Teachers- how do you find job openings?

[SusanBAnthony]

Is there some central website like careerbuilder, or do you have to go to individual district sites?

What about private schools?

I am a recovering chemical engineer, lol, and am considering teaching (high school science or math) and I just want to do a little job research. I am especially interested in private schools since my understanding is they may not be required to have licensed teachers.

If anyone happens to know what is required in the state of OH to get licensed, that would be great too. I assume I would need a masters in teaching or something like that.

[puppydoggie]

education.ohio.gov/GD/Templates/Pages/ODE/TeachingLandingPage.aspx?page=936

You will need training in Pedagogy for sure. Understand how to teach. I don't personally feel that anyone can just walk into a classroom and all of a sudden be a great teacher. I wish you the best.

[junieolive]

Before you decide on teaching, I suggest you volunteer in a local school for a little while. The idea of teaching and actual teaching are very different. You could probably teach in a private school, but understand that you will most likely make much less money and work longer hours than in a public school. I also think that it may be a good idea to get certified. Before you spend all the money on a masters I would definitely volunteer at a local school.
To look for jobs... In NY we have a website called olasjobs.org, I am sur ethere is something similar in OH. Good Luck!

[hbomdiggity]

My sister started teaching at a private hs before deciding to go for the certification. She really enjoyed teaching algebra, but to get the math certification would have taken forever because she wasn't a math major and many of the classes are sequential. That said, she found that because math & science are needed areas, some schools were able to take uncertified teachers.

I know most school districts in my state (not oh) participate in a state wide employment listing.

[HitchedIn2006]

You could also set up a search on indeed.com.

Also, what about substitute teaching to get a feel for the school? You also might luck out and get a long term position before going feet first.

[game blouses]

Oct 14, 2012 15:18:41 GMT -5 HitchedIn2006 said:

Also, what about substitute teaching to get a feel for the school? You also might luck out and get a long term position before going feet first.

I recommend this too - plus you can write down cool ideas you see other teachers do in the classes you're subbing. It's also a good way to narrow down which grade level you like best. 7th is way different from 8th, which is different from 9th, etc.

[joenali]

Oct 14, 2012 15:24:27 GMT -5 game blouses said:

Oct 14, 2012 15:18:41 GMT -5 HitchedIn2006 said:

Also, what about substitute teaching to get a feel for the school? You also might luck out and get a long term position before going feet first.

I recommend this too - plus you can write down cool ideas you see other teachers do in the classes you're subbing. It's also a good way to narrow down which grade level you like best. 7th is way different from 8th, which is different from 9th, etc.

At least here, a sub needs a teaching certificate.

[EmilieMadison]

Subs need to be licensed here, too.

OP, I second the person who suggested volunteering in a school in classrooms or doing job shadowing in different schools (or actually SEVERAL) and in different grade levels.

I can tell you, as a former full time teacher and as a current sub, teaching can be SO different from school to school, and from one grade to another. Find out from the teachers you talk to what the average day looks like for a 1st year teacher.

Some people think they'll love teaching and end up realizing (too late) that it's nothing like what they imagined. Some do love it. Some think they'd be best at teaching 3rd grade but end up hating it but loving 8th grade, etc.

So, before making any decisions and spending lots of time and money on anything, really get hands on as much as you can and figure out if it's the idea of teaching that you love, or if you would truly love being a teacher.

[RoxMonster]

I teach in Illinois and we have an Illinois Job Bank Website for all education jobs (teaching, administrative, support, etc) where most schools post openings. That's how I found most openings when applying. However, some schools don't post on it so I would go to individual district websites too. For private schools, I would check their website.

[Deleted]

For independent schools, I would go to their individual websites. If they hire through an agency, they will list it or forward to the agency's website. I'm in Philadelphia suburbs and the independent schools around here don't require certification, so you might luck out in Ohio if you go the private route. I teach at a boarding school and found my job when I drove past a school that I hadn't heard of and went home to google them. My position was listed...I applied, interviewed and was hired within a ten-day period. We have lots of corporate converts (myself included!). Good luck!

