Teachers! Some questions for you.

[Chickerdoodle13]

I'm currently a junior in college and I'm not quite sure what I want to do for the rest of my life. I've got one year left and I'm hoping to make some decisions by next year. I've tossed around the ideas of going to med or vet school, but I'm just not sure that my heart is entirely in either of those two things. I have the grades and I love medicine, but I would like a job that allows me to have a life and frankly I'm just sort of tired of school. Grad school is another option, but I'm not quite sure what I would go for. I suppose I could also do a six or twelve month internship after graduating, or I could work until I figure out what I want to do. I know I have time, but there is so much social pressure on knowing what you want to do straight out of college!

Anyways, lately I've been thinking that I might want to teach. Out of college, I will have a degree in Biology with a minor in Business. I would love to teach 5-8 grade science and then possibly move on to something else later in life. Some family members (not my mom or dad, but aunts, uncles, and grandparents) have told me that I would be wasting my intelligence if I went this route and that is certainly not encouraging at all! I have known quite a few people who began as school teachers and moved on to something else. I also have interests in biological and DNA (forensics mostly) research and I figure I could always get a masters degree while teaching and find a job in one of those fields down the road.

If I wanted to go this route, I'm assuming I would need to get a teaching certificate, right? How long does it usually take to get one of these? Is this something I could do at a local college after I've graduated? What else would I have to complete before I could apply as a teacher? Any other advice from teachers or former teachers would be awesome. I've always enjoyed working with children, especially at those ages. I would love to do all sorts of interesting science projects and I have quite the creative side! My mom always wanted to be a teacher, so she is very encouraging. It seems like I would be able to make a sufficient living as a teacher, and still have time and money for my interests and hobbies, as well as a family in the future.

 

[LarryPQ]

OK- I am not a teacher, but I think I put my opinion on your other post

I have a:
BA in English/Creative writing
BS in Business/Accounting
Minor in Business Administration & Management
MBA in Accounting/Project Management

I have sat for the CPA
I have had poems/short stories published.
I like gardening and chickens

I LOVE to write, I LOVE to be creative, but I LOVE that my job as an accountant is always in demand, even by companies going out of business. With the DH unemployed right now, I support my family, the FIL's (and some times my dad's) families on my salary. I don't make a ton of money, the work is a little boring, but it is steady and it pays.

I have also been asked to teach intro accounting at the Grad school.

SO: I would reccomend you go the practical route. Get the lab/medical experience, do your time as a peon, and then when you have a "cushier" job, start teaching--perhaps as a substitute at first. Then you can see if you like it. Teaching is NOT for everyone--many of my friends went that way and are now either unemployed or employed and miserable.

 

[michickenwrangler]

Some universities like my alma mater Saginaw Valley State University offer an "ace" program for people with a bachelor's who want to get certified to teach. It can usually be completed in a year, max. of 2.

Where do you want to be? Some areas have too many teachers, others not enough. Please do not plan on teaching in the Midwest if you are not related to anyone in a school district. I have certified to teach 6-12 Spanish and History in Michigan, but I cannot get a teaching job. I'm a library assistant, great job, but not exactly what I went to college for, It wasn't until AFTER I graduated that my family told me I made a bad choice.

Laree is right. A lot of people get into teaching "to get summers off" but it is a very demanding, stressful job. It is not "8:30 to 3:30" as many believe. You will spend nights and weekends at professional development or correcting papers, summers are spent at professional development and planning for next year. Discipline is harder to achieve than many (including myself) would believe.

If you like biology and science, I would encourage you to look into med school. There will be a huge shortage of doctors in upcoming years, especially OB/GYNs. But again, a stressful and demanding job where you will take your job home with you.

I'm not trying to be a naysayer and good luck to whatever you decide, but teaching is not an "easy" job with "great" hours. The first weekday you spend with rowdy students, followed by a staff meeting, followed by a school improvement meeting followed by an hour of prepping lessons for the next day, followed by a drive home and correcting papers in bed while watching the "Daily Show" at 11pm at night, you will wonder why you got in to this ...

But while correcting papers, you see that Johnny did better than earlier in the year, it will be worth it.

We do need intelligent teachers. Don't let anyone tell you that it is a "waste of intelligence"

 

[LarryPQ]

I agree, I was not trying to bash on the profession at all----I think people romanticize it. Lots of folks who want to teach do so because they loved being that age: then they get there and realize middleschoolers are evil, and LOVE being evil, which is why it was so much fun in the first place.

My BFF teaches orchestra, her husband teaches Spanish. He coaches soccer, she work crudloads of overtime for concerts & stuff, she plays in the Tempe Symphony, has a band, gives lessons, and has a part time job---just to make ends meet. She was 3 years in when she realized she doesn't like teaching for a job. She would do it as a volunteer forever: but the daily grind is not rewarding for her.

EDITED: But there ARE people who love it. You should PM writerofwords--I thnk she does 3rd(?) grade, and I think she still loves it.

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

Thanks for the advice guys.

I do realize that it will not be an easy job. It's also something that I have never really thought about doing before, which makes me a bit hesitant.

I'm also hesitant about getting an MD mostly because its another 8+ years of schooling, and its certainly not guaranteed that I will have a high paying job out of school...even as a doctor. I know anything I do, I will follow through completely, but I also worry about my ability to pass the MCATs. I have never been good at taking standardized tests. I have always been a straight A student and still only got an 1190 on the SATs. I'm signed up to take a practice MCAT at the end of this month, but I have not really studied for it because I'm hoping to get a grasp of what will be on the test from the practice one. IF I decide to go that route, I will study over the summer and take the test late summer/early fall.

