Average Student Development Specialist Salary in Los Angeles, United States for 2025

In this article, we will look at the average Student Development Specialist salary for 2025 in Los Angeles and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the United States dollar. To keep things simple, we are using the USD currency code instead of the currency symbol $.

How Much Does a Student Development Specialist Make in Los Angeles?

A Student Development Specialist working in Los Angeles will typically earn around 107,300 USD per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 54,200 USD to the highest average salary of 161,300 USD.

Average Annual Salary107,300 USD
Average Monthly Salary8,941 USD
Average Lowest Salary54,200 USD
Lowest Monthly Salary4,516 USD
Average Highest Salary161,300 USD
Highest Monthly Salary13,441 USD

These are average salaries for a Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Student Development Specialist to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Student Development Specialist salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Student Development Specialist Salaries in Los Angeles

So we've looked at the average salaries a Student Development Specialist will earn in Los Angeles. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Student Development Specialist can earn between 54,200 USD and 161,300 USD on average in Los Angeles. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles is 103,600 USD. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 103,600 USD, and 50% of the population earn more than 103,600 USD.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Student Development Specialist salary in Los Angeles, 25% of the population are earning less than 69,700 USD while 75% of the population earn more than 69,700 USD.

75% of the population earn less than 128,200 USD, and 25% of the population earn more than 128,200 USD.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Student Development Specialist Salary by Experience Level in Los Angeles

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average Student Development Specialist salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 61,700 USD.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Student Development Specialist salary would increase to 84,800 USD.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Student Development Specialist, the average salary would be 109,700 USD.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 130,400 USD.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Student Development Specialist with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 146,700 USD.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Student Development Specialist with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 153,800 USD.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years-
61,700 USD
2-5 Years+34%
84,800 USD
5-10 Years+30%
109,700 USD
10-15 Years+21%
130,400 USD
15-20 Years+9%
146,700 USD
20+ Years+5%
153,800 USD

Student Development Specialist Salary by Education Level in Los Angeles

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • Bachelor's Degree. A Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 80,000 USD.
  • Master's Degree. A Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles with a master's degree education can earn an average salary of 99,700 USD.
  • PhD. A Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles with a phd education can earn an average salary of 160,700 USD.

Average Salary by Education Chart

Bachelor's Degree-
80,000 USD
Master's Degree+24%
99,700 USD
PhD+60%
160,700 USD

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in United States is around 39,500 to 118,000 USD and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Student Development Specialist Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Los Angeles, a male student development specialist will earn an average of 87,900 USD, while a female student development specialist will earn around 91,700 USD.

This means that a male student development specialist earns approximately 4% less than a female student development specialist for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Los Angeles

Male-
87,900 USD
Female+4%
91,700 USD

Student Development Specialist Average Pay Raise in Los Angeles

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles is around 10% every 17 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in United States is around 8% every 16 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 10 ÷ 17 ) × 12  = 7%

What this means is that a Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 7% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Los Angeles for 2025

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in United States.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking-
4%
Energy-
8%
Information Technology-
3%
Healthcare-
7%
Travel-
2%
Construction-
6%
Education-
1%

Student Development Specialist Bonus and Incentive Rates in Los Angeles

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Student Development Specialist is a low bonus based job, with 33% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

67% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 0% to 4%.

Received Bonus-
33%
No Bonus-
67%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in United States earn approximately 6% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector-
98,800 USD
Private Sector-6%
93,100 USD

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Student Development Specialist

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Student Development Specialist in Los Angeles.

