Transportation and Material Moving · Holland code RCS
Bus Drivers, School
Drive a school bus to transport students. Ensure adherence to safety rules. May assist students in boarding or exiting.
Also called: Public School Bus Driver, School Bus Driver, SPED Bus Driver (Special Education Bus Driver), Student Driver, Bus Drive Coordinator, Bus Driver Route Coordinator, CDL Bus Driver (Commercial Driver's License Bus Driver), School Van Driver.
O*NET 53-3051.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $47,920
- Middle half earn $38,650 to $58,430. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
- 59% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
- Preparation needed
- Job Zone 2 of 5
- Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Comply with traffic regulations to operate vehicles in a safe and courteous manner.
- Follow safety rules as students board and exit buses or cross streets near bus stops.
- Check the condition of a vehicle's tires, brakes, windshield wipers, lights, oil, fuel, water, and safety equipment to ensure that everything is in working order.
- Report any bus malfunctions or needed repairs.
- Pick up and drop off students at regularly scheduled neighborhood locations, following strict time schedules.
- Escort small children across roads and highways.
- Drive gasoline, diesel, or electrically powered multi-passenger vehicles to transport students between neighborhoods, schools, and school activities.
- Maintain order among students during trips to ensure safety.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Active Listening3.4 / 5
- Critical Thinking3.4 / 5
- Monitoring3.4 / 5
- Speaking3.1 / 5
- Reading Comprehension3.0 / 5
- Writing2.6 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Transportation4.5 / 5
- Public Safety and Security4.0 / 5
- Customer and Personal Service3.9 / 5
- English Language3.7 / 5
- Mechanical3.2 / 5
- Law and Government3.1 / 5
Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.
Who tends to enjoy it
How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.
- Realistic75
- Investigative10
- Artistic3
- Social58
- Enterprising20
- Conventional62
The same work abroad
Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.
European occupation titles (ESCO)
- bus route supervisor · DE Fahrdienstleiter Busverkehr/Fahrdienstleiterin Busverkehr · FR responsable exploitation bus
- escort · DE Escort · FR escort boy/escort girl
- school bus attendant · DE Schulbusbegleiter · FR accompagnateur de bus scolaire/accompagnatrice de bus scolaire
- crossing guard · DE Verkehrshelfer/Verkehrshelferin · FR signaleur/signaleuse
- vehicle maintenance attendant · DE Helfer im Bereich Fahrzeugbau und -instandhaltung/Helferin im Bereich Fahrzeugbau und -instandhaltung · FR mécanicien d’entretien en automobile/mécanicienne d’entretien en automobile
- train driver · DE Schienenfahrzeugführer/Schienenfahrzeugführerin · FR conducteur de train/conductrice de train
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Bus and coach drivers (8212)117,600 employed
- Childminders (6114)42,900 employed
- Nannies and au pairs (6116)22,400 employed
Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.
Japan
Japan classifies jobs in its own way. The closest category that names the same work is “バス運転者”, which may be narrower or broader than this occupation.
- Median monthly pay
- ¥257,900
- Middle half earn ¥224,500 to ¥294,000 a month.
- Workers in the category
- 96,280
- Regular employees in firms of ten or more.
Scheduled monthly pay before tax, excluding overtime and bonuses, so it is not comparable to the annual figures above. Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025, via e-Stat, under the Japanese Government Standard Terms of Use. The category match was made by hand.
Pay across Europe, for the whole group
Median annual earnings of all employees in “Plant and machine operators and assemblers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €39,630 |
| Netherlands | €37,567 |
| Austria | €37,304 |
| Sweden | €36,005 |
| Germany | €34,433 |
| Ireland | €32,617 |
| France | €28,550 |
| Italy | €28,330 |
| Spain | €24,409 |
| Portugal | €11,309 |
| Poland | €10,259 |
Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.
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