 5%
Payroll, 4%

Common high school principal skills

Student Achievement, 8%
Curriculum Development, 7%
Staff Development, 6%
Instructional Program, 6%
Professional Growth, 6%
Student Learning, 6%

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School Administrator vs High School Principal

Updated January 8, 2025

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