---
title: "Will AI Replace Training and Development Specialists?"
description: "BLS rates training and development specialists' exposure to AI as very high. What that means, which parts of the work AI touches, and the 2025–2035…"
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-training-and-development-specialists"
last-updated: "2026-10-15T08:19:32.066Z"
---

# Will AI Replace Training and Development Specialists? (2026)

**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 faster than average.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places training and development specialists in its very high AI exposure category, among the occupations most exposed to current AI. BLS projects employment to change by +10.8% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 46,000 openings a year.

| Measure | Value | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BLS relative AI exposure | Very high | BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories |
| NueCareer AI-resilience score | 35/100 | NueCareer analysis of O\*NET 31.0 Database |
| Projected employment change | +10.8% | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Openings a year | 46,000 | BLS EP 2025–2035 |
| Median annual wage | $69,280 | BLS OEWS May 2025 |

## Exposure categories

| BLS category | Occupations |
| --- | --- |
| Low | 203 |
| Moderate | 194 |
| High | 190 |
| Very high (this job) | 199 |

Exposure means AI could be or has been used to assist with or complete some of the work. BLS says it does not imply job loss, productivity gains, automation probability or wage effects. Method: https://www.bls.gov/emp/publications/ai-exposure-categories.htm

## What holds up

- Coaching and developing others: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Face-to-face discussions: 4.4/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Training and teaching others: 4.6/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)

## What AI reaches first

- Processing information: 3.8/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Email: 5.0/5 (O\*NET work context)
- Working with computers: 4.0/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)
- Getting information: 4.3/5 (O\*NET work activity importance)

## O\*NET tasks

- Present information with a variety of instructional techniques or formats, such as role playing, simulations, team exercises, group discussions, videos, or lectures.
- Obtain, organize, or develop training procedure manuals, guides, or course materials, such as handouts or visual materials.
- Evaluate modes of training delivery, such as in-person or virtual, to optimize training effectiveness, training costs, or environmental impacts.
- Design, plan, organize, or direct orientation and training programs for employees or customers.
- Develop alternative training methods if expected improvements are not seen.
- Keep up with developments in area of expertise by reading current journals, books, or magazine articles.

## Related careers less exposed to AI than training and development specialists

- [Farm Labor Contractor](https://nuecareer.com/careers/farm-labor-contractor): BLS exposure Low, median $58,460
- [Career/Technical Education Teacher, Secondary School](https://nuecareer.com/careers/career-technical-education-teacher-secondary-school): BLS exposure High, median $66,270; [Will AI replace cte teachers?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-cte-teachers)
- [Fitness and Wellness Coordinator](https://nuecareer.com/careers/fitness-and-wellness-coordinator): BLS exposure High, median $69,770
- [Meeting, Convention, and Event Planner](https://nuecareer.com/careers/meeting-convention-and-event-planner): BLS exposure High, median $61,160; [Will AI replace meeting?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-meeting)
- [Insurance Appraiser, Auto Damage](https://nuecareer.com/careers/insurance-appraiser-auto-damage): BLS exposure High, median $78,240
- [Fundraiser](https://nuecareer.com/careers/fundraiser): BLS exposure High, median $72,550; [Will AI replace fundraisers?](https://nuecareer.com/careers/will-ai-replace-fundraisers)

## FAQ

**Will AI replace training and development specialists?**

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 faster than average. 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 +10.8% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 46,000 openings a year.

**How exposed are training and development specialists to AI?**

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Training and Development Specialists 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 a training and development specialist'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, email and working with computers. The parts that hold up best are coaching and developing others, face-to-face discussions and establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships. These come from O\*NET ratings of how important each activity is to the job, read through NueCareer's AI-resilience method.

**Is being a training and development specialist a safe career from AI?**

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O\*NET work activities, training and development specialists score 35 out of 100, higher than 31% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $69,280 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 training and development specialists are less exposed to AI?**

Farm Labor Contractor (low exposure, $58,460 median), Career/Technical Education Teacher, Secondary School (high exposure, $66,270 median), Fitness and Wellness Coordinator (high exposure, $69,770 median), Meeting, Convention, and Event Planner (high exposure, $61,160 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than training and development specialists, and most are listed by O\*NET as related to the work.

Full profile: https://nuecareer.com/careers/training-and-development-specialist.

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This bank 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 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology