The job market for teachers is very local. In one place you have to know someone on the school board and in another place they will take anyone with a pulse. Generally if the population in an area is shrinking or staying the same, it is hard to get a job and if the population is expanding it is much easier. Salaries, benefits, and clientele also differ jurisdiction to jurisdiction and each one affects the job market for teachers.
Can you give us any clue as to your location and what you want to teach? How flexible you are about moving? That would help a lot.
I will also say this–like most fields, it’s a lot easier to get a job teaching if you seem to be good at it and lack serious red flags. I’ve interviewed people that I am sure never, ever get offered a job teaching because they seem really unsuited for some reason (weak content knowledge, poor interpersonal skills) or display horrific red flags (“I am not really interested in teaching kids that don’t want to learn”; “High school’s kind of pointless anyway, right? Good kids do good regardless, and the bad kids . . .”). And then there are the resumes that never get calls–even if it means we don’t hire anyone–because they are full of typos or obvious falsehoods. These are people that count as “qualified applicants” and they may well be saying “you can’t get a job in [market]”.
On the other hand, if you think you’re going to be a Really Good Teacher–if it’s a calling, a passion, a talent, a thing you are going to work really hard at and be really good at, your odds are much better. Even among college grads with no formal experience, the people who 1) have a very solid grasp of their content 2) sensible interpersonal skills and 3) real passion for teaching stand out. If you are going to be that sort of teacher, it’s a very different market than otherwise.
I’m in NY, I’m looking to hopefully teach special ed and science maybe math too. Yes I want out of NY!
Any other advice?
Do you have a college degree? What is it in?
It’s in business administration.
Depending on the state where you want to wind up, you may need to pick up a second bachelor’s in a math- or science-related field if that’s what you want to teach. Some states (Pennsylvania and Texas are two examples) require a certain number of college-level credits in the subject area you plan to teach. Again, become intimately familiar with the certification requirements in your state.
I think this is pretty universal. I know it’s the case in Ohio. They even have a list of courses you should have taken to teach in that subject.
At least in TX, you wouldn’t have to get a second bachelors–you’d just have to go back and take the courses. My sister had to take 2 science classes at the junior college before she could start an Alternative Certification here. Her degree was also in Business Administration.
Also, in Texas, if you have a valid certification, adding additional certifications is merely a matter of passing the test (which may be difficult if you don’t know the subject matter, but not terribly difficult. If you are a few credits shy, this is the way to go). I do not know if this is the case in any other states.
If you are willing to move and don’t much care where, I would start by looking for alternative certification programs. In Texas, at least, the large urban districts run in-house Alt Cert programs, which means they will hire you and then put you through the certification process. Most of these start in the summer, but you start getting some kind of a paycheck right from the start. The junior colleges and universities also run them. Again, you generally start the program in the summer, get a job that fall, and keep in the program through your first year.
I don’t know about alt cert or emergency certification in other states, but I am sure many have it. I’d look for such in NY, if you want to stay there, and other states you might be interested in.
Very interesting how about North Carolina?