Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between school directors and vice 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 director and a vice principal. Additionally, a vice principal has an average salary of $88,764, which is higher than the $68,563 average annual salary of a school director.
The top three skills for a school director include professional development, K-12 and curriculum development. The most important skills for a vice principal are curriculum development, vice-principal, and classroom management.
| School Director | Vice Principal | |
| Yearly salary | $68,563 | $88,764 |
| Hourly rate | $32.96 | $42.67 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 37,761 | 67,974 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A school director oversees educational programs, ensuring everything runs smoothly and efficiently. They typically gather and analyze data, review reports, monitor faculty staff's performance and the progress of all teaching methods, and resolve issues should any arise. They usually work together with the teaching staff to research and develop educational curricula and programs, participate in hiring educators, and supervise staff. Moreover, a school director leads and encourages the workforce to reach goals while implementing the school's policies and regulations, developing new ones when necessary.
A vice-principal works as an assistant educational administrator whose primary responsibility is to assist the school's principal with daily school administrative tasks, such as certifying and hiring teachers and school staff. In addition to these tasks, a vice-principal conducts parent interviews and serves as mentors and counselors to students. The qualifications to become a vice principal include possessing strong leadership, decision-making, and organizational skills and obtaining a master's or doctoral degree in education.
School directors and vice principals have different pay scales, as shown below.
| School Director | Vice Principal | |
| Average salary | $68,563 | $88,764 |
| Salary range | Between $46,000 And $100,000 | Between $64,000 And $121,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Rafael, CA | Paterson, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Learning Care Group | Princeton Public Schools |
| Best paying industry | Education | Education |
There are a few differences between a school director and a vice principal in terms of educational background:
| School Director | Vice Principal | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Most common major | Business | Educational Leadership |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between school directors' and vice principals' demographics:
| School Director | Vice Principal | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 36.4% Female, 63.6% | Male, 50.3% Female, 49.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.7% Asian, 4.3% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 4.4% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 16% | 16% |