Short answer
AI will reshape this job more than most, but BLS does not forecast it disappearing. The exposure is among the highest BLS measured, yet it still projects employment to grow.
AI and jobs
Will AI Replace Educational? (2026)
The Bureau of Labor Statistics places educational in its very high AI exposure category, among the occupations most exposed to current AI. BLS projects employment to change by +2.9% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 27,800 openings a year.
- BLS AI exposure
- Very highBLS EP supplemental table
- AI-resilience score
- 29/100Higher than 21% of jobs · NueCareer
- Projected change
- +2.9%BLS EP 2025–2035; all jobs 3.5%
- Openings a year
- 27,800BLS EP 2025–2035
The federal measure
How exposed educational are to AI
The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes a relative AI exposure category for each occupation it projects, built from five public measures of where AI could be, or already is, used to assist with or complete the work. Educational land in the very high category: among the occupations most exposed to current AI.
Where this job sits on the BLS scale
786 occupations in the NueCareer bank, in BLS's four relative categories; width shows how many fall in each
- Low203 occupations · 26%
- Moderate194 occupations · 25%
- High190 occupations · 24%
- Very high · this job199 occupations · 25%
Source: BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories supplemental table.
- Exposure is relative. The categories rank occupations against each other; they are not a probability that a job is automated.
- BLS says exposure does not imply job loss, productivity gains, automation probability or wage effects. A highly exposed job can still grow if AI makes the people in it more productive.
- The classification reflects AI capabilities as the underlying studies measured them. Read the BLS method and limitations.
Inside the work
What AI can and cannot do in this job
O*NET rates how important each work activity is to an occupation and how often each working condition comes up. The ratings below are the ones that move the job's NueCareer AI-resilience score the most: the ones that pull it up, and the ones that pull it down. Only ratings clearly above the midpoint count.
What holds up
Physical, hands-on and person-to-person work
- Face-to-face discussions5.0/5O*NET work context, frequency or level
- Establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships4.7/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Assisting and caring for others3.7/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Performing for or working directly with the public3.9/5O*NET work activity, importance
What AI reaches first
Routine, repeatable and screen-based work
- Processing information4.3/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Documenting/recording information4.1/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Working with computers4.4/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Getting information4.8/5O*NET work activity, importance
The tasks O*NET lists for educational
- Attend meetings, educational conferences, and training workshops, and serve on committees.
- Counsel students regarding educational issues, such as course and program selection, class scheduling and registration, school adjustment, truancy, study habits, and career planning.
- Prepare students for later educational experiences by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
- Counsel individuals or groups to help them understand and overcome personal, social, or behavioral problems affecting their educational or vocational situations.
- Provide students with information on topics such as college degree programs and admission requirements, financial aid opportunities, trade and technical schools, and apprenticeship programs.
- Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
O*NET 31.0 Database task statements, most important first.
The jobs
Will there still be jobs?
Exposure says where AI meets the work. The BLS projection says what the labor market is expected to do over 2025–2035. BLS projects +2.9% change in employment over the decade, against 3.5% across all occupations, and about 27,800 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted. About 353,310 people work in the job today, at a median of $64,330 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Options
Related careers less exposed to AI than educational
Careers O*NET lists as related to the work, or in the same field at similar pay, that BLS places in a lower exposure category.
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $60,280median a year
- Growth
- +10.3%
- Openings / yr
- 12,500
- Education
- Master's
- Moderate
- BLS AI exposure
- 35/100
- resilience
Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs.
Healthcare Social Worker
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $67,880median a year
- Growth
- +8.5%
- Openings / yr
- 16,900
- Education
- Master's
- High
- BLS AI exposure
- 45/100
- resilience
Provide individuals, families, and groups with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses.
Career/Technical Education Teacher, Middle School
Educational Instruction and Library
- Median pay
- $65,030median a year
- Growth
- −0.5%
- Openings / yr
- 1,000
- Education
- Bachelor's
- High
- BLS AI exposure
- 43/100
- resilience
Teach occupational, vocational, career, or technical subjects to students at the middle, intermediate, or junior high school level.
School Social Worker
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $59,550median a year
- Growth
- +4.4%
- Openings / yr
- 33,900
- Education
- Bachelor's
- High
- BLS AI exposure
- 41/100
- resilience
Provide social services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children and their families and to maximize the family well-being and the academic functioning of children.
Probation Officer and Correctional Treatment Specialist
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $66,270median a year
- Growth
- +3.0%
- Openings / yr
- 7,900
- Education
- Bachelor's
- High
- BLS AI exposure
- 39/100
- resilience
Provide social services to assist in rehabilitation of law offenders in custody or on probation or parole.
Social and Human Service Assistant
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $45,930median a year
- Growth
- +7.4%
- Openings / yr
- 48,900
- Education
- High school
- High
- BLS AI exposure
- 38/100
- resilience
Assist other social and human service providers in providing client services in a wide variety of fields, such as psychology, rehabilitation, or social work, including support for families.
Questions
Will AI Replace Educational? FAQ
Will AI replace educational?
AI will reshape this job more than most, but BLS does not forecast it disappearing. The exposure is among the highest BLS measured, yet it still projects employment to grow. BLS defines exposure as AI being able to assist with or complete some of the work, and says it does not imply job loss, productivity gains or wage effects. BLS projects employment to change by +2.9% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 27,800 openings a year.
How exposed are educational to AI?
BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Educational are in the very high category, alongside 198 other occupations. The categories combine five public measures of where AI could be or already is used, and they compare occupations with each other rather than giving an absolute risk.
What parts of an educational, guidance, and career counselor and advisor's job can AI do?
In O*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are processing information, documenting/recording information and working with computers. The parts that hold up best are face-to-face discussions, establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships and assisting and caring for others. These come from O*NET ratings of how important each activity is to the job, read through NueCareer's AI-resilience method.
Is being an educational, guidance, and career counselor and advisor a safe career from AI?
On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O*NET work activities, educational score 29 out of 100, higher than 21% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $64,330 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). No job is fully safe from technological change, but the federal exposure category and the projected openings are the two numbers worth weighing.
What careers similar to educational are less exposed to AI?
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker (moderate exposure, $60,280 median), Healthcare Social Worker (high exposure, $67,880 median), Career/Technical Education Teacher, Middle School (high exposure, $65,030 median), School Social Worker (high exposure, $59,550 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than educational, and most are listed by O*NET as related to the work.
The AI exposure category is the Bureau of Labor Statistics'. The AI-resilience score and the activity breakdown are NueCareer's analysis of O*NET 31.0 Database data (method), not a federal figure. More: jobs most exposed to AI, jobs least exposed to AI, or check any job.