[joenali]

Oct 14, 2012 16:50:37 GMT -5 @tracy1031 said:

For independent schools, I would go to their individual websites. If they hire through an agency, they will list it or forward to the agency's website. I'm in Philadelphia suburbs and the independent schools around here don't require certification, so you might luck out in Ohio if you go the private route. I teach at a boarding school and found my job when I drove past a school that I hadn't heard of and went home to google them. My position was listed...I applied, interviewed and was hired within a ten-day period. We have lots of corporate converts (myself included!). Good luck!

I find it astounding that a private school would not require a teaching cert! I wonder if parents know this?

[buckeyegirl]

go to state.ode.oh.us

There is a section about licensing and getting your credentials for the state of Ohio. I believe there are alternate routes to getting a teaching license especially in the math and/or sciences.

You would need to check out each individual district's websites to find out about job hires. The states has a website that some schools post on but not the majority. If you tell me the general area you are looking I might be able to help you.

[bronxgirl]

Oct 14, 2012 17:07:01 GMT -5 joenali said:

Oct 14, 2012 16:50:37 GMT -5 @tracy1031 said:

For independent schools, I would go to their individual websites. If they hire through an agency, they will list it or forward to the agency's website. I'm in Philadelphia suburbs and the independent schools around here don't require certification, so you might luck out in Ohio if you go the private route. I teach at a boarding school and found my job when I drove past a school that I hadn't heard of and went home to google them. My position was listed...I applied, interviewed and was hired within a ten-day period. We have lots of corporate converts (myself included!). Good luck!

I find it astounding that a private school would not require a teaching cert! I wonder if parents know this?

I thought this was fairly common for private schools to not require teaching certificates. I never understood why that was, but I've heard that about many private schools in many different areas of the country.
SBA: I don't know if she still posts here or what her current SN is, but Flamingo Stalker is a teacher who transitioned form the corporate wold. She could tell you about her experience.

[SusanBAnthony]

I plan to sub and/or shadow and/or volunteer. Thanks for all the advice, but that is not my question . Trust me, I have been around the nest long enough to know that

I just wanted to look at some job openings to get an idea of what is out there. If I check our local district, it had zero openings right now so I didn't quite know where to go from there without checking all the districts one by one which is time consuming, s cine I am not near to the point of actually applying for jobs (let alone having decided on teaching for sure) a central website would be helpful, so thank you to the posters who linked those.

[SusanBAnthony]

Oct 14, 2012 17:22:33 GMT -5 buckeyegirl said:

go to state.ode.oh.us

There is a section about licensing and getting your credentials for the state of Ohio. I believe there are alternate routes to getting a teaching license especially in the math and/or sciences.

You would need to check out each individual district's websites to find out about job hires. The states has a website that some schools post on but not the majority. If you tell me the general area you are looking I might be able to help you.

We currently live near Newark, but are likely moving into a northern Columbus suburb shortly. I know in our current district, I can sub without a license, I just have to go to sub training.

[bronxgirl]

Oct 14, 2012 17:56:38 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

Oct 14, 2012 17:22:33 GMT -5 buckeyegirl said:

go to state.ode.oh.us

There is a section about licensing and getting your credentials for the state of Ohio. I believe there are alternate routes to getting a teaching license especially in the math and/or sciences.

You would need to check out each individual district's websites to find out about job hires. The states has a website that some schools post on but not the majority. If you tell me the general area you are looking I might be able to help you.

We currently live near Newark, but are likely moving into a northern Columbus suburb shortly. I know in our current district, I can sub without a license, I just have to go to sub training.

When I first went to Ohio State I didn't know there was a town in OH called Newark so I thought a lot of my new classmates I was meeting were from New Jersey.

[lolapants]

I am mostly a lurker, but I just want to point out that looking at job postings right now probably won't give you a very good idea of the current job market for teachers. You will want to look in April, May, June when schools will be hiring for next year.

As for where to look, my state has a couple websites that most schools post on, but I also check all the individual districts that I am interested in to make sure that I don't miss anything.

