Dive Brief:
- A new list published by Forbes breaks down the discrepancies in wages for jobs in education, noting that some in the profession make just over $25,000 while others rake in well over $100,000.
- The list is based on the May 2013 Occupational Employment and Wages data gathered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
- While the list includes both K-12 and higher ed data, if we focus specifically on K-12, we see elementary and secondary administrators making some of the best salaries. The report finds almost a quarter of a million individuals in this admin category earning a mean salary of $90,670. On the other side of the coin there are teacher assistants bringing in a mean income of $25,570.
Dive Insight:
While the Forbes report jokes in the beginning about being a key to help educators pick the best-paying job, at the end of the day, the report sheds light on disproportionate finances in a school setting. With higher ed positions included, secondary and elementary administrators came in seventh place overall for the best paying jobs in education.
As stated before, teacher assistants found themselves at the low-end of the spectrum, followed by substitute teachers, who brought in a mean salary of $29,350, and then pre-school teachers (except special education), with a mean salary of $31,420.
