Health Education Specialists: Career Profile
Provide and manage health education programs that help individuals, families, and their communities maximize and maintain healthy lifestyles. Use data to identify community needs prior to planning, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating programs designed to encourage healthy lifestyles, policies, and environments. May link health systems, health providers, insurers, and patients to address individual and population health needs. May serve as resource to assist individuals, other health professionals, or the community, and may administer fiscal resources for health education programs.
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What Tasks Do Health Education Specialists Perform?
Typical responsibilities of health education specialists cover:
- Prepare and distribute health education materials, such as reports, bulletins, and visual aids, to address smoking, vaccines, and other public health concerns.
- Develop and maintain cooperative working relationships with agencies and organizations interested in public health care.
- Maintain databases, mailing lists, telephone networks, and other information to facilitate the functioning of health education programs.
- Document activities and record information, such as the numbers of applications completed, presentations conducted, and persons assisted.
- Develop and present health education and promotion programs, such as training workshops, conferences, and school or community presentations.
- Collaborate with health specialists and civic groups to determine community health needs and the availability of services and to develop goals for meeting needs.
- Develop, conduct, or coordinate health needs assessments and other public health surveys.
- Supervise professional and technical staff in implementing health programs, objectives, and goals.
Skills and Knowledge
Effective health education specialists combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Most Important Skills
The abilities most central to this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Top Knowledge Areas
Related Job Titles
This career also goes by job titles like:
- BLS Instructor (Basic Life Support Instructor)
- Behavioral Health Educator
- Breastfeeding Educator
- Breastfeeding Peer Counselor
- CPR Instructor (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Instructor)
- CPR and First Aid Instructor (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and First Aid Instructor)
- Certified Breastfeeding Educator (CBE)
- Certified Diabetes Educator
Employment and Demand
There are roughly 163,096 health education specialists working in the United States today. Employment is projected to grow by +3.7% over the projection horizon.
Health Education Specialists Pay
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $81,726 |
| Hourly median | $39.29 |
| 10th percentile | $47,563 |
| 25th percentile | $64,644 |
| 75th percentile | $98,808 |
| 90th percentile | $115,890 |
Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.
Health Education Specialists Salary by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $110,620 |
| Maryland | $101,090 |
| Georgia | $97,010 |
| Rhode Island | $80,390 |
| New Jersey | $78,400 |
| Minnesota | $78,080 |
| Pennsylvania | $75,020 |
| Oregon | $73,830 |
| New Hampshire | $73,580 |
| Alaska | $72,650 |
| Washington | $72,540 |
| Connecticut | $71,980 |
| Idaho | $70,070 |
| Colorado | $69,890 |
| Ohio | $68,370 |
| Virginia | $68,180 |
| Iowa | $67,940 |
| Wisconsin | $67,340 |
| Kansas | $66,960 |
| Vermont | $65,370 |
| Hawaii | $64,580 |
| Kentucky | $64,160 |
| West Virginia | $62,400 |
| Wyoming | $62,390 |
| Massachusetts | $62,270 |
| Delaware | $61,800 |
| New Mexico | $61,730 |
| Utah | $61,660 |
| Nevada | $61,270 |
| Oklahoma | $60,980 |
| New York | $60,320 |
| California | $60,150 |
| Missouri | $60,110 |
| Indiana | $59,950 |
| South Carolina | $59,780 |
| Maine | $59,460 |
| North Dakota | $58,670 |
| Illinois | $58,100 |
| Arizona | $58,100 |
| Louisiana | $57,150 |
| Arkansas | $57,060 |
| Texas | $56,210 |
| Tennessee | $55,970 |
| South Dakota | $55,770 |
| North Carolina | $54,720 |
| Florida | $53,460 |
| Alabama | $53,110 |
| Michigan | $52,830 |
| Nebraska | $52,260 |
| Montana | $52,030 |
| Mississippi | $48,100 |
| Puerto Rico | $38,360 |
Pay by U.S. Region
Pay for health education specialists differ across the country. The following regions pay the most:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Middle Atlantic | $76,967 | 15.8% | 1.18 |
| Plains States | $67,176 | 6.3% | 0.96 |
| Southeast | $66,851 | 19.6% | 0.96 |
| Rocky Mountains | $65,773 | 3.2% | 0.82 |
| New England | $64,496 | 5.2% | 1.28 |
| Far Western US | $62,268 | 27.4% | 1.77 |
| Great Lakes | $60,605 | 10.5% | 0.85 |
| Southwest | $57,552 | 10.8% | 0.91 |
Where the Jobs Cluster
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | DC | $121,890 | 2,100 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | GA | $109,260 | 2,600 |
| Trenton-Princeton, NJ | NJ | $88,370 | 80 |
| York-Hanover, PA | PA | $86,420 | 50 |
| Owensboro, KY | KY | $85,250 | 40 |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | MD | $83,690 | 40 |
| Waterbury-Shelton, CT | CT | $82,870 | 30 |
| Reading, PA | PA | $82,720 | 40 |
Top Industries Employing Health Education Specialists
The bulk of health education specialists are found across these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 28,060 | $65,510 |
| Other Services (except Public Administration) | 2,960 | $51,850 |
| Finance and Insurance | 2,620 | $57,970 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 2,340 | $71,990 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 1,390 | $62,690 |
| Wholesale Trade | 1,190 | $71,420 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 840 | $61,250 |
| Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation | 210 | $50,610 |
Health Education Specialists work in the following industries:
Software Health Education Specialists Use
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Photoshop (hot technology)
- Web page creation and editing software: Facebook (hot technology)
- Medical software: MEDITECH software (hot technology)
- Data base user interface and query software: Microsoft Access (hot technology)
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
- Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
- Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
- Process mapping and design software: Microsoft Visio (hot technology)
- Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)
Work Environment
The work environment for health education specialists reflects the following characteristics:
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
- Telephone Conversations
- Contact With Others
- Freedom to Make Decisions
How to Become Health Education Specialists
Most health education specialists positions require an associate’s degree as the typical entry-level education. The role falls in Considerable Preparation Needed (Job Zone 4), reflecting the level of preparation typically expected.
Other Careers to Consider
Similar Occupations
- Medical and Health Services Managers (Supplemental)
- Social and Community Service Managers (Primary-Long)
- Health Informatics Specialists (Primary-Short)
- Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors (Supplemental)
- Mental Health Counselors (Supplemental)
- Rehabilitation Counselors (Primary-Short)
- Child, Family, and School Social Workers (Primary-Long)
- Healthcare Social Workers (Primary-Short)
Degree Programs
Future health education specialists typically earn programs in:
Health Professions and Related Programs
8 programs across 4 majors
- Public Health
- Health Sciences & Services
- Mental & Social Health Services
- Advanced Dentistry & Oral Sciences
Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs
1 programs across 1 majors
Sources
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 21-1091.00 (Health Education Specialists).
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