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I have no clue what to do. I keep reading articles about people going to graduate school because they can't find jobs. I am graduating soon (May) and have NO idea. I know a lot of people are just as clueless as I am...
I'll be graduating with a B.A. in English and Secondary Education (grades 7-12) and will be paying back student loans beginning Nov. I don't want to go to graduate school right away, and I would like a job, but I'm afraid I won't get either. Please share any advice about graduate school and the decisions you made. I feel like I should teach before determining what I want to study further.
Don't go to grad school unless you know what you want to do! You're just gonna get into more debt and still not know what you want to do.
Get a job- get any job you can get and spend more time figuring out what you like. Once you know what you want to do, then you either try to get that job, or, if you need more training, go back to school.
I knew what field I wanted to work in, but not the specific job type, and I went to a very general grad program straight from undergrad. I went to grad school overseas, which was a great experience, but I definitely wasted my time doing my MA. I found my direction in the job I got when I graduated. Now, a few years later, I'm preparing to go back to school because I know what I want to do, and I have some great, relevant professional experience to enhance my application.
It may take longer and it may not be a job you want, but there are jobs available. You have to be flexible but it can be done.
If at all possible, get a job. I agree with Stina Tado - there is no reason to incur more debt just because you are unsure about your future and grad school is much more specific then undergrad. You can't go in undeclared.
There's also the logistics to consider. Applications to most grad schools have a deadline of this week!
Also, if you find out you dislike teaching you may want to go back to grad school for something to do with another career. You can only find that out by teaching for a bit.
Are you tied to a particular location? There are jobs but you need to be opening to moving. You could try teaching somewhere else even if for a few years.
I would really hate to sink the time and money into a graduate degree in education (which is, I assume the graduate program you're considering) and THEN find out that teaching isn't my cup of tea, personally.
I have the same undergrad degree as you, and I found out while completing my BA that I really didn't like traditional classroom ed (though I love students and my subject area) and didn't want to pursue a career where that's what I'd be doing. I found that out during student teaching. Are you doing that this term? How's it going?
I completed student teaching and liked it a lot. I think I'm just going to apply everywhere. I've applied to graduate school in NYS, and now I'll apply to jobs within my area and in other states.
Do what every other teacher is doing: try to get a job and go to grad school if you don't. As another poster stated, if you know that you want to be a teacher for the rest of your life, then a Master's is inevitable. I wouldn't worry about incurring more debt; there's really not much you can do about it if you are unable to get a job, and it's better to do something with your downtime. Also, you have student teaching experience, which is some experience (although not viewed in the same way as full-time teaching experience) so I wouldn't worry about the no-experience argument too much.
The only drawback to getting a Master's right away is that some schools will not want to hire you b/c they will have to pay you more. Otherwise, a Master's will make you more marketable/desireable (especially among private schools) and will also provide a higher starting salary with which to pay off those loans. It also means that you won't ever have to juggle career and school and will be able to focus on your career right off the bat.
I have no clue what to do. I keep reading articles about people going to graduate school because they can't find jobs. I am graduating soon (May) and have NO idea. I know a lot of people are just as clueless as I am...
I'll be graduating with a B.A. in English and Secondary Education (grades 7-12) and will be paying back student loans beginning Nov. I don't want to go to graduate school right away, and I would like a job, but I'm afraid I won't get either. Please share any advice about graduate school and the decisions you made. I feel like I should teach before determining what I want to study further.
Teaching is a tough, tough job market. Although the market for secondary teachers isn't as bad as the elementary market. Some schools don't want to hire teachers with master's degrees right out of college. I found this to be true in my home state(IN). However, I knew some teachers in AZ who have gotten hired straight out of college with a master's degree. I guess it depends on the state and your subject area. If at all possible, being trained in anything to deal with special ed will increase your marketability.
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