Getting a job in the field of education can be a very rewarding experience.
Working as a teacher is necessary and meaningful work, but it can also be very stressful.
Teaching is often the goal of an education major, but it doesn?t have to be the only career outcome.
There are several alternative jobs for education majors that are worth exploring.
That way, you can pursue a career that you are passionate about without the stresses that teaching often provides.
What Are the Best Jobs for Education Majors Besides Teaching?
If you like the idea of helping others by providing them with knowledge and insights, but a classroom setting just isn?t for you, then here are the best alternative jobs for education majors to consider.
#1. Curriculum Developer
Teachers are using materials for their classrooms in the US that are more standardized than ever before.
This has created a unique opportunity to get involved in the field of curriculum development.
With this job option, you get to use your creativity to design materials that can be purchased by teachers or sold to learning publishers so tens of thousands of students can benefit from your work.
You can create a general curriculum or focus on a specific subject or discipline with this type of job opportunity.
Much of this work is still offered as a freelance opportunity or on a contracted basis, so the salary that many curriculum developers make depends on the hours they put in and the popularity of their work.
If you work for a publication, you can earn about $55,000 per year once you?ve earned your degree.
#2. Nanny
Many families are stuck in a position where both parents need to work outside of the home.
There are many families that are headed by a single parent which could also use a helping hand.
With your experience as an education major, you?d be able to be a very effective nanny.
As a nanny, your education gets put to use by helping the kids of the family who hires you in a variety of ways.
It might be homework, there could be tutoring opportunities, and you?d get to work in an independent environment.
Nannies are often considered to be members of the family as well, which can be a wonderful benefit.
Many nannies earn between $30,000-$50,000 per year, but there are opportunities for extra pay if you are certified in special education.
Many families have children with autism, developmental disabilities, or physical needs that need special care that you could provide as a nanny.
#3. Consulting Work
Many schools are looking for ways to improve student performance.
Teachers are looking for better ways to teach core concepts, especially since many teachers have their salaries based on student performance.
There are parents who prefer to homeschool their children and could use help with curriculum development or regulatory compliance.
These are all opportunities to turn your experiences as an education major into a consultation experience.
There are educational companies that hire consultants that work directly with schools and families.
You can also consult by creating your own business or working as a freelancer.
Many consultants can earn up to $50,000 per year, with top consultants able to clear more than $100,000 annually in large urban areas like New York City or Los Angeles.
#4. Administration
There are plenty of administrative positions within a school district that would benefit from the experiences of an education major.
Many principal positions, assistant leadership positions, and career counseling opportunities are all potentially possible with your education and experience.
Schools offer coaching positions as well and they?re not always sports-related.
Competitive programs in cooking, robotics, and debate are widely available in the United States.
You could also shift into therapy positions, reading comprehension coaching, or Title 1 opportunities.
Many administrative positions have specific certification requirements that would need to be met.
Many districts want principals that have at least some teaching experience.
Becoming a superintendent typically requires some level of experience at the principal level.
Salaries for administrative positions that do not involve leadership responsibilities are competitive with a teacher?s salary.
Principals typically make $75,000 or more annually.
Superintendents regularly make more than $100,000.
Specialists can have a wide salary range, depending on the specialty and certifications chosen.
#5. Museum Director
Educational opportunities don?t just happen at a school.
They happen in many community locations, like a library or a museum.
Children?s museums are rapidly growing in popularity and they need people in leadership positions that can help them to design interactive learning exhibits.
That?s why a museum directorship, especially in a children?s setting, can be a very rewarding career for an education major.
Any museum, however, can benefit from your education and experience.
You?ll find education majors working in or being a director of historical museums, art museums, and cultural museums around the world today.
You can also choose to work as a tour guide or other interactive positions if you prefer to stay out of leadership.
The salary of a museum director depends on the type of museum, its location, and other variable factors.
It may be anywhere from $40,000 to $250,000.
If you prefer a non-leadership position, the salary range is usually between $25,000 to $40,000 ? though it can be higher in some locations.
#6. Activities Director
Many families have both parents working full-time.
Single parents are working multiple jobs, trying to struggle through with their schedule.
This has caused there to be a rise in after-school activities in the past decade.
If the classroom isn?t for you, maybe you can still be a teacher, but in a more interactive way without the pressures of student performance looming over you.
After school programs offer job opportunities inside and outside the local school district.
You can find career options at organizations like the YMCA, YWCA, Boys and Girls Club, and other local programs.
You could also start your own program that pursues something that you?re passionate about.
These programs often have summer-time options as well, like having a summer camp, where your skills as an education major can be used.
