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School Bus Monitors

People classed as School Bus Monitors maintain order among students on a school bus. Interest ratings put Social on top at 5.3 out of 7 and Conventional second, so the code is SCR and the day leans toward helping, teaching or caring for people. The preparation level is some preparation, typically a few months to a year of learning on the job. O*NET’s skill data points to monitoring, speaking, and social perceptiveness as the ones to build. You may also need to buckle seatbelts or fasten wheelchair tie-down straps to secure passengers for transportation. If you want helping, teaching or caring for people, keep it on your list. If you need research, analysis and working through hard problems, it may feel thin.

What they do

Maintain order among students on a school bus. Duties include helping students safely board and exit and communicating behavioral problems. May perform pretrip and posttrip inspections and prepare for and assist in emergency evacuations.

Main tasks

  • Buckle seatbelts or fasten wheelchair tie-down straps to secure passengers for transportation.
  • Escort young children across roads or highways.
  • Assist children with disabilities or children with psychological, emotional, or behavioral issues with boarding and exiting the school bus.
  • Monitor the conduct of students to maintain discipline and safety.
  • Evacuate students from the school bus in emergency situations.
  • Direct students boarding and exiting the school bus.

Skills

  • Monitoring
  • Speaking
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Service Orientation
  • Active Listening
  • Judgment and Decision Making

Who this career fits

May suit you if

  • You get energy from helping other people move forward.
  • You like clear rules and getting the details right.
  • You want to start work after a short stretch of training.
  • You are comfortable relying on monitoring and speaking.

May not suit you if

  • You find a full day of dealing with people draining.
  • You want to spend most of your time analyzing and researching. Investigative rates 1.5 out of 7 here.
  • You want a career built on years of advanced study.

Interest profile

O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code SCR takes the three highest, and Social comes first here.

Preparation

Some preparation. Most people start with a high school diploma, then learn from experienced coworkers over a few months to a year.

Also called

  • Bus Aide
  • Bus Assistant
  • Bus Attendant
  • Bus Monitor
  • Bus Paraeducator

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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.