Can I teach High School with a PhD but no teacher certification?
by Ron Sombilon Gallery
Question by bax: Can I teach High School with a PhD but no teacher certification?
I'm doing my PhD and I guess somewhat bummed by the prospective job market and make it more difficult by not being geographically mobile. I really love where I'm living right not and don't want to relocate. So if I cannot find a job at the University level or even the community college level can I teach at a High School/Middle School despite not having teacher certification? I am emergency certified to substitute teach for the public schools currently and will have hours as a TA at college level.
Best answer:
Answer by James H
No u can't
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
Category: Answers and Questions
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
All you can do is sub - granted you could get really lucky and get a long term sub position which is not contracted and offers no benefits.
Otherwise, every public school will require you to have a teaching certificate. You could possibly get a job in a private school / parochial school but again - very rarely do they offer positions to people with no teaching degree. They have 1 year programs - some online. Granted it is not as prestigious as going to a 4 year university but better than nothing.
Public Schools will not allow you to teach without a certification in teaching. Private Schools may be able to accommodate you as a subject teacher pending when you obtain your certification in Teaching.
To help yourself, i would advise that you enroll for a part time teachers’ Certificate Program. But if you desperately need a job now, it is better to apply for a non teaching position.
Not in a US Public School. If you want to be in a Public School, you’ll have to do your 1 year post-graduate teaching certificate. http://www.education.pitt.edu/english/dindex.aspx?did=10 Here’s the type of certificate you’ll be required to have here in PA. (I don’t know your state, to know the exact requirements) Most State Universities have a 1 year program for people with degrees to get certified as teachers.
You do have the option to teach at a Private school though. Private schools each have their own rules and standards. The Public School’s standards are state-wide, specific coursework based.
No - one answerer hit it on the head - not in the US. Talk to your academic office on campus and ask if your university offers alternative pathways to certification.
Other options are serving 2 years in “Teach for America” (if you’re in the US). You earn certification after 2 years of basically teaching in an inner-city or poverty-level school. You attend teacher education courses (geared towards how to teach) once per week and you get paid a normal salary with a living stipend on top. You also get a certain amount of student loans forgiven for serving.
However, if you earn your certification, you will have an extreme challenge with finding employment because often schools cannot afford to hire someone with a PhD. Different degrees earn different salaries and typically only the “richest” schools can afford teachers who have a PhD, and in most circumstances, you only find rich schools in very large cities. Some administration will pick a teacher with only a Bachelor’s degree over the one with a PhD because they simply can’t afford the latter.
Not in my state..you would not even be able to sub without a teacher license.