Salary options in this area can be quite variable.
If you run your own program, then your earnings are directly based on attendance and how much help you may need.
District-related programs may pay hourly and only be offered part-time.
If your job opportunity is part of a private or non-profit organization, you can earn about $40,000 per year if you are working full time.
#7. Virtual Assistant
With a rise of digitally-based businesses, there has become a need to have virtual assistants helping freelancers from every walk of life.
Many websites need the help of an educational major to provide basic online communication skills.
Authenticity is required when interacting with potential customers, especially on social media, and many educational sites fail because they hire a marketer instead of an experienced educator for this role.
As a benefit for this type of job opportunity, you can often work from home.
You may be able to set some of your own hours as well, letting you have more flexibility with life and work.
Salaries are often in the $25,000-$35,000 range for full-time work.
Part-timers can work with more than one agency to create a full-time position for themselves as well.
#8. Educational Sales
If you?re a teacher, then you need certain products to maintain a learning environment.
Someone needs to create those products. Someone needs to sell them to teachers.
This opens up a fantastic alternative job for an education major.
Suppliers and manufacturers in many different industries, from software to curriculum development to furniture supply, look for educational majors as salespeople.
Why? Because knowing what the educational world needs to be effective is essential knowledge when it comes to closing a deal.
Your insight as an educational major gives you an advantage in being able to sell services, supplies, or products.
You can work as an account manager, be inside or outside sales, or even help with brand marketing with this type of opportunity.
Many salespeople in the educational industry are paid on a commission-based salary, so you can literally dictate how much you earn every year with this type of opportunity.
#9. Tutoring
Sometimes you just can?t take the teacher out of an education major.
Just because you?re not a fan of the classroom doesn?t mean that you can?t still work as a teacher.
Tutoring opportunities offer a wide variety of environments and experiences, with many allowing you to focus on one preferred subject instead of being a teacher of all subjects.
There are several tutoring companies that have teaching opportunities during after-school hours, summer hours, and other forms of alternative scheduling.
You could also create your own business with franchising opportunities in the tutoring industry.
Thanks to programs like Skype, you can also be a virtual tutor for anyone with a strong enough internet connection.
Salaries for tutors are similar to what teachers can earn if you?re working full-time.
Many teachers will take part-time tutoring opportunities during the summer to make some extra cash.
Expect to earn somewhere around $45,000 on average if this is an alternative job you?re thinking about.
#10. Corporate Training
Training is an essential part of every single business that has employees today.
Organizations need to get people onto the same page.
They need trainers to inform workers of expectations, teach special skills, and guide new employees through the orientation process.
You?ll also find employee coaching and mentoring opportunities in the corporate world if you want to use your experience as an education major.
Employee consistency comes from consistent training programs led by experienced trainers.
Certain training opportunities may require specific certifications or experiences.
Attending ?train the trainer? seminars can help you establish your expertise in a preferred field.
There are also opportunities to develop your own training programs that you can teach personally or sell directly to organizations.
From employee relationships to managing stress, every organization has a certain point of emphasis that they focus upon for worker wellness.
That means you have an opportunity to carve out a career for yourself in this area.
Most corporate trainers earn a salary that is around $60,000 per year.
If you?re a specialty trainer on a difficult subject matter, you could earn between $80,000 - $120,000.
Creating your own training programs offers an unlimited earning potential, especially if you combine these programs with powerful blog or website.
#11. Blogging
Your experiences as an education major and your passion for teaching can be turned into an informational blog that can become very profitable.
This is especially true if you can create your own e-books or curriculum options that you can sell from your site.
Blogging also offers opportunities to become a program affiliate, allowing you to make money by selling the products that others are making.
You might also be able to sell sponsored posts, advertising space, and monetize your blog in a variety of ways.
Blogging isn?t usually an instantly rewarding career option.
It can take 2-3 years for a blog to reach its full monetization potential.
If you stick with it, however, many full-time bloggers can earn between $25,000 to $40,000 annually and do so from home.
Top bloggers can earn a lot more.
Would you like to learn how to make money blogging?
Which Alternative Jobs Are Right for You?
Pursuing an education major can be a very rewarding experience, even if you decide to stay out of teaching.
Many different industries and organizations are looking right now to benefit from your knowledge and experiences.
This opens up numerous career options that can provide you with a long-term, well-paying job that you?re going to love.
Many jobs do involve some form of teaching, but it takes you out of the classroom.
Some can even have you creating your own business opportunities.
There is a lot of potential in this field.
Who knows, you might even decide to come back to teaching one day too.