Jobs for former teachers, and how to move into one
Teachers who leave the classroom tend to land in jobs that still involve teaching, just to a different audience: adults at work, customers learning a product, or other teachers. Planning lessons, explaining hard things simply and managing a room of people are skills other employers pay for.
Below are the moves former teachers make most often, what each one asks for, and a first step you could take this week. If you are not sure which fits, tell Carmen what you teach and which parts of the job you would keep.
Talk to Carmen
Your AI career coach
Say it the way you’d say it to a friend. Carmen will ask what she needs to know.
$69,280 a year
Median training and development specialist pay, May 2025
BLS Occupational Outlook HