Substitute Teachers, Short-Term
25-3031.00
Updated 2025

Teach students on a short-term basis as a temporary replacement for a regular classroom teacher, typically using the regular teacher's lesson plan.

Sample of reported job titles: Building Sub (Building Substitute), Building Sub Teacher (Building Substitute Teacher), Child Development Sub Teacher (Child Development Substitute Teacher), ESL Sub (English as a Second Language Substitute), HS Sub Teacher (High School Substitute Teacher), Pre-School Sub Teacher (Pre-School Substitute Teacher), Short-Term Sub Teacher (Short-Term Substitute Teacher), Sub (Substitute), Sub Teacher (Substitute Teacher)

Occupation-Specific Information

Tasks

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Technology Skills

Hot technology
Hot Technologies are requirements most frequently included across all employer job postings.

Occupational Requirements

Work Activities

  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
  • Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
  • Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others — Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Working with Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
  • Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.

Detailed Work Activities

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Work Context

  • Contact With Others — 72% responded “Constant contact with others.”
  • Coordinate or Lead Others in Accomplishing Work Activities — 59% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Freedom to Make Decisions — 57% responded “A lot of freedom.”
  • Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team — 61% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams — 58% responded “Every day.”
  • E-Mail — 51% responded “Every day.”
  • Public Speaking — 53% responded “Every day.”
  • Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals — 39% responded “A lot of freedom.”
  • Health and Safety of Other Workers — 46% responded “Very high responsibility.”
  • Written Letters and Memos — 41% responded “Every day.”
  • Spend Time Standing — 45% responded “About half the time.”
  • Frequency of Decision Making — 50% responded “Every day.”
  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — 35% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — 40% responded “Never.”
  • Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls — 45% responded “Continually or almost continually.”

Experience Requirements

Job Zone

Title
Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Education
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Related Experience
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Job Zone Examples
Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include real estate brokers, sales managers, database administrators, graphic designers, conservation scientists, art directors, and cost estimators.
SVP Range
(7.0 to < 8.0)

Training & Credentials

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Certifications
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Apprenticeship Opportunities

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Worker Requirements

Skills

  • Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
  • Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
  • Instructing — Teaching others how to do something.
  • Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • Learning Strategies — Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
  • Time Management — Managing one's own time and the time of others.
  • Writing — Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
  • Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
  • Service Orientation — Actively looking for ways to help people.

Knowledge

  • English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
  • Education and Training — Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
  • Public Safety and Security — Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
  • Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Education

How much education does a new hire need to perform a job in this occupation? Respondents said:

  • 40%
     
    Bachelor’s degree required
  • 35%
     
    Associate’s degree required
  • 10%
     
    High school diploma or equivalent required

Worker Characteristics

Abilities

  • Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Interests

Interest code: SC
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  • Social — Work involves helping, teaching, advising, assisting, or providing service to others. Social occupations are often associated with social, health care, personal service, teaching/education, or religious activities.
  • Conventional — Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.

Work Styles

  • Optimism — A tendency to exhibit a positive attitude and positive emotions at work, even under difficult circumstances.
  • Adaptability — A tendency to be open to and comfortable with change, new experiences, or ideas at work.
  • Empathy — A tendency to show concern for others and be sensitive to others' needs and feelings at work.
  • Stress Tolerance — A tendency to cope and function effectively in stressful situations at work.
  • Self-Control — A tendency to remain calm and composed and to manage emotions effectively in response to criticism or difficult situations at work.
  • Social Orientation — A tendency to seek out, enjoy, and be energized by social interaction at work.
  • Cooperation — A tendency to be pleasant, helpful, and willing to assist others at work.
  • Dependability — A tendency to be reliable, responsible, and consistent in meeting work-related obligations.

Workforce Characteristics

Wages & Employment Trends

Median wages (2024)
$18.50 hourly, $38,470 annual
State wages
Local wages
Employment (2024)
510,100 employees
Projected growth (2024-2034)
Slower than average (1% to 2%)
Projected job openings (2024-2034)
61,100
State trends
Top industries (2024)

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024 wage data and 2024-2034 employment projections . “Projected growth” represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2024-2034). “Projected job openings” represent openings due to growth and replacement.

Job Openings on the Web

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More Information

Professional Associations

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