Job TitleCategorySalary
Academic AdvisorTeaching / Education100,700 USD
Academic AssistantTeaching / Education71,700 USD
Academic CoachTeaching / Education102,700 USD
Academic LibrarianTeaching / Education73,500 USD
Academic ManagerTeaching / Education116,400 USD
Academic SpecialistTeaching / Education90,000 USD
Academic StaffTeaching / Education81,200 USD
AccompanistTeaching / Education88,400 USD
Achievement CoachTeaching / Education95,400 USD
Admissions SpecialistTeaching / Education94,100 USD
Agricultural Sciences TeacherTeaching / Education76,000 USD
Anthropology TeacherTeaching / Education79,700 USD
Arabic Language TeacherTeaching / Education74,100 USD
Archeology TeacherTeaching / Education80,000 USD
Architecture TeacherTeaching / Education88,700 USD
ArchivistTeaching / Education69,700 USD
Art TeacherTeaching / Education78,200 USD
Assistant School PrincipalTeaching / Education105,800 USD
Assistant TeacherTeaching / Education67,500 USD
Biochemistry Professor Teaching / Education146,700 USD
Biology TeacherTeaching / Education85,100 USD
Bursary Scheme ManagerTeaching / Education94,000 USD
Business TeacherTeaching / Education87,700 USD
Careers AdvisorTeaching / Education100,200 USD
Careers ConsultantTeaching / Education102,700 USD
Chemistry TeacherTeaching / Education73,800 USD
Child Care CoordinatorTeaching / Education79,000 USD
Child Care WorkerTeaching / Education67,800 USD
Childcare WorkerTeaching / Education66,400 USD
Classroom AssistantTeaching / Education67,300 USD
Clinical School PsychologistTeaching / Education121,800 USD
College AideTeaching / Education99,100 USD
College DeanTeaching / Education184,700 USD
College PresidentTeaching / Education177,100 USD
College and Career Readiness SpecialistTeaching / Education107,700 USD
Communications TeacherTeaching / Education80,400 USD
Community Education OfficerTeaching / Education71,000 USD
Computer Science TeacherTeaching / Education80,400 USD
Computer TeacherTeaching / Education74,600 USD
Creative Writing TrainerTeaching / Education98,900 USD
Credit CounselorTeaching / Education102,700 USD
Cultural Studies TeacherTeaching / Education76,900 USD
Curriculum CoordinatorTeaching / Education93,600 USD
Curriculum DeveloperTeaching / Education107,700 USD
Curriculum SpecialistTeaching / Education105,800 USD
Dean of FacultyTeaching / Education175,200 USD
DemonstratorTeaching / Education72,400 USD
Deputy Controller of ExaminationsTeaching / Education96,800 USD
Director of Learning TechnologyTeaching / Education114,600 USD
Distance Learning CoordinatorTeaching / Education86,100 USD
EFL TeacherTeaching / Education78,500 USD
ESL TeacherTeaching / Education83,300 USD
Economics LecturerTeaching / Education139,100 USD
Economics TeacherTeaching / Education84,200 USD
Education AdministratorTeaching / Education91,200 USD
Education AssistantTeaching / Education74,100 USD
Education Assistant DirectorTeaching / Education103,600 USD
Education Assistant LibrarianTeaching / Education58,700 USD
Education Assistant PrincipalTeaching / Education89,300 USD
Education Assistant ProfessorTeaching / Education116,400 USD
Education AssociateTeaching / Education76,800 USD
Education ConsultantTeaching / Education96,400 USD
Education ConsultantTeaching / Education108,200 USD
Education CoordinatorTeaching / Education83,300 USD
Education CounselorTeaching / Education95,500 USD
Education DirectorTeaching / Education146,900 USD
Education Program SpecialistTeaching / Education102,700 USD
Education ResearcherTeaching / Education118,900 USD
Education Resource SpecialistTeaching / Education83,100 USD
Education Services FacilitatorTeaching / Education92,300 USD
Educational PsychologistTeaching / Education127,600 USD
Elementary School TeacherTeaching / Education67,600 USD
Engineering LecturerTeaching / Education141,000 USD
Engineering TeacherTeaching / Education108,200 USD
English TeacherTeaching / Education71,900 USD
Faculty AssistantTeaching / Education103,600 USD
Foreign Language TeacherTeaching / Education70,000 USD
GED TeacherTeaching / Education75,500 USD
Geography TeacherTeaching / Education78,500 USD
Head of Mathematics DepartmentTeaching / Education109,700 USD
Head of SchoolTeaching / Education138,700 USD
High School TeacherTeaching / Education84,900 USD
History TeacherTeaching / Education80,200 USD
Infant TeacherTeaching / Education59,200 USD
Instructional AssistantTeaching / Education81,300 USD
InstructorTeaching / Education92,100 USD
Kindergarten TeacherTeaching / Education66,900 USD
Language Instructor For ExpatriateTeaching / Education65,900 USD
Law TeacherTeaching / Education112,700 USD
Learning DesignerTeaching / Education93,100 USD
LecturerTeaching / Education130,500 USD
LibrarianTeaching / Education65,900 USD
Library AssistantTeaching / Education53,300 USD
