Current Educational Opportunities for Administrators in Austin (Houston, Spring: find a job, school district)

[DouglasK919]

Hello,

I'm an educator from New Jersey with 13 years of experience...10 years in the classroom and 3 as a High School VP. My current dilemma is forcing me to face the idea of a possible relocation and from what we always here in the Northeast is that Texas is a state where there is a lot of opportunity and growth. So I will do my best to give the abridged version of my situation. I started my career in 2002; in 2012, I left my tenured teaching position to embrace an opportunity to move up in the ranks to Administration. Professionally and economically it made sense especially since my wife and I were having our first child. Growing up in Central NJ, I didn't know of the fiscal mismanagement my previous school district in North Jersey was dealing with and after my 3rd (successful) year, I along with a number of other non-tenured staff were let go.

The state of education in NJ is in disarray. With budget cuts the way they are many districts are top heavy with people riding out their last years to pad their pensions. So, a lot of young, eager Administrators are brought in to be let go just before tenure. It's been a full school year and I've been unable to land another job in Administration. I'm too far in the system to go back to the classroom (no district will bring in a teacher at the top of the salary guide when they have countless college kids each year they can hire cheaper) so I'm basically caught between a rock and a hard place. In New Jersey, many positions that are posted are already slated for people, whether they are internal candidates or connected people, before they are even posted.

With a young family, 4 year old and a 1.5 year old, my wife and I are looking for a fresh opportunity.

Is anyone in education that could speak to the current opportunities Austin has to offer? In the Northeast, NJ, NY, PA, and DE easily have 150+ applicants for the majority of the positions that are posted (so I'm told on all the interviews I attend). Our area is saturated with people so the odds are stacked against me. Are things better? Worse? Same in Austin?

Thank you for your feedback!

Doug

[Denver303TJC]

Originally Posted by DouglasK919

Is anyone in education that could speak to the current opportunities Austin has to offer? In the Northeast, NJ, NY, PA, and DE easily have 150+ applicants for the majority of the positions that are posted (so I'm told on all the interviews I attend). Our area is saturated with people so the odds are stacked against me. Are things better? Worse? Same in Austin?

Thank you for your feedback!

Doug

Hi Doug,

I'm planning on going to grad school to get my MA in Education this Spring, then I want to be a teacher afterwards; So, I'm not currently a teacher but plan on being one in Fall 2017 (although I'll be in DFW or Houston, most likely). From what I've heard, Austin is getting saturated with teachers (as per what people told me when I did temp work for Pearson), but that's not to say it's impossible to find a job. People also said that many people with Education backgrounds work for the State of Texas, so perhaps that could be an option? Not the same as in a school, but still dealing with Education. If you're looking to be an admin, I'm not sure how competitive it is in Austin schools. I'd surmise that it's not plentiful pickings, but not a lost cause either.

I'm curious to see what others say, because down the road I've considered becoming a principal, after I meet the requirements for time taught in the classroom. My goal is to get licensed and get my MA in Education, then that will also give me better options in the future if I want to teach overseas again. Anyhow, hope you find something good in the Austin area!

[centralaustinite]

You won't see the same salaries as you did in NJ, they will be lower here. I wouldn't say the educational market in Austin is oversaturated but there is no shortage and there can be stiff competition.