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School Bus Monitors: Career Profile
Maintain order among students on a school bus. Duties include helping students safely board and exit and communicating behavioral problems. May perform pretrip and posttrip inspections and prepare for and assist in emergency evacuations.
What Do School Bus Monitors Take On?
The core tasks performed by school bus monitors span:
- Announce routes or stops.
- Assist children with disabilities or children with psychological, emotional, or behavioral issues with boarding and exiting the school bus.
- Buckle seatbelts or fasten wheelchair tie-down straps to secure passengers for transportation.
- Clean school bus interiors by picking up waste, wiping down windows, or vacuuming.
- Direct students boarding and exiting the school bus.
- Direct students evacuating the bus during safety drills.
- Escort young children across roads or highways.
- Evacuate students from the school bus in emergency situations.
Related Job Titles
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- Bus Monitor
- School Bus Aide
- School Bus Assistant
- School Bus Attendant
- School Bus Escort
- School Bus Matron
- School Bus Monitor
Employment and Demand
The U.S. employs around 496,906 school bus monitors working in the United States today. Demand is forecast to grow by +0.9% over the projection horizon.
School Bus Monitors Pay
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $67,014 |
| Hourly median | $32.22 |
| 10th percentile | $38,449 |
| 25th percentile | $52,732 |
| 75th percentile | $81,297 |
| 90th percentile | $95,580 |
Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.
How Much Do School Bus Monitors Make in Different U.S. States?
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| Washington | $41,720 |
| Minnesota | $40,000 |
| Hawaii | $39,820 |
| California | $39,190 |
| Wyoming | $38,790 |
| Oregon | $37,850 |
| Delaware | $37,560 |
| Utah | $37,530 |
| Vermont | $37,440 |
| Colorado | $37,390 |
| Wisconsin | $37,070 |
| New York | $37,010 |
| Connecticut | $36,980 |
| Maryland | $36,900 |
| District of Columbia | $36,580 |
| Massachusetts | $36,070 |
| Alaska | $35,950 |
| Rhode Island | $35,820 |
| New Jersey | $35,700 |
| New Hampshire | $35,380 |
| Illinois | $35,360 |
| New Mexico | $34,720 |
| Ohio | $34,400 |
| Arizona | $34,190 |
| Iowa | $34,180 |
| Nebraska | $33,520 |
| Virginia | $33,410 |
| Montana | $33,230 |
| North Carolina | $33,070 |
| Michigan | $32,920 |
| Florida | $32,770 |
| Missouri | $31,750 |
| Indiana | $31,650 |
| Pennsylvania | $31,200 |
| Maine | $31,030 |
| Georgia | $29,600 |
| Arkansas | $29,450 |
| Kansas | $29,320 |
| Texas | $29,180 |
| Nevada | $28,560 |
| Louisiana | $28,330 |
| Oklahoma | $27,820 |
| Kentucky | $27,780 |
| Tennessee | $27,650 |
| South Carolina | $26,790 |
| Alabama | $26,590 |
| Idaho | $26,550 |
| Mississippi | $22,780 |
Where School Bus Monitors Earn the Most
Earnings for school bus monitors shift depending on where you work. These regions lead on median pay:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Far Western US | $38,794 | 4.0% | 0.31 |
| Middle Atlantic | $36,311 | 39.2% | 3.30 |
| New England | $36,089 | 5.1% | 1.20 |
| Rocky Mountains | $35,440 | 1.5% | 0.97 |
| Great Lakes | $34,134 | 14.6% | 1.41 |
| Plains States | $33,733 | 6.0% | 1.00 |
| Southeast | $30,694 | 19.0% | 0.85 |
| Southwest | $30,265 | 10.5% | 0.83 |
Top Metro Areas
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $49,330 | 180 |
| Fairbanks-College, AK | AK | $48,270 | 30 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $45,390 | 90 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | CA | $43,260 | 50 |
| Bend, OR | OR | $43,210 | 40 |
| Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT | UT | $42,970 | 90 |
| Bakersfield-Delano, CA | CA | $42,310 | 120 |
| Rochester, MN | MN | $42,140 | 80 |
Top Industries Employing School Bus Monitors
Most school bus monitors work in these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Educational Services | 32,040 | $33,160 |
| Transportation and Warehousing | 31,840 | $36,060 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 1,300 | $30,530 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 500 | $35,360 |
Below are examples of industries where school bus monitors work:
Tech Stack
- Operating system software: Microsoft Windows (hot technology)
Education and Training
This occupation sits in Some Preparation Needed (Job Zone 2), signaling the level of preparation typically expected.
Related Careers
Similar Occupations
- Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary (Supplemental)
- School Psychologists (Supplemental)
- Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors (Supplemental)
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education (Supplemental)
- Special Education Teachers, Elementary School (Supplemental)
- Special Education Teachers, Secondary School (Supplemental)
- Tutors (Supplemental)
- Teaching Assistants, Preschool, Elementary, Middle, and Secondary School, Except Special Education (Supplemental)
References
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 33-9094.00 (School Bus Monitors).