What is an instructional designer? 

Instructional design  and curriculum development are two fields that overlap in many ways. The difference can be summarized as such:

• Curriculum developers decide what is taught.
• Instructional designers decide how something is taught.

Curriculum development professionals decide about the learning objectives in different courses and make sure educational information is up to date. Sometimes curriculum developers create new courses from scratch, and sometimes they are tasked with analyzing and revising an existing curriculum.

In contrast, those who work in instructional design focus on the instructional methods teachers use and the effect on students. They redesign existing learning models, train educators, and evaluate and create new virtual learning tools and resources.

While these two careers focus on different parts of the educational process, taken together they provide students with the latest improvements and innovations  based on research.

Designers need a variety of skills  to be successful, including:

• Critical thinking: Often, instructional designers work to redesign existing courses. This requires the designer to evaluate the course, make a plan for its redesign and implement the plan.
• Communication: One of a designer’s responsibilities is communicating changes and ideas to school leadership. Strong communication skills can help designers effectively work with and train teachers and administrators in new instructional methods.
• Research: Everything a designer does is based on current research in fields such as education, child development and psychology. Staying up to date helps ensure their work will benefit students in the long run.
• Leadership: Those who work in instructional design sometimes work to train teachers on new instructional methods. Having confidence, public speaking skills and leadership qualities can make a designer an effective training workshop leader.
• Creativity: Instructional design is built on creativity. While designers often work with existing materials, they have to use creative thinking skills to incorporate new ideas and practices into an existing course structure.

By developing and using these skills, instructional designers can help schools and teachers provide better educational experiences and opportunities for students. Earning a master’s degree can help aspiring designers develop and refine these skills.

To be hired as an instructional designer, an applicant will typically hold a master’s degree in a related field. For example, a Master of Arts in Education/Curriculum and Instruction would prepare someone for a career in instructional design.

Unlike other careers in education, those who work in instructional design do not always need to hold a specific, standardized certification. For example, those working in the military , business or higher education aren’t required to hold a certification or license.

On the other hand, designers working in a K-12 public school system may be required to hold a valid teaching license. This requirement varies according to local and state requirements.

Those required to hold a teaching license to work in instructional design in a specific state will need to have a bachelor’s degree in education, student teaching experience, a passing grade on the Praxis® exam  and a successful background check.

Instructional designers can work and gain experience in a variety of professional settings. They can be hired by specific schools or school districts to provide training, evaluation and change management.

They can also be hired by large corporations to handle the instructional design of staff training programs and professional development programs . Military or military-adjacent organizations can also hire designers to design educational and instructional materials.

With sufficient experience, often by working on a team, they can choose to work alone and be contracted by different organizations to provide instructional design services.

As of May 2023, instructional coordinators earned between $46,540 and $109,500, with a median wage of $74,620, according to  the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This wide range of income can be explained by the variety of industries open to this role. While this career is connected to the work of other educational professionals, such as teachers, instructional designers work full time (including summer months), which may also impact annual salary.

Salary ranges are not specific to students or graduates of University of Phoenix. Actual outcomes vary based on multiple factors, including prior work experience, geographic location and other factors specific to the individual. University of Phoenix does not guarantee employment, salary level or career advancement. BLS data is geographically based. Information for a specific state/city can be researched on the BLS website.

The job outlook for instructional coordinators has projected growth of 2%  from 2022 and 2032, according to BLS. That matches the average growth rate for all occupations. During the next decade, 19,200 open positions are projected for instructional designers each year.

BLS Occupational Employment Projections, 2022-2032 is published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This data reflects BLS’ projections of national (not local) conditions. These data points are not specific to University of Phoenix students or graduates.

There are many ways to learn more about this profession, including:

• Career resource centers: The professionals at career resource centers are trained to help make a career plan and write a resumé.
• College admissions staff: College admissions staff can help you apply for degree programs and also provide additional information about the career opportunities that education degrees can offer .
• Online research: Websites can provide details on instructional design careers.
• Internships with instructional design companies: Working with an instructional design team as an intern can give a behind-the-scenes look at the daily routine of people working in this field.
• Conversations with mentors: For those already pursuing a bachelor’s or master’s degree in education, professors may be able to provide more information about instructional design and give advice for entering into this field.