Also called: Dramatist, Librettist
Writes plays and musical theater scripts, revising them through readings and rehearsals with theaters, and often teaches or writes for TV too.
A playwright revises a script after a public reading, sits in rehearsals, and rewrites scenes that are not working. Most also teach or write for TV to pay the bills between productions.
Very variable; most also teach or write for TV.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Master's degree, about 6 years after high school. MFA in playwriting common.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Playwriting, English.
Growing about average. Competitive.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI drafts dialogue fast, but writing original plays with a strong voice for live theater stays human, and pay stays thin.
Classes: Creative writing, English literature, Theater, History.
Official data: O*NET occupation 27-3043.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.