---

online educator/online teaching

A program that prepares individuals to teach students at various academic levels through online instructional technologies. Includes instruction in andragogy, pedagogy, assessment, instructional design and technology, and learning science.

Types of Degrees online educator/online teaching Majors Are Earning

Those studying online educator/online teaching can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	115

What online educator/online teaching Majors Need to Know

Programs in online educator/online teaching develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that online educator/online teaching graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing online educator/online teaching emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.8 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Sociology and Anthropology — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills emphasized by a online educator/online teaching program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to online educator/online teaching careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, online educator/online teaching graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Training and Teaching Others	4.7 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.4 / 7
Getting Information	4.3 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.2 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.1 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.1 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	3.9 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by online educator/online teaching professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	—
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Desmos	Analytical or scientific software	—
Google Classroom	Project management software	—
Schoology	Computer based training software	—
Nearpod	Multi-media educational software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for online educator/online teaching graduates include:

• Teacher
• Educator
• Lecturer
• Instructor
• Adjunct Instructor
• Associate Professor
• Faculty Member
• Assistant Professor
• Science Teacher
• Art Educator
• Art Instructor
• Music Educator
• Music Teacher
• Art Teacher
• Language Instructor

What Can You Do With a online educator/online teaching Degree?

Graduates with a degree in online educator/online teaching commonly enter the following occupations:

Occupation	Job Growth	Median Salary	25th–75th Pctile
Education Teachers, Postsecondary	2.4%	$98,329	$80,157–$116,500
Postsecondary Teachers, All Other	-0.1%	$68,967	$56,860–$81,074

^{Job-growth = projected employment change for the parent occupation. Source: ONET / BLS Employment Projections.*}

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to online educator/online teaching graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	34.9%
Bachelor’s degree	31.2%
Master’s degree	13.4%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	5.5%
Postsecondary certificate	4.4%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	3.9%
High school diploma or equivalent	3.2%
Less than a high school diploma	1.9%
Post-master’s certificate	1.2%
Post-doctoral training	0.2%
Some college courses	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in online educator/online teaching?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 75.7% of online educator/online teaching degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	87	75.7%
Men	28	24.3%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of online educator/online teaching graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	76	66.1%
Asian	3	2.6%
Hispanic or Latino	4	3.5%
Black or African American	10	8.7%
Two or More Races	1	0.9%
Race Unknown	14	12.2%
International Students	7	6.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do online educator/online teaching Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of online educator/online teaching graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Earnings tend to climb steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$44,857
4 years	$43,846
5 years	$48,879

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $48,879 — roughly 9% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online online educator/online teaching Programs

Online study is tracked by IPEDS for online educator/online teaching. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Master’s	3	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in online educator/online teaching Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, online educator/online teaching graduates earn a median of $43,846 four years after completion — roughly 15% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods	108,054
Elementary Education and Teaching	42,205
Secondary Education and Teaching	10,594
Teacher Education, Multiple Levels	8,732
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods, Other	6,573
Junior High/Intermediate/Middle School Education and Teaching	2,976
Kindergarten/Preschool Education and Teaching	2,616
Art Teacher Education	1,860
Bilingual and Multilingual Education	932
Adult and Continuing Education and Teaching	901
Biology Teacher Education	696
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Educational Methods	399

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.