Possible Careers:

• Superintendent
• Principal
• Administrator
• Counselor
• Teacher
• Child care worker
• Coach
• Sign language interpreter

Degrees and Certs:

• Attend a 2 or 4 year college
• Child Development Associate (CDA) certification from the Council for Professional Recognition
• Apprenticeship
• Degree in social services, elementary education. Masters in Elementary Administration allows you to work as a school principal- one of the highest-paying education jobs
• Most states require a teaching certification

Top 5 highest Ranking Colleges:

Michigan State University

Columbia University

Vanderbilt University

University of Wisconsin - Madison

University of Georgia

Career Map Examples:

Education Exploratory

PROS:

• Opportunity to influence youth and make a difference in their lives
• Consistent schedule with quarterly breaks (in general)
• Exciting day-to-day career, especially working with younger kids
• Opportunities to grow
• Good benefits - health insurance and retirement plans

CONS:

• Low pay, and a lot of teachers need to have part-time jobs on the side to support themselves and/or their families
• Standardized testing- teachers are tested based on the performance of their students, who may or may not take them seriously
• If you do not have a supportive group of parents for your students, the year can end up being very difficult
• High levels of stress can often result from curriculum being too overloaded and unrealistic with goals for the year
• Your time is not confined to the hours of the school day, many teachers come in early to set up and stay late to grade and plan for the next day

Overview Video: