What does a vice principal do?
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.
Vice principal responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real vice principal resumes:
- Lead the NCA steering committee to assist with the school improvement process.
- Educate students in economics, mathematics and social studies.
- Design and facilitate dynamic and effective staff development programs for language arts, mathematics, discipline, and character education.
- Serve as facilitator for IEP meetings and provide training and direction for ESE students.
- Conduct IEP when necessary both with and without parents when age of student are appropriate.
- Establish and maintain relationships with colleges, community organizations, and other schools to coordinate educational services.
- Develop and supervise the ESL department ensuring that the program addressed the academic needs of students enroll.
- Execute teacher training, supervise curriculum choices, plan teacher credentialing for IB certification.
Vice principal skills and personality traits
We calculated that 12% of Vice Principals are proficient in Curriculum Development, Vice-Principal, and Classroom Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Decision-making skills, and Leadership skills.
We break down the percentage of Vice Principals that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Curriculum Development, 12%
Support curriculum development in early childhood and primary school.
- Vice-Principal, 11%
Presented reports bi-monthly to the Board of Education regarding the issues and matters that were handled from the Vice-Principal's office.
- Classroom Management, 10%
Assist teachers in evaluating methods and materials and developing effective learning plans and classroom management techniques.
- Professional Development, 10%
Supervised teachers and other staff members with the overall responsibility for staff development, curriculum implementation, and professional development training.
- Mathematics, 4%
Supervised and conducted formal observations of teaching staff in the departments of Mathematics and Science.
- Staff Development, 3%
Coordinated and participated in weekly common prep activities/meetings, as well as staff development activities.
"curriculum development," "vice-principal," and "classroom management" are among the most common skills that vice principals use at work. You can find even more vice principal responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a vice principal to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "principals must communicate effectively with students, teachers, and parents." Vice principals often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "define high expectations, instructional program, support classroom management, and ensure parent communication. "
Decision-making skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling vice principal duties is decision-making skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "because principals are responsible for students, staff, and the overall operation of the school, they consider many factors when making decisions." According to a vice principal resume, here's how vice principals can utilize decision-making skills in their job responsibilities: "discipline entry- maintained over 2000 student discipline records: enabled administrators to make sound decisions for student behavioral correction plans. "
Leadership skills. vice principals are also known for leadership skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to vice principal responsibilities, because "principals set educational goals and establish policies and procedures for the school." A vice principal resume example shows how leadership skills is used in the workplace: "performed all administrative duties including but not limited to supervision, instructional leadership, test preparation, teacher professional development. "
Interpersonal skills. A big part of what vice principals do relies on "interpersonal skills." You can see how essential it is to vice principal responsibilities because "principals work with teachers, parents, and superintendents and must develop positive working relationships with them." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical vice principal tasks: "counseled students in improving academic performance, health and interpersonal relations. "
Problem-solving skills. A commonly-found skill in vice principal job descriptions, "problem-solving skills" is essential to what vice principals do. Vice principal responsibilities rely on this skill because "teachers, students, and other staff report problems to the principal." You can also see how vice principal duties rely on problem-solving skills in this resume example: "conduct teacher observations and develop strategic planning initiatives to implement new and improved educational solutions to streamline and enhance student productivity. "
The three companies that hire the most vice principals are:
- Multnomah Education Service District1 vice principals jobs
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Compare different vice principals
Vice principal vs. Director of special services
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.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between vice principals and director of special services. For instance, vice principal responsibilities require skills such as "curriculum development," "vice-principal," "classroom management," and "mathematics." Whereas a director of special services is skilled in "social work," "business development," "mental health," and "securities." This is part of what separates the two careers.
The education levels that directors of special services earn slightly differ from vice principals. In particular, directors of special services are 7.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a vice principal. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Vice principal vs. Director of physical education
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, vice principal responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "vice-principal," "staff development," "instructional program," and "learning environment." Meanwhile, a director of physical education has duties that require skills in areas such as "physical education curriculum," "student athletes," "physical education," and "volleyball." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Directors of physical education earn lower levels of education than vice principals in general. They're 13.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Vice principal vs. School director
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from vice principal resumes include skills like "vice-principal," "instructional program," "classroom observations," and "instructional strategies," whereas a school director is more likely to list skills in "social work," "kids," "math," and "public schools. "
School directors earn the best pay in the education industry, where they command an average salary of $62,751. Vice principals earn the highest pay from the education industry, with an average salary of $79,677.Most school directors achieve a lower degree level compared to vice principals. For example, they're 12.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Vice principal vs. Curriculum director
Types of vice principal
Updated January 8, 2025
