School Bus Monitors
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.
Median pay (national)
$34,980
$27,250–$43,240 (10th–90th)
Employed (US)
72,140
BLS OEWS, May 2024
Outlook 2024–34
-2.7%
~12,600 openings/yr
Typical entry
High school diploma or equivalent
What the numbers say
Refit analysis ·Pay for school bus monitors shows a relatively narrow range: the top 10% earn $43,240 versus $27,250 at the bottom 10% — 1.6x. The median of $34,980 leaves roughly 24% of headroom to the 90th percentile, which is where seniority, specialization, and the skills below tend to pay off.
Refit analysis ·Employment is projected to change -2.7% from 2024 to 2034 — a projected decline, against +3% across all occupations. Even so, BLS projects about 12,600 openings a year, mostly to replace workers who retire or change careers.
Refit analysis ·Where you work moves the number a lot. Across the 48 states with released data, Washington pays the most for this role (median $41,720, +19% vs the national median), while Mississippi sits lowest at $22,780 — a 83% spread for the same job title.
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What they actually do
Core O*NET tasks for this role.
- 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.
- Guide the driver when the bus is moving in reverse gear.
- Monitor for trains at railroad crossings and signal the bus driver when it is safe to proceed.
Tools & technology
- Microsoft Windows
- Web browser software