Educators change lives every day in big and small ways. Teachers, professors, and even other education professionals like school counselors, principals, and administrators impact students at different levels in so many schools. And if you’ve been looking for a career that’ll let you accomplish this, you need an education degree.
Education professionals typically need a bachelor’s degree in education to start their careers. That degree will open many doors – you could become a teacher, begin working with students in different settings, or even start creating policies to aid students. There’s a ton of potential in an education degree.
Here are just four reasons an education degree can be a smart choice for your career and future.
1. You’ll Have Great Job Security
Teachers are always in demand. Every school needs teachers, and they need them for different age groups, specific academic subjects, and even as substitutes. And this demand for teachers is always growing – the Occupational Outlook Handbook expects the need for teachers to grow by 13 percent.
This means earning an education degree and seeking a job as a teacher of any kind provides job security. You’ll be able to find a job and won’t need to worry about losing it.
And right now, there’s an especially urgent need for teachers. Schools across America are experiencing teacher shortages in critical subjects like science and match. Teacher shortages mean there are more teaching jobs available than teachers to fill them, which only adds to job security.
2. You’ll Have a Big Impact on Others’ Lives
Every teacher instructs their students and imparts crucial information. But teaching isn’t just about the information you share from textbooks and homework assignments. Educators also impact students in many other ways.
Teachers and other educators teach course information, but they also teach important life skills. Noncognitive skills, like self-regulating behavior and emotions, motivation, and interpersonal skills, can all be learned in the classroom.
Teachers also shape their students’ futures – teachers who help students beyond classwork can improve their students’ chances of graduating from high school and their standardized test scores. Attendance, grades, and friendships can all also increase with the guidance of a caring teacher. And these effects can last for years and years, long after students leave your classroom.
3. You Can Choose What You Study – and Teach
If you’re worried that teachers have to become masters of all kinds of different material, there’s great news: you get to decide what you’d like to teach. And it all starts with the degree you pursue.
When you earn your education degree, you’ll choose a concentration. You can focus on early childhood education, kindergarten and elementary school, middle school, or high school. If you choose older students as your focus, you can also choose a single subject or a few different subjects to teach.
And regardless of age, many teachers do have specific areas of expertise or specialization. For example, you could take biology courses while earning your education degree to become a middle school science teacher. You could take history courses if you’d like to teach different types of history classes at a high school. Or you could specialize in English and cover the entire subject for elementary school students.
4. You Can Earn Your Degree Online
If you’re considering becoming a teacher or educator, you’ll need a degree in education. But fitting a traditional college education into your busy life is difficult. And that’s why so many future teachers are earning their degrees online.
Online degree programs are becoming increasingly popular. Today, many colleges and universities offer online bachelor’s degree programs – and you can certainly earn an online degree in education. You can even specialize in a specific grade or age level, or a certain subject or field of study.
These online programs will prepare you so you can earn your teaching certification and give you the concepts needed to excel as a teacher. Additionally, online degree programs let you study and attend classes entirely online, meaning you have flexibility and the ease of fitting coursework into your schedule.
Start Earning Your Education Degree Today
Are you ready to begin working towards a new career in education? With an education degree, you can become a teacher or another type of educator, work in many different settings, and find a fulfilling future.
And it’s easy to take the first step. You can research different online degree programs and find an education degree that works for you. There are many options available, so make sure to compare and consider tuition rates, classes, and the specifics of each degree program. Then, you can begin taking classes and working towards your future.
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