Library DirectorTeaching / Education95,100 USD
Library SpecialistTeaching / Education71,200 USD
Library TechnicianTeaching / Education64,300 USD
Life Sciences TeacherTeaching / Education78,500 USD
Math LecturerTeaching / Education138,700 USD
Math TeacherTeaching / Education88,500 USD
Mathematics TeacherTeaching / Education93,100 USD
MentorTeaching / Education87,600 USD
Middle School TeacherTeaching / Education88,400 USD
Music TeacherTeaching / Education71,700 USD
Nursery ManagerTeaching / Education125,400 USD
Nursery WorkerTeaching / Education49,400 USD
ParaprofessionalTeaching / Education109,000 USD
Physical Education SpecialistTeaching / Education89,400 USD
Physical Education TeacherTeaching / Education71,700 USD
Physics Teacher Teaching / Education87,200 USD
Political Science TeacherTeaching / Education88,400 USD
Post Doctoral ResearcherTeaching / Education119,700 USD
Preschool Education AdministratorTeaching / Education92,000 USD
Preschool TeacherTeaching / Education66,200 USD
Primary School TeacherTeaching / Education74,600 USD
PrincipalTeaching / Education119,700 USD
Product SpecialistTeaching / Education94,100 USD
Professor - AccountingTeaching / Education148,300 USD
Professor - ArchitectureTeaching / Education141,000 USD
Professor - BiologyTeaching / Education140,700 USD
Professor - Business AdministrationTeaching / Education141,000 USD
Professor - Chemical EngineeringTeaching / Education156,200 USD
Professor - ChemistryTeaching / Education142,300 USD
Professor - Civil EngineeringTeaching / Education139,100 USD
Professor - CommunicationTeaching / Education141,000 USD
Professor - Computer ScienceTeaching / Education139,100 USD
Professor - DentistryTeaching / Education146,900 USD
Professor - DramaTeaching / Education141,000 USD
Professor - EconomicsTeaching / Education153,700 USD
Professor - EducationTeaching / Education140,200 USD
Professor - Electrical EngineeringTeaching / Education152,900 USD
Professor - EnglishTeaching / Education140,200 USD
Professor - Environmental EngineeringTeaching / Education140,200 USD
Professor - Foreign LanguagesTeaching / Education134,700 USD
Professor - Geological SciencesTeaching / Education142,300 USD
Professor - HistoryTeaching / Education150,100 USD
Professor - Industrial EngineeringTeaching / Education139,100 USD
Professor - LawTeaching / Education152,700 USD
Professor - Legal SupportTeaching / Education142,100 USD
Professor - Liberal ArtsTeaching / Education138,700 USD
Professor - MarketingTeaching / Education147,900 USD
Professor - MathematicsTeaching / Education153,700 USD
Professor - Mechanical EngineeringTeaching / Education153,700 USD
Professor - Medical AdministrationTeaching / Education160,600 USD
Professor - MedicineTeaching / Education168,700 USD
Professor - MusicTeaching / Education132,000 USD
Professor - NursingTeaching / Education141,000 USD
Professor - Pharmaceutical SciencesTeaching / Education139,100 USD
Professor - PhilosophyTeaching / Education142,300 USD
Professor - Physical TherapyTeaching / Education153,700 USD
Professor - PhysicsTeaching / Education150,100 USD
Professor - PsychologyTeaching / Education140,700 USD
Professor - RehabilitationTeaching / Education132,000 USD
Professor - Social WorkTeaching / Education134,700 USD
Professor - SociologyTeaching / Education138,700 USD
Professor - Special EducationTeaching / Education142,300 USD
Psychology TeacherTeaching / Education119,700 USD
Public Management Assistant ProfessorTeaching / Education116,400 USD
School CounselorTeaching / Education109,000 USD
Science EducatorTeaching / Education79,000 USD
Science Laboratory AssistantTeaching / Education69,600 USD
Science TeacherTeaching / Education79,500 USD
Secondary Mathematics TeacherTeaching / Education81,700 USD
Secondary School TeacherTeaching / Education76,800 USD
Special Education TeacherTeaching / Education83,800 USD
Special Needs AssistantTeaching / Education65,900 USD
Statistics LecturerTeaching / Education142,100 USD
Student Accounts CoordinatorTeaching / Education73,300 USD
Student Employment SpecialistTeaching / Education87,900 USD
Student ServicesTeaching / Education68,200 USD
Student Services CoordinatorTeaching / Education69,700 USD
Student Support ManagerTeaching / Education97,100 USD
Substitute TeacherTeaching / Education67,300 USD
TEFL TeacherTeaching / Education79,000 USD
TeacherTeaching / Education75,500 USD
Teacher AideTeaching / Education61,500 USD
Teacher TrainerTeaching / Education94,200 USD
Teaching AssistantTeaching / Education64,300 USD
Training CoordinatorTeaching / Education77,000 USD
Training and Development SpecialistTeaching / Education105,800 USD
TutorTeaching / Education74,700 USD
University TeacherTeaching / Education138,700 USD
Vocational Education TeacherTeaching / Education79,800 USD
eLearning TrainerTeaching / Education73,100 USD

