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Trade & Industrial Education

What Trade & Industrial Education Majors Need to Know

Programs in Trade & Industrial Education build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Trade & Industrial Education graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in Trade & Industrial Education emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.6 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Administration and Management — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set built by a Trade & Industrial Education program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to Trade & Industrial Education careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Trade & Industrial Education graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Training and Teaching Others	4.7 / 7
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.4 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.3 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.3 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.3 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Working with Computers	4.1 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Trade & Industrial Education professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Sakai CLE	Computer based training software	—
Image scanning software	Optical character reader OCR or scanning software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Collaborative editing software	Word processing software	—
Calendar and scheduling software	Calendar and scheduling software	—
Blackboard Learn	Computer based training software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Desire2Learn LMS software	Computer based training software	—
Course management system software	Computer based training software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Learning management system LMS	Computer based training software	✓

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Trade & Industrial Education graduates include:

• Instructor
• Educator
• Business Education Teacher
• Industrial Arts Teacher
• Vocational Trainer
• Teacher
• Computer Science Teacher
• Carpentry Teacher
• Career Education Teacher
• Vocational Teacher
• Technical Education Teacher
• Computer Teacher
• Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher (FACS Teacher)
• Business Teacher
• Industrial Technology Teacher

What Can You Do With a Trade & Industrial Education Degree?

Graduates with a degree in Trade & Industrial Education commonly enter the following occupations:

Occupation	Job Growth	Median Salary	25th–75th Pctile
Education Teachers, Postsecondary	2.4%	$98,329	$80,157–$116,500
Career/Technical Education Teachers, Postsecondary	0.6%	$86,398	$72,979–$99,816

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

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Trade & Industrial Education graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	38.1%
Bachelor’s degree	25.7%
Master’s degree	15.6%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	7.5%
Postsecondary certificate	4.1%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	3.8%
High school diploma or equivalent	2.9%
Some college courses	2.0%
First professional degree	0.1%

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

How Much Do Trade & Industrial Education Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Trade & Industrial Education 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	$49,919
4 years	$50,204
5 years	$56,331

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $56,331 — roughly 13% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Trade & Industrial Education Programs

Online study are documented by IPEDS for Trade & Industrial Education. 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
Associate’s	1	1
Bachelor’s	4	6
Master’s	8	2

^{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 Trade & Industrial Education Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Trade & Industrial Education graduates earn a median of $50,204 four years after completion — roughly 32% 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 Subject Areas	39,881
Education, General	27,481
Curriculum and Instruction	21,331
Physical Education Teaching and Coaching	6,964
Reading Teacher Education	5,986
Music Teacher Education	4,544
English/Language Arts Teacher Education	3,018
Mathematics Teacher Education	2,993
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas, Other	2,352
Social Studies Teacher Education	1,963
Art Teacher Education	1,860
Health Teacher Education	1,472

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.