How difficult is it to find a teaching job in Pittsburgh?

[trackstar13]

Originally Posted by Moby Hick

I'm not disagreeing with your point about how hard it is to get a teaching job. But, I'm pointing out that tenured teachers can lose their jobs for economic reasons.

I think you are both right in this argument and while tenured teachers can lose their jobs, they are also the first to be re-hired when those positions come back if they ever do. Correct me if I am wrong, but I also believe furloughed city of Pittsburgh teachers have the opportunity to teach at another school within the district if a job opens up. An outside applicant with no experience in the particular district is so far down the list of potential applicants before the hiring process is even initiated. You can have a long list of furloughed, tenured teachers, one year contract teachers, permanent and part-time substitute teachers, student aides/teachers, etc. before you even get to the list of other outside applicants who apply to the job. It is incredibly hard to get a full-time teaching job in the Pittsburgh region.

[villageidiot1]

Originally Posted by trackstar13

I think you are both right in this argument and while tenured teachers can lose their jobs, they are also the first to be re-hired when those positions come back if they ever do. Correct me if I am wrong, but I also believe furloughed city of Pittsburgh teachers have the opportunity to teach at another school within the district if a job opens up. An outside applicant with no experience in the particular district is so far down the list of potential applicants before the hiring process is even initiated. You can have a long list of furloughed, tenured teachers, one year contract teachers, permanent and part-time substitute teachers, student aides/teachers, etc. before you even get to the list of other outside applicants who apply to the job. It is incredibly hard to get a full-time teaching job in the Pittsburgh region.

Agree with you up to the point you list "one year contract teachers, permanent and part-time substitute teachers, student aides/teachers, etc." These people have little advantage over someone off the street. It might be true that these people have less of a chance to be hired for a teaching position since the district would rather keep these people in the positions they are filling. Good aides and subs are difficult to find. If you have an aide who is a certified teacher, you have a bargain.

[trackstar13]

Originally Posted by villageidiot1

Agree with you up to the point you list "one year contract teachers, permanent and part-time substitute teachers, student aides/teachers, etc." These people have little advantage over someone off the street. It might be true that these people have less of a chance to be hired for a teaching position since the district would rather keep these people in the positions they are filling. Good aides and subs are difficult to find. If you have an aide who is a certified teacher, you have a bargain.

I think you are a little mistaken here and my best friend is a teacher in a suburban Pittsburgh school district and my sister and her husband are both teachers in the Pittsburgh area. All of them except my sister were hired as full time substitutes and networked with the right people and were eventually hired in the same district that they were working in at the time. Granted it took my friend 7 years of temporary and full time sub jobs as well as contract positions at multiple districts and it took my sister's husband 8 years of the same thing before they were able to get full time permanent jobs. My sister was hired from one permanent job in eastern PA to a permanent job in Pittsburgh and that took roughly 10 years. Of course many of the student aides and subs are exploited and never advance, but it is another inroads and definitely a better option than being an outsider. We can agree to disagree, but I think we are roughly on the same page and I know there are no guarantees because the teachers I know and just mentioned were in many dead end temporary situations before they found the right district and met the right people.

[villageidiot1]

Originally Posted by trackstar13

I think you are a little mistaken here and my best friend is a teacher in a suburban Pittsburgh school district and my sister and her husband are both teachers in the Pittsburgh area. All of them except my sister were hired as full time substitutes and networked with the right people and were eventually hired in the same district that they were working in at the time. Granted it took my friend 7 years of temporary and full time sub jobs as well as contract positions at multiple districts and it took my sister's husband 8 years of the same thing before they were able to get full time permanent jobs. My sister was hired from one permanent job in eastern PA to a permanent job in Pittsburgh and that took roughly 10 years. Of course many of the student aides and subs are exploited and never advance, but it is another inroads and definitely a better option than being an outsider. We can agree to disagree, but I think we are roughly on the same page and I know there are no guarantees because the teachers I know and just mentioned were in many dead end temporary situations before they found the right district and met the right people.

The majority of the teachers I see being hired are coming from a full-time teaching job either in the area or from out of state. I've seen a lot of teachers who started in Virginia and Florida. Many grads stay in PA hoping they will get lucky. It makes sense to hire someone who has been teaching full-time for a number of years, as opposed to a recent grad, or someone who has been subbing for a number of years.

[RonSantoRules]

I haven't read any replies, but took my spouse 7 months to find a teaching job last year when we moved here and spouse had 5+ years teaching experience (elementary ed). Start the certification stuff NOW. It will take a few months and probably require lots of paperwork and taking a few standardized tests. Good luck.

[punctus_contra_punctum]

It is worth noting than many (but not all) school districts utilize pa-educator.net for finding new staff (or at least for finding people to interview before they go with their preferred person). I would strongly suggest going there and setting up an account with your resume, certifications, clearances, etc. It will also give you an opportunity to browse what jobs are presently available.

As has been mentioned already, finding a teaching job in Western PA is no mean feat -- good luck.