How To Become A Skills Trainer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a skills trainer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Matthew Sabin PhD, LAT, ATC, SMTC, CIDN

Companies employ skills trainers to create and teach specialized courses. Firstly, they identify and review the needs of their potential students in line with the company's goals. They use surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, and discussions with employees to perform this analysis. Afterward, they develop and implement training courses to meet identified needs.

Also, they formulate a budget for supplies and design a class schedule. Additionally, they monitor the learning progress of students and modify classes for better results. Occasionally, they prepare reports for management to review progress.

To become a skills trainer, you need a bachelor's degree in business administration, human resources, or a related field. You may be required to have previous experience in a similar role. You must possess organization, communication, analytical, and interpersonal skills. Also, you must be able to identify skills gaps. In this job, you'll be earning an average annual salary of $34,298, which is between $24,000 and $48,000.

What general advice would you give to a skills trainer?

Matthew Sabin PhD, LAT, ATC, SMTC, CIDN

AT Program Director | Professor, Eastern Kentucky University

There are so many different fields within the area of kinesiology that this is often a difficult question to answer. Coming right out of school, I believe content knowledge is important. I think you can maximize your marketability (employers and clients) through strategically pursuing additional certifications/credentials that compliment your education, strengths and desired job setting. If you can balance that with soft-skills, like communication, team building, problem solving and critical thinking, I believe you enhance your marketability.

I think it is also fair to acknowledge that if you plan to pursue an industry that requires you to build a client base, thinking you will graduate and "maximize" your salary may be a misnomer. The goal will be to continue to develop those skills ("hard" and "soft") to maximize your earning overtime. Clients/patients want someone working with them who knows their field and is effective. Employers see that over time or word of mouth and marketing spread the news. That is what leads to your value increasing.

ScoreSkills TrainerUS Average

Salary

2.6

Avg. Salary $32,779

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

4.4

Growth rate 19%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.49%

Asian 5.11%

Black or African American 7.05%

Hispanic or Latino 10.64%

Unknown 5.40%

White 71.31%

Gender

female 65.06%

male 34.94%

Age - 36

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 36

Stress level

4.4

Stress level is moderate

7.1 - high

Complexity level

5.5

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

10.0

Work life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a skills trainer

Explore skills trainer education requirements

Most common skills trainer degrees

Bachelor's

59.4 %

Associate

16.5 %

High School Diploma

9.5 %

Start to develop specific skills trainer skills

Skills	Percentages
Money Management	9.16%
Adaptive	7.78%
Independent Living	7.71%
Behavior Management	7.62%
Incident Reports	7.39%

Complete relevant skills trainer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New skills trainers 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 a skills trainer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real skills trainer resumes.

Research skills trainer duties and responsibilities

Ensure the facilities' mission are achieved by effectively supervising the mental health rehabilitative efforts of severely and chronically ill patients.
Certify in CPR and CPI when working in educational settings as well as community base areas.
Transport and aid the clients to independently utilize skills to increase adaptive functioning in the community.
Assist individuals with traumatic brain injuries to learn ADL skills to be functionally independent in the community.

Prepare your skills trainer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your skills trainer 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 a skills trainer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable skills trainer resume templates

Build a professional skills trainer 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 skills trainer resume.

Apply for skills trainer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a skills trainer 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 do skills trainers rate their job?

-/5

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Skills trainer reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2021

Cons

Early mornings and late evenings - midday naps are often needed. Typically need to work Saturdays. People think that a personal trainer’s time is worthless because they rarely call to cancel… no-shows are always happening and it really sucks for the trainer, especially since it happens so often.

A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2020

Pros

Being able to help each client to become as independent as possible