How To Become A Vocational-Technical Education Director: What It Is and Career Path

What is a vocational-technical education director and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Ryan Allen

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a vocational-technical education director. For example, did you know that they make an average of $41.26 an hour? That's $85,820 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 5% and produce 14,200 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a vocational-technical education director?

Ryan Allen

Assistant Professor of Comparative and International Education and Leadership, Soka University of America

Education goes beyond teaching in a classroom or school. Often people hear 'Educational Leadership' and they think of some kind of school principal or other administrator. These are certainly important careers for the space, but they are only a part of a broader range of possibilities. There are a range of careers in the EdTech space, for instance, that need good people who understand various aspects of what happens in classrooms. Likewise, educational development and the NGO world are full of amazing opportunities that offer exciting careers that are rewarding. These jobs might see a lot of travel and broader global connections that you don't often see in the traditional K-12 space.

ScoreVocational-Technical Education DirectorUS Average

Salary

6.7

Avg. Salary $85,820

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

10.0

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.72%

Asian 4.92%

Black or African American 12.13%

Hispanic or Latino 13.26%

Unknown 4.12%

White 64.86%

Gender

female 40.32%

male 59.68%

Age - 47

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 - 47

Stress level

10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

10.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.4

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a vocational-technical education director

Explore vocational-technical education director education requirements

Most common vocational-technical education director degrees

Bachelor's

50.7 %

Master's

30.7 %

Associate

9.3 %

Start to develop specific vocational-technical education director skills

Skills	Percentages
Technical Education	11.17%
CTE	8.48%
Curriculum Development	8.33%
Emerging Technologies	5.85%
Strategic Plan	5.63%

Complete relevant vocational-technical education director training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New vocational-technical education directors 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 vocational-technical education director based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real vocational-technical education director resumes.

Research vocational-technical education director duties and responsibilities

Manage school's computer lab and tech infrastructure.
Develop residential data center standards and implement database CRM style solutions for managing the home environment utilizing SAP/Access/MySQL/Oracle database engines.
Lead the district s implementation of professional career awareness, exploration, and planning.
Provide leadership to develop and implement first career academies.

Get vocational-technical education director experience

Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a vocational-technical education director. The most common roles before becoming a vocational-technical education director include teacher, instructor team lead and project manager.

Apply for vocational-technical education director jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a vocational-technical education director 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

What is a vocational-technical education director and how to become one

What general advice would you give to a vocational-technical education director?

Vocational-technical education director career paths

Key steps to become a vocational-technical education director

Explore vocational-technical education director education requirements

Most common vocational-technical education director degrees

Start to develop specific vocational-technical education director skills

Complete relevant vocational-technical education director training and internships

Research vocational-technical education director duties and responsibilities

Get vocational-technical education director experience

Apply for vocational-technical education director jobs

How did you land your first vocational-technical education director job

Average vocational-technical education director salary

How do vocational-technical education directors rate their job?