12 Alternative Careers For Teachers & Educators

What is one good alternative career for a teacher or educator?

To help educators discover alternative career options, we asked former teachers and business professionals this question for their best advice. From becoming a professional speaker to creating online courses, there are several options that allow teachers and educators to use their skills and establish a new career.

Here are 12 alternative careers for teachers and educators:

• Professional Speaker
• Author
• Dean of Students
• Educational Administration
• Sales
• HR/Corporate Training Roles
• Start a Podcast
• Work Trainers
• Career, Life, or Business Coach
• School Or Child Psychologist
• A Mentor
• Create Online Courses

Professional Speaker

Teachers can transition to the corporate world via training by leveraging their "platform" skills. And tech-savvy educators can deepen the pool of opportunities by flexing their IT skills in a virtual job market. But swapping one classroom for another is not the only answer. If you're sick of lesson plans, but love imparting knowledge, give the big stage a go. Honing a message is never easy, but done right, your impact could exceed your expectations.

Tim Toterhi, Plotline Leadership

Author

Teachers can leverage their writing skills and attention details to land jobs in the publishing industry. You can start by enrolling on freelance websites, where there are plenty of opportunities for writing and editing. You can also look into self-publishing in the area of specialization, creating support materials and workbooks, or even try creative writing.

Dean of Students

As teachers gain more experience in the classroom and want to change how they affect students' lives, a Dean position can allow them to practice behavior intervention and management techniques. As a Dean, you can work collaboratively with students
and parents before disciplinary measures are needed. Having experience as a teacher provides Deans with the ability to be creative problem solvers and masters of time management skills.

Educational Administration

If you're a teacher, professor, or any sort of educator looking for an alternative career path, you should always consider going for the big job in administration! Most teachers and educators have a knack for public speaking in front of kids and adults and presenting hours of lecturing and teaching, and that's already a huge plus when being a principal, vice-principal, or superintendent! Experience is always key too so make sure to be ready and understanding of the school system and how to teach/present to children, teens, and adults. Most administration jobs will also require a masters or doctorate degree, along with a principal certification.

James Burati, SVP of Sales and Marketing, 1-800-PackRat

Sales

It may be a surprise but sales and teaching go together very well. As a teacher, you gain very good communication skills and when it comes to sales you need to be able to communicate very well about why what you are selling is better than your competitors. It is quite literally educating people on your product and all the benefits it has to offer. Teaching has already given one the skills they need to excel in sales, so it is always worth a shot to see how well of a salesman you can be.

Kate Lipman, Sales & Marketing Consultant, embrace Scar Therapy

HR/Corporate Training Roles

The same skills that make an excellent teacher are crucial to success in HR positions, especially those related to training and workforce education. Effective educators are able to break down complex problems into digestible steps and concepts and are trained on methods best-suited to different learning styles. They’re also able to manage groups of 30+ students, keeping track of their work and providing individualized feedback. Basically, educators have the people management and educational skills that are required for HR professionals and trainers in a range of industries.

Start a Podcast

One of the great career alternatives for a teacher is a podcast. The podcast is an excellent opportunity to share your knowledge and get some extra cash. You can offer online courses focused on your subject area, or expand your area of expertise with some coaching or mentoring. It’s a good idea to use different podcast ad networks that can connect you with advertisers and sponsors. With time, you can even become an influencer that other people reach out to and build meaningful relationships that can benefit you in the long run. There are plenty of opportunities, so it’s worth trying it out!

Work Trainers

Teachers and educators are great at helping students learn and better understand complicated concepts. Because of this, a good alternative career for educators would be working training. When you train people, you have to have a lot of patience and be able to break things down, which are vital skills for teachers. Plus, not everyone learns in the same way, so being able to tailor how you teach someone a new skill or task can make a huge difference in how successful you are as a trainer.

Career, Life, or Business Coaching

Educators can take their passion for teaching and use it as a career coach, business coach, or anything else that utilizes their specific interests or expertise. So many people find success as coaches because they are amazing at motivating others. So if you were a gym teacher, maybe you become a fitness coach. An English teacher might become a writing coach. It’s a similar skillset, but you’re working more one-on-one and creating tailored programs for people to succeed.

School Or Child Psychologist

Teachers and educators work closely with children. Identifying the challenges of these little ones, guiding them in their formative years, and helping parents in unlocking their potential are some of the responsibilities they handle as guardians and influencers. When one takes into account these highly impactful traits, a suitable alternative career path for a teacher or educator would be to take on the role of a school or child psychologist. As a psychologist primarily dealing with problems and solutions specific to children, all the lessons they’ve learned through interactions and experiences will come in handy when dispensing actionable insights in their new role.

A Mentor

Working with a mentor is life-changing because it helps you understand who you are and what you want to become. Choose mentors who will give you the best insight into your current phase of life or career level. Once they understand your skills and abilities, they may put you to work on a specific task to see how well you perform. Given that a teacher or educator is great at leading and teaching people to be their best, this may be a great fit. The relationship between a mentor and a mentee must be built upon trust, honesty, and transparency. When you need someone you can trust, having a mentor as an objective third party is a great resource. After you've experienced life with them, you may want to share your experiences with others too, which helps you become a better leader yourself and provides you with a new perspective on life.

Hilary Kozak, LivSmooth

Create Online Courses

If you love teaching but not the pay associated with it, creating courses via platforms such as Skillshare and Udemy could be the way forward. You can create amazing courses without any specialist equipment, and once it's live, you will continue to earn every time you recruit a new student, with the opportunity to make a very lucrative passive income. Teaching via online courses means you're not tied down to a single location and can also share your expertise with people all over the world.

Ruby Willow, Financer.com