Best programs to become an animal trainer in Virginia
2 Virginia schools offer programs that train animal trainers, graduating 16 people a year. Animal trainers in Virginia earn a median of $62,960 across about 720 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
You do not need a college degree to become an animal trainer. The field of study that leads most directly to this job in Virginia is Equestrian/Equine Studies (IPEDS completions). BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education.
Train animals for riding, harness, security, performance, or obedience, or for assisting persons with disabilities. Accustom animals to human voice and contact, and condition animals to respond to commands.
1 program in Virginia that leads to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Virginia (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 Virginia page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 01.0507In Virginia → | 16 | 100.0% | 2 | $27,363 | $15,774 |
Top 2 schools in Virginia
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 0 of the 2 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emory & Henry University Emory, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder program | 13 | Equestrian/Equine Studies | — | 56% | $20,446 | 84% |
| 2 | Averett University Danville, VA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder program | 3 | Equestrian/Equine Studies | — | 48% | $23,171 | 57% |
All 2 schools in Virginia
Every school in Virginia 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.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emory & Henry University | Emory | Private not-for-profit | 13 | 1 |
| Averett University | Danville | Private not-for-profit | 3 | 1 |
Fields of study in Virginia that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
What animal trainers earn in Virginia
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $39,990. Virginia pays above the national figure.
Concentrated here: Virginia employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Metro areas in Virginia
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
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 and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Animal Trainers page.
How to become an animal trainer
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Virginia
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 3 majors mapped to Animal Trainers3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 01.0505Animal Training
- 01.0507Equestrian/Equine Studies
- 30.3401Anthrozoology
Common questions
Answers for people weighing animal trainers programs in Virginia.
What degree do you need to become an animal trainer?+
You do not need a college degree to become an animal trainer. The field of study that leads most directly to this job in Virginia is Equestrian/Equine Studies (IPEDS completions). BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education.
Which college majors lead to becoming an animal trainer?+
The field of study that leads most directly to this job in Virginia is Equestrian/Equine Studies (IPEDS completions). In all, 1 feeder program graduates about 16 people a year in Virginia (IPEDS completions).
How much do animal trainers earn in Virginia?+
The median is $62,960 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 57.4% above the U.S. median of $39,990. 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 animal trainers growing?+
BLS projects a +5.1% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, faster than average, with roughly 7,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Virginia?+
2 institutions in Virginia reported graduates from at least one of the 1 program 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 animal trainers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Trainer, Dog Trainer, Horse Trainer, Guide Dog Mobility Instructor (GDMI) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 39-2011.
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 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected 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 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, 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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