[sarahsas]

Here is a website where they post jobs for independent schools: www.isacs.org/

My state has a place for posting too. My city has its own independent school website for job postings, and all of those don't appear on ISACS but some do.

[Deleted]

Oct 14, 2012 17:07:01 GMT -5 joenali said:

Oct 14, 2012 16:50:37 GMT -5 @tracy1031 said:

For independent schools, I would go to their individual websites. If they hire through an agency, they will list it or forward to the agency's website. I'm in Philadelphia suburbs and the independent schools around here don't require certification, so you might luck out in Ohio if you go the private route. I teach at a boarding school and found my job when I drove past a school that I hadn't heard of and went home to google them. My position was listed...I applied, interviewed and was hired within a ten-day period. We have lots of corporate converts (myself included!). Good luck!

I find it astounding that a private school would not require a teaching cert! I wonder if parents know this?

Don't get me wrong, many private school teachers are certified already, but most schools don't require it. I know at my school they encourage pursuing certs and will provide tuition assistance. But I think my school and many others in the area acknowledge that a certificate doesn't always equal a good teacher. Some of the best teachers at my school aren't certified. Parents are aware and we are very candid about it. I imagine it's the same for neighboring schools.

[Balki.Bartokomous]

Oct 14, 2012 19:33:50 GMT -5 @tracy1031 said:

Oct 14, 2012 17:07:01 GMT -5 joenali said:

I find it astounding that a private school would not require a teaching cert! I wonder if parents know this?

Don't get me wrong, many private school teachers are certified already, but most schools don't require it. I know at my school they encourage pursuing certs and will provide tuition assistance. But I think my school and many others in the area acknowledge that a certificate doesn't always equal a good teacher. Some of the best teachers at my school aren't certified. Parents are aware and we are very candid about it. I imagine it's the same for neighboring schools.

In college I taught at a local charter school in PA, and my friend went to a Friends school in Philly and neither one of those schools required a certificate. The schools were very upfront about this to the parents and no one seemed to mind because ultimately it boiled down to whether or not the kids were getting a good education.

[Doggy Mommy]

In my state, you just need a college degree to get a substitute license. However, some districts are only taking on subs with an actual teaching license because they have so many applicants.

To teach in my state, you either need to go through a degree program and do student teaching to get your license or go through an alternative program. The alternative programs are hard to get into because basically the district has to hire you first, and then you join the alternative program where you take classes while teaching. It's hard enough to get a job even with a teaching license. Everyone in my master's degree program tried to get into the alternative program for a couple years before giving up and going through a master's program.

To find a job here, you have to go to the individual district's websites. The district is HUGELY important. Some of them have huge issues going on and you need to know which districts to avoid.

I worked at a private school for 2 years before I did my student teaching. At my school, lead teachers had to be certified and co-teachers did not (it was basically a glorified aide position). I was a co-teacher, so I didn't need to be certified, but the pay was crap.

I would definitely see if you could visit some classrooms or sub for a bit to see if you like it. In a lot of ways, teaching sucks. I love it and I'm pretty sure it's the only thing I'm good at, but it's a tough job with a lot of extra BS involved.

[Deleted]

I teach at a top private school. We do not require teaching certificates. That is a government thing. We use our own criteria. Yes parents know it. They pick our school BECAUSE of the fantastic teachers. ( I actually am certified, not that it matters right now)

But anyway. We would never hire a teacher with zero teaching experience. We might not require state certification, but our standards are even higher. I also used to do hiring for my old public district. I know, lol.

I would look in to subbing first. If you want to go the private route, contact the schools directly and ask if they are looking for sub list positions.

[rikki]

For independent schools you could check out the websites of school accrediting bodies. Carney Sandoe is also a very big private school recruiting firm and probably lists openings on their site.

[lishie]

It definitely depends on the state. My cousin was in CT and was a chemist for a company. He got burned out, and was able to start teaching at a local school while they paid for him to take a couple classes and get some sort of quick and easy certification. He's been teaching 3 or 4 years now and really likes it.

[rex]

I don't know about private schools, but I'm surprised to see no one mention schoolspring.com