So you’ve made the decision to leave. You’ve had enough of the high-stakes testing, the constant pressure and the covering of long-term sick colleagues. You’re working yourself into the ground and have decided enough is enough.
But where to start?
If you’re wondering what teachers can do next, here are some ideas to get you going.
- Project Management
Where to start with this one? There are TONS of options. Do you work for a large, multinational, corporate company managing a project or do you want to work for a smaller, maybe medium sized business? Either way, there are lots of opportunities for managing people or projects!
- Reiki and crystal healing
So bear with us on this! Whilst we initially thought this was a bit different, when we thought harder about it, it made sense. When we spoke to one teacher about what she had gone on to do (Reiki healing) and why, in her words, she said “It’s still teaching – you’re teaching people to understand themselves. I’ve realised I can teach people in lots of other ways.”
Whilst this might not sound like your perfect role, it hopefully gets you thinking about all the other ways you can teach (if you want to). Do you enjoy baking? Being creative? Do you have a skill you want to teach? Broaden your horizons and throw convention out the window!
- Civil Service
This is quite a common area teachers investigate. It offers a great pension, good pay and for some people a flexible and rewarding career where they still get to make a difference. They can help shape policy but on their terms – regular salary, part- time and often working from home.
- Driving Instructor
It’s still teaching, just in a different area! If you enjoyed working with older children, this could be a great fit. You could help 17, 18 and 19 + year old learn a life lesson – how to drive! It’s less mobile than being in a classroom, which may (or may not) suit you!
- Supporting Apprentices
Lots of apprentices means lots of roles supporting them. You could be an apprentice assessor, an apprentice tutor or even an apprentice recruiter. If you want to stay in the world of learning and education but with a slightly different angle, this might be one to investigate!
- Working for a charity
So technically this isn’t a job per se but more of an industry. However, we felt it was important to showcase this area as an option. There are tons of charities out there who need people like you to continue their great work. There are large charities who work internationally and small charities who may work in a specific area local to you. I’ve personally worked for a charity before (I worked for a Birmingham charity for a few years before starting up my tutoring business) and I LOVED it! The people were lovely, I got a regular salary each month and I went home each day feeling like I’d made a difference in the world.
- Tutoring
Now of course we were going to say this! We LOVE tutoring and we believe there’s a whole career to be made out of it. In our view, it’s the best bits of teaching but without all the paperwork or red tape! You can earn a decent salary (same if not more as a teacher if you price yourself right) and work when it suits you. There are daytime hours supporting students in school or evening private work. You can work days, evenings or weekends – whenever you want. We’ve found it to be super flexible and super rewarding and we can’t recommend it enough!