Pennsylvania·Transportation and Material Moving Occupations·SOC 53-3051

Best Bus Driver, School programs in Pennsylvania, ranked by enrollment

Drive a school bus to transport students. Ensure adherence to safety rules.

16 schools in Pennsylvania run programs that feed this job, graduating 1,075 people a year. The job pays a median of $47,530 in Pennsylvania across about 23,670 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledBus DriverSchool Bus DriverPublic School Bus DriverSPED Bus Driver (Special Education Bus Driver)Bus MonitorCampus DriverStudent DriverSchool Van Driver
Graduates / yr
1,075
in Pennsylvania
Median pay · Pennsylvania
$47,530
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
23,670
people employed
Schools
16
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
76%
across those schools
Median net price
$20,652
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Pennsylvania that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

1 programs in Pennsylvania that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Pennsylvania (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Pennsylvania page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
11,075
100.0%
16$42,812$7,572

Top 16 schools in Pennsylvania

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 7 of the 16 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1All - State Career School
Essington, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
306Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor$43,09253%$21,443
2All - State Career School - Pittsburgh
West Mifflin, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
183Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor$43,16075%$14,661
3New Castle School of Trades
New Castle, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
106Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor$41,74776%$7,553
4Penn Commercial Business/Technical School
Washington, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
80Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor84%$18,41256%
5Miller - Motte College - Berks Technical Institute
Wyomissing, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
79Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor$46,90976%
6Miller - Motte College - Berks Technical Institute - Allentown
Allentown, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
65Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor$46,90983%
7York County School of Technology - Adult & Continuing Education
York, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
50Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor90%
8Douglas Education Center
Monessen, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
45Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor88%$27,934
9Fortis Institute - Scranton
Scranton, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
34Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor$46,79746%$26,301
10Schuylkill Technology Center
Frackville, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
31Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor63%
11Institute of Medical Careers
Pittsburgh, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
24Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor76%$20,376
12Fortis Institute - Forty Fort
Forty Fort, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
22Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor71%$20,652
13Somerset County Technology Center
Somerset, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
19Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor87%
14Miller - Motte College - Berks Technical Institute - Lewisburg
Lewisburg, PA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
15Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor66%$23,551
15Rosedale Technical College
Pittsburgh, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
14Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor$43,41581%$16,69675%
16Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology
Pleasant Gap, PA Public · 1 feeder programs
2Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor95%96%

All 16 schools in Pennsylvania

Every school in Pennsylvania with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Pennsylvania that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
All - State Career SchoolEssingtonPrivate for-profit3061
All - State Career School - PittsburghWest MifflinPrivate for-profit1831
New Castle School of TradesNew CastlePrivate for-profit1061
Penn Commercial Business/Technical SchoolWashingtonPrivate for-profit801
Miller - Motte College - Berks Technical InstituteWyomissingPrivate for-profit791
Miller - Motte College - Berks Technical Institute - AllentownAllentownPrivate for-profit651
York County School of Technology - Adult & Continuing EducationYorkPublic501
Douglas Education CenterMonessenPrivate for-profit451
Fortis Institute - ScrantonScrantonPrivate for-profit341
Schuylkill Technology CenterFrackvillePublic311
Institute of Medical CareersPittsburghPrivate for-profit241
Fortis Institute - Forty FortForty FortPrivate for-profit221
Somerset County Technology CenterSomersetPublic191
Miller - Motte College - Berks Technical Institute - LewisburgLewisburgPrivate for-profit151
Rosedale Technical CollegePittsburghPrivate not-for-profit141

What bus drivers, school earn in Pennsylvania

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Pennsylvania
$47,530
Mean annual
$48,170
Jobs in state
23,670
What the range looks like
10th pct$34,950Median$47,53090th pct$60,660
Versus the national median
-0.8%

U.S. median $47,920. Pennsylvania pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
1.51×

Concentrated here: Pennsylvania employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.

Metro areas in Pennsylvania

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$51,960median
8,980 jobs
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ
$49,770median
1,100 jobs
Williamsport, PA
$46,420median
150 jobs
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA
$48,150median
1,480 jobs
State College, PA
$45,660median
210 jobs
Reading, PA
$47,330median
970 jobs
Pittsburgh, PA
$46,840median
5,570 jobs
Lancaster, PA
$46,590median
1,080 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+0.2%
Little or no change
Openings per year
61,000
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
900
387,300 → 388,200
Typical entry education
High school diploma or equivalent
Plus short-term on-the-job training

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Bus Drivers, School page.

How to become a Bus Driver, School

Job zone 2 of 5 · SVP Below 6.0
Typical entry education
High school diploma or equivalent
On-the-job training
Short-term on-the-job training

Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.

Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.

Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.

Top skills

MonitoringActive ListeningCritical ThinkingSpeakingReading ComprehensionWriting

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Pennsylvania

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 1 majors mapped to Bus Drivers, School1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 49.0205Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor

Common questions

Answers for people weighing bus drivers, school programs in Pennsylvania.

What degree do you need to become a Bus Driver, School?+

High school diploma or equivalent is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Truck and Bus Driver/Commercial Vehicle Operator and Instructor, which awarded 1,075 degrees in Pennsylvania in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Bus Driver, School?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Ground Transportation. Together they graduate about 1,075 people a year in Pennsylvania.

How much do bus drivers, school earn in Pennsylvania?+

The median is $47,530 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 0.8% below the U.S. median of $47,920. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for bus drivers, school growing?+

BLS projects a +0.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 61,000 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Pennsylvania?+

16 institutions in Pennsylvania reported graduates from at least one of the 1 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do bus drivers, school work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Bus Driver, School Bus Driver, Public School Bus Driver, SPED Bus Driver (Special Education Bus Driver) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 53-3051.

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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