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in United States, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

CityAverage Salary
Atlanta86,100 USD
Austin107,700 USD
Baltimore92,300 USD
Boston99,600 USD
Bristol76,000 USD
Chicago114,600 USD
Cincinnati84,500 USD
Cleveland78,400 USD
Dallas99,700 USD
Denver100,100 USD
Detroit93,600 USD
Honolulu78,500 USD
Houston107,700 USD
Indianapolis100,100 USD
Iowa City77,000 USD
Jacksonville102,700 USD
Kansas City88,400 USD
Kent76,900 USD
Las Vegas94,100 USD
Long Beach86,600 USD
Memphis95,300 USD
Miami86,100 USD
Minneapolis81,600 USD
New Orleans88,400 USD
New York114,900 USD
Oakland83,400 USD
Oklahoma City97,400 USD
Orlando74,300 USD
Philadelphia105,800 USD
Phoenix107,700 USD
Sacramento91,000 USD
San Antonio102,700 USD
San Diego108,200 USD
San Francisco103,600 USD
San Jose107,700 USD
Seattle99,700 USD
Tampa81,000 USD
Vancouver76,000 USD
Washington D.C.97,900 USD

Salary Comparison by State

The table below includes links to the average salary for each state in United States.

StateAverage Salary
Alabama93,600 USD
Alaska82,300 USD
Arizona94,400 USD
Arkansas97,600 USD
California109,700 USD
Colorado97,400 USD
Connecticut92,100 USD
Delaware83,300 USD
District of Columbia81,400 USD
Florida100,700 USD
Georgia109,000 USD
Hawaii92,400 USD
Idaho90,900 USD
Illinois105,800 USD
Indiana100,300 USD
Iowa89,400 USD
Kansas87,400 USD
Kentucky92,300 USD
Louisiana100,400 USD
Maine89,200 USD
Maryland99,700 USD
Massachusetts100,300 USD
Michigan100,700 USD
Minnesota95,100 USD
Mississippi86,100 USD
Missouri94,300 USD
Montana91,000 USD
Nebraska90,900 USD
Nevada92,100 USD
New Hampshire88,600 USD
New Jersey99,700 USD
New Mexico88,600 USD
New York100,700 USD
North Carolina96,400 USD
North Dakota87,000 USD
Ohio105,800 USD
Oklahoma93,100 USD
Oregon93,300 USD
Pennsylvania103,600 USD
Rhode Island83,400 USD
South Carolina92,100 USD
South Dakota87,400 USD
Tennessee103,600 USD
Texas109,000 USD
Utah88,700 USD
Vermont83,400 USD
Virginia100,100 USD
Washington96,400 USD
West Virginia83,700 USD
Wisconsin100,700 USD
Wyoming86,400 USD

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