Career
Education and childcare administrators, preschool and daycare
Lead a preschool or childcare center and the people in it.
$59,300
Median pay
-3.1%
Job growth, 2025–35
5,200
Openings a year
Bachelor's degree
Typical education
4 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Recruit, hire, train, and evaluate primary and supplemental staff and recommend personnel actions for programs and services.
- Confer with parents and staff to discuss educational activities and policies and students' behavioral or learning problems.
- Teach classes or courses or provide direct care to children.
- Determine allocations of funds for staff, supplies, materials, and equipment and authorize purchases.
- Direct and coordinate activities of teachers or administrators at daycare centers, schools, public agencies, or institutions.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on people & care, then persuasion & leadership?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Recruit, hire, train, and evaluate primary and supplemental staff and recommend personnel actions for programs and services.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $59,300 a year and 5,200 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Educational Leadership and Administration, GeneralCIP 13.0401
- Educational, Instructional, and Curriculum SupervisionCIP 13.0404
- Superintendency and Educational System AdministrationCIP 13.0411
- International School Administration/LeadershipCIP 13.0412
- Early Childhood Program AdministrationCIP 13.0414
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary$105,870 · -0.3%
- Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education$38,140 · +4.5%
- Social and Community Service Managers$80,390 · +7.2%
- Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten
- Special Education Teachers, Secondary School$74,260 · -0.2%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.