My real love is for animals, but I did not really enjoy working at the vets office when I worked there a few years ago. Unfortunately, jobs in animal and biological research are far and few between, and the ones available are hardly enough to make a living off of. My second love is in forensics and law enforcement, but unless I want to be a cop (which I do not) the job market is just not there. I'm currently involved in a bacterial DNA research project and I enjoy that. I'm just not sure what I can do with that after college. It will look impressive on my resume, but I'm not sure what I will be able to do with it.

I don't know how anyone ever gets a job out of college. Its seems like everything is so difficult to get into. Of course the pressure from family and friends to get into an extremely prestigious and well paying job does not help at all. It just completely stresses me out!

 

[teach1rusl]

LOL! Well...what stood out to me was "I want a job where I can have a life." I resigned from my job as a public school teacher last summer (after 11 years teaching) because I did not have a life. By the time I got home each evening with my bag full of papers I was exhausted. My son would be asking me to look over some of his school work, and I'd find myself putting him off until my own paperwork was done. Granted, I took my job quite seriously and was very dedicated, so maybe I put more into it than others, and I'm in my 40s, so don't have the energy of a young teacher. Typically, about a third of my weekend time was spent on paperwork (lots of paperwork besides student assignments) and planning. Part of your summer will be spent in professional development activities, and in my state you are required to obtain your master's degree within so many years (five I think, but I'm not positive). So if you're a dedicated type person who puts 100% into your job, don't expect that a teacher's schedule will give you a lot of down time.

Now, teaching can be wonderful! I loved my students and feel that I made a positive difference in many lives (I always worked in very poor areas). I do think classroom teachers have one of the most important (and often unappreciated) jobs in this country. There are people who put teachers down, saying they couldn't do anything else, saying they are lazy, etc. So, you'll have to have thick skin.

I don't know how young people are supposed to know what they want to do with the rest of their lives by 20 or so...lol. Since you really love animals, I'd go that route. Follow your passion... Although I've enjoyed doing many of the things I've done since my early college days, I regret not following my passion (which coincidentally was a dream to become a veterinarian).

 

[OrpingtonManor]

I am a public school teacher, and I love it! This is my 4th year teaching. I am in my late 40's. I changed careers from Registered Nurse to Music Teacher for grades 3-8. I make enough money to survive on my own. I do own my own home, but it has been a struggle. No, I would not go back to nursing. That was a job that sucked the life out of me. I am intelligent, and could have done many things. But, I have always been a musician, and I have always been a natural teacher. Even when I was in nursing school, my instructors would say, "Have you considered teaching nursing. You're a natural." I could have gone that route, but in all honesty, I adore kids! I needed a job that could make me smile at the end of the day. Yes, there are classroom management skills that had to be learned, but it wasn't really that hard. Yes, I spend time at the end of the day, on the weekends, and a bit of time during the summer doing things for my students, and to improve myself as a teacher. But, still, I love it. It is right for me.

You have to find what is right for you. You must live your life, not your family. Talk to many teachers, not just those who left the profession.

Children need teachers who are intelligent and care about what they do. Best regards, and thanks for even considering teaching.

eta -- oh, and yes, I have plenty of time to myself in the summers, but that isn't why I teach.

 

[saddina]

I loved teaching, but I'm a person with little social life, so I didn't mind the lack of time. Yes summers off are nice, but during the school year it's 12 hour days or 7 days a week. So no, if you're still single and want to have a social life... it's not what you'd think. Also I was laid off in december, budget cuts and all that. My unwillingness to kiss butt to the higher ups figured into the decision (that "team player" bs), so when they consolidated my class into 3 others, one group got a gal who is frankly a bad teacher (if your kid isn't dead center average, she hasn't a clue what to do with them), but had 1 more year at the school than I did. The day to day work I loved, but there's much more than what happens in class to it.

Right now there's alot of downsized teachers appilying for work, so that's something to consider too.

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Teaching is a great career, but to feel rewarded, you have to be the kind of person who can say one success out of a hundred tries (metaphorically) is enough to keep you going. You can dump years of mentoring, care, and time into a kid that isn't even your own flesh and blood, and have it go nowhere in the end, because in the end, it's the child's choice to be successful in life or throw all their chances away. That is the part that sucks. It's the small things, the daily victories, that make teaching worth it. You have to be able to find those small things and hold on tight.

You also have to be a tough person. You have to be able to set boundaries and hold kids accountable. You have to be able to build a good relationship with a young person but also assign consequences when deserved (you can't always be a "friend"), or you won't earn their respect. Teachers without a backbone get walked on and don't accomplish much of anything in the classroom as a result.

Ask real teachers what the job is like, because movies about teachers and college programs don't "tell it like it is." It's not "Freedom Writers," most of the time.

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

The line in your second post that caught my eye was that you don't see jobs in law enforcement outside of becoming a cop.

Have you taken a stroll through USAJOBS.com?? Give it a shot just to see. Homeland security is HUGE right now, also USAaid is looking for lots of people with interesting backgrounds.....

Look at the variety of jobs....... I'm not saying don't become a teacher, go ahead, you can do it for a while and move to something else later ---- or vice versa.