Careers for Teachers outside of Classroom

so, my wife is pretty fed up with teaching, as it's become nothing more than glorified babysitting....at least in LA Unified. Teachers hands are tied when it comes to discipline and "No Child Left Behind" is problematic at best

therefore she's thinking of changing careers while she still young

at first she thought about going to FIDM for visual communication or product development, which are supposedly their 2 "biggest growing areas" in terms of job opps......the drawback is after we looked around for related job listings, it seems to be a hard industry to get into. and if she finishes FIDM and goes back to teaching, then there's a waste of a year and $20,000+

I suggested going back for an MBA, rather than an education related Masters which she was already considering. Plus she could still teach and go to school at nite, whereas FIDM she'd have to stop teaching since their classes are all daytime.

Any former teachers out there who got out of the classroom? If so, what did you change fields to? Are there any good outside-class related options for teachers within the education field?

My girlfriend is in a similiar situation. She is fed up with NCL and the pay. She has a Master in Childrens Education/Reading already but is going back to get her M.L.S. (Master in Library Science).

what kind of careers are available with an M.L.S.? my laymen's PoV says that libraries are a dying breed and jobs related to it would be on the verge of obsolescence.

Originally Posted by Get Smart

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what kind of careers are available with an M.L.S.? my laymen's PoV says that libraries are a dying breed and jobs related to it would be on the verge of obsolescence.

I do not think Libraries are going anywhere they are simply shifting focus, to provide different services. Her degree is focus on technology and how it will be intergrated into the Library in the future.

^^ that makes sense.

my wife was originally thinking of something similar, curricular development w/an emphasis on technology. but that would still put her in the education system, which I think she wants out of completely at this point

Specialized and targeted private tutoring is an option. It takes time to establish the business, but it can be very profitable if done correctly.

My lady has an MLS--there are a number of opportunities for managing electronic records/systems (for the tech inclined), working at archives (private or govt), working at university libraries, etc.

Pay isn't great, but it's not terrible in many cases, and if she was a teacher anyway, cash money is probably not her life's goal.

There was a goofy NY Times piece on hip librarians last year.

How did such a nerdy profession become cool "” aside from the fact that a certain amount of nerdiness is now cool? Many young librarians and library professors said that the work is no longer just about books but also about organizing and connecting people with information, including music and movies.

And though many librarians say that they, like nurses or priests, are called to the profession, they also say the job is stable, intellectually stimulating and can have reasonable hours "” perfect for creative types who want to pursue their passions outside of work and don't want to finance their pursuits by waiting tables. (The median salary for librarians was about $51,000 in 2006, according to the American Library Association-Allied Professional Organization.)

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Sorry for the diversion if Mrs. Smart isn't into it.

Shore, that might be right up her alley....thanks (and Jpier) for the library angle she has "hip librarian" style as it is

Originally Posted by feynmix

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Specialized and targeted private tutoring is an option. It takes time to establish the business, but it can be very profitable if done correctly.

she has a side job tutoring (after school hours and saturdays)....tutoring seems like a difficult business to get it off the ground, unless you have some severely good pedigree behind you (like winning some "teacher of year" award). and in some ways tutors are a luxury expense for the parents, so not sure how that'd work out when the economy is on the downturn.

But I imagine it can be very profitable, key being "done correctly"

My brother is in the same boat, as he is really getting tired of the government ******* up schools; he is going back to school for pharmacy. I only see schools getting much much worse if Obama is elected, and his plans to enhance public eduaction.

I quit teaching and got a law degree.

If she was an early childhood teacher, she could look into Developmental Therapy. Qualifications vary from state to state and she may already have the education courses to be a therapist. In Illinois, you can be an independent developmental therapist and bill the state for your services (last I knew of, therapist's billing fee is $50/hour.) Can work as many hours as you like, as there is no shortage of services needed.

the manager of our presales department is a former teacher in the Teach for America program. but i guess he got fed up teaching in the Compton Unified School District. he basically started as a presales engineer and worked his way up. really smart and just an all around nice guy. i have no doubt that he'll make VP one of these days. we're a software company.

your gf would have to enjoy working with technology. but a lot of what i imagine he did in the classroom is transferable to a presales job whether it's one on one consultations with clients on developing software solutions for them or putting together course material for a class on learning the software.

-Jeff

Originally Posted by Get Smart

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Shore, that might be right up her alley....thanks (and Jpier) for the library angle she has "hip librarian" style as it is

If it worked for MJK... Seriously though, it sucks to hear that about the wife. One of my best buds spent the better part of three years sub teaching down in San Diego waiting for a spot to open up down there or anywhere near LA. Finally after dealing with all that **** he ended up around Watts and his words to describe his profession were eerily similar to yours: glorified babysitting. It's one thing to kid around about it but he became really depressed with the reality of working as hard as he had to end up at a place that he absolutely hated and in a profession that didn't look as bright as he had dreamed. Now he's looking into LAFD/LAPD... That just sucks to have to change your plans around like that.

ok my experience is Australia-based, but I guess it may be applicable.

I have a couple of friends in that field who also got sick of classroom life and applied their skills to other areas. One went and got her masters, and then moved more into the governmental policy/curriculum end. Completely different skillset, and a lot of challenges, however she enjoys her role at helping make the rules that she believes in rather than being in a classroom and enforcing rules that she has no faith in.

Another friend - who was an elementary school teacher - went back and got qualified as a special-needs-kid educator. She finds working with the disabled kids very rewarding, found the legislative conditions around the education curriculum far less binding, and enjoys it immensely. The pay was apparently a lot better too.