Education careers are among the most rewarding and influential paths you can chose. Those working in education don’t just help children learn and grow, but they ensure that our country has a ready supply of talented, well-trained people to keep things moving for years to come. Teaching is perhaps the most common route to take, but there are a range of other education careers in the field you can explore.
Education Careers Start with the Right Degree
Education Career Paths
Teaching careers are what most people think of first when they think of education. We all have teachers from our childhood we remember: the ones who challenged us, who inspired us, who made us who we are today. Teachers can educate children in elementary, middle, or high school, helping mold young people during their formative years. Or, they can make the leap to postsecondary education and become professors and college instructors. Whatever level they teach, they perform a vital duty for students everywhere.
Education administrators are the behind-the-scenes workers who make sure all the i’s are dotted and the t’s are crossed so that educational institutions can function on a day-to-day basis. Educational administrators include deans, principles, assistant principles, and the administrative assistants who help make sure schools meet national, state, and local standards.
Librarians, curators, and archivists act as stewards for the information that students of all ages learn from. They’re each specialists in their own realm: librarians make it easier for students to perform research by helping them to find books and resources. Curators maintain museum and gallery collections, and offer their expertise to anyone seeking to learn more about their specialty. And archivists help to build museum and gallery collections, using their knowledge of a field to determine which information and records qualify for retention and should become part of the collections.
Salaries for Education Careers
Educational salaries vary from position to position, and also tend to vary within jobs. Geographic location, experience, training, and many other factors will contribute to the earning potential of educational workers.
Teachers nationwide generally earn a median salary between $47,000-51,000, depending on the age level of the students they teach. According to the American Federation of Teachers, teachers with a bachelor’s degree just starting their careers can expect to earn an average of around $33,000. Teachers can often increase their earnings by taking on additional responsibilities, such as coordinating extracurricular activities or coaching sports teams. Teachers with master’s degrees or national certifications can also boost their earnings potential.
Administrators’ salaries, too, will vary depending on the level at which they work. High school principles, for example, earn an average salary of around $97,000, while elementary school principles earn an average closer to $85,000. Assistant principles have a similar range: those working in high schools earn an average of $79,000, those in elementary schools, $71,000. In post-secondary settings, salaries are even higher: academic deans earn averages between $92,000 to $150,000, depending on the department they chair.
Librarians, curators, and archivists follow similar trends. The nationwide median income for librarians is around $52,000. Librarians working in local libraries can expect to earn around $47,000; those working at junior colleges, closer to $55,000; and librarians working under the federal government can expect to earn over $84,000 per year. Archivists and curators earn a median salary of around $47,000, and most can expect to earn between $35,000 and $65,000. As with librarians, those working for federal government libraries and collections can expect to earn a great deal more, with the median salary for government curators being just above $90,000.
Degrees for Education Careers
Education for education – sounds redundant, doesn’t it? But the simple fact of the matter is that you can’t work in education if you’re not educated yourself..
Teachers need a bachelor’s degree, and some states require a master’s degree to teach at the high school level. All states require teachers to be certified in the subject and grade level at which they teach, and the maintenance of those certifications often requires continuing education, so that teachers can stay current on their subjects. And as noted before, teachers with a higher level of education can expect higher pay.
College professors and instructors almost always need to have a PhD in order to teach at the university level. In some cases, those holding master’s degrees can fill part-time and adjunct positions, but job prospects will be best for those holding doctorate degrees.
Administrative positions are very similar to their teaching counterparts, as principles, assistant principles, and deans are often former teachers and professors. As such, many hold master’s degrees and doctorates, respectively. Some states require their secondary educational administrators to hold master’s degrees in educational administration, as well, and all states have licensing requirements for elementary, middle, and high school administrators.
Librarians, curators, and archivists often hold graduate degrees. Most states require librarians working in public schools to hold master’s degrees in library science (MLS), and most require their librarians to be licensed, as well. Likewise, archivists and curators often need to have graduate degrees in order to have the best possible understanding of the field in which they specialize: archivists, in particular, must be well-trained in order to be able to recognize and appreciate the pieces they’re sorting and maintaining.
Featured Degrees in Education
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Schools and Degree Information in Education
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Outlook for Education Careers
In the future, the educational field will continue to grow along with the population.
Teachers can expect their job prospects to grow about as fast as the nationwide average for all occupations. However, those teachers certified in math, science, and languages should see better chances for employment than others.
Administrators, likewise, will see growth about on par with the national average, but prospects for administrators may be slightly better than for teachers, only because the average age of school administrators is much higher, and retirements are expected to rise. However, as noted before, in order to become a school administrator or university dean, one must first put in years as a teacher or professor.
Librarians will see their available positions grow by about eight percent in the coming decade, but, like with administrators, will see favorable opportunities due to the average age of the workforce: more librarians will be retiring than there will be new blood to replace them. On the other hand, curators and archivists will see growth in their position much higher than the national average, but competition for these positions will continue to be fierce – another reason to pursue advanced degrees in order to make one’s self as competitive as possible.
