Ten Employment Alternatives for Teachers

So you’ve got your teaching degree and now you can’t find a job.  Or maybe you graduated a while ago and are thinking about heading back to work after raising children.  Whatever the case, you’re finding that getting the dream job is easier said than done, and if you’re like the rest of us, you need a paycheck and you need it soon.  Let’s do some out-of-the-box thinking together.  What can teachers do besides work in classrooms?

As a teacher, you have a lot of skills that you should delineate on your resume.  Consider how well you organize information, use a computer, and communicate.  Think about how you can delegate responsibility, motivate others, and lead committees.  You have all of these skills and more!  Make an inventory and find a way to present these skills in a new light.  They just might be the key to getting started in a new position.  They might even be the key to convincing a prospective employer to CREATE a new position, just for you!

Be a Tutor

This one has worked for me for years.  I run my own business helping students of all ages who are struggling with academics.  I’ve built a pretty specific niche here in my community: special education teacher helping struggling readers.  What could you tutor?  Look at your certifications and your degree, and also what you’re good at.  What other training or skills could you bring to the table?  Get started by doing a bit of advertising.  You can let it be known at schools (the main offices and the guidance department) that you are available.  Put signs on the local community bulletin boards and leave business cards at the local library if you can.  Toss up a website and try to connect with local clients, or, like I’ve done, develop an online tutoring business. 

You can also seek employment with any of the local, regional or national tutoring firms.  Look in the phone book to see which are operating in your area and head over to apply!

Consider Alternative Venues

We don’t often think of it, but there are other entities that employ teachers besides schools.  Nearly every county has a juvenile detention center and many areas have residential mental health treatment facilities for children.  These businesses hire teachers to oversee the children’s academic progress.  Private and parochial schools are worth a look, too.  Libraries, community colleges, and alternative education programs also hire teachers.  There are even some large companies that employ teachers to do remedial work with employees that need to improve academic skills to try for GEDs or college classes as a condition of employment.

Look at NonProfit Agencies

There are many agencies that work with children and hire teachers to do related jobs.  Check out the local YM or YWCA, Scouting organizations, and the Cooperative Extension (4H people).  Check with Junior Achievement’s local office, too.  You might not be teaching what you are trained to do, but these programs all have curriculum they try to share with children.  Every region around the United States has a Child Care Resource and Referral Agency, as well, and they often hire teachers to help with provider and community education programs.

Try Adult Education

Teaching adults is not as scary as it sounds, and you might be able to develop a career as a trainer/workshop facilitator.  Check with organizations that train other adults to work with children, like the Y, parenting groups, child care resource and referral agencies, and churches.  Design some one and two hour workshops that parents will benefit from and volunteer your services to community agencies for a limited amount of time.  Once they see what a stellar presenter you are, you might be able to parlay your skills and reputation into a career path.

Check the Library

Smaller libraries might be willing to take a look at your special mix of skills, especially in the children’s department.  You know a lot about books, reading, libraries, and research, right?  You also know about managing children in groups and about the development of knowledge.  The library might be the perfect place to work.

Can You Write Grants?

If writing is one of your fortes (and it is for many of us educators), see if you can write grants.  It’s pretty easy to transfer your understanding of educational goals and objectives to the grant writing process.  Grant-making organizations are basically looking for well-written pieces that clearly communicate manageable goals and objectives, and we’re good at writing those.  Offer your services to small nonprofit agencies that work with children and see if you’re good at this.

Think Small

Small as in young children.  Particularly if you have an elementary education degree, consider stopping into local preschool and child care facilities to look for work.  In many states, lead teachers need an Early Childhood degree, but assistants do not. 

Visit the Community Mental Health Agency

Part of rehabilitation can be education.  Many have educational programs for recovering addicts and others with mental health issues to improve their academic skills.  You might be able to offer hope to many less fortunate than yourself. 

Go to Goodwill, the Salvation Army, or the Homeless Shelter

These agencies also work with persons who have limitations or limited opportunities.  Their mission often includes helping people find employment and one key to employment is education.  You might be someone’s ticket to a better life!

Try Group Homes and Respite Care Agencies

Group homes care for adults and children who need family but can’t stay with their own.  Respite care agencies offer short term assistance to families caring for adults or children with disabilities.  Both often hire teachers to assist. 

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Perhaps the most important thing to remember in your job search is that you have a host of marketable skills.  As a teacher, you are a highly-trained individual.  You also have a lot of internal characteristics that make you a strong candidate for many different kinds of jobs.  You’re not limited to working for the city school system! 

So go out there and get ‘em, Tiger!  There’s a place where your talents, skills and abilities will be appreciated and desired.  All you have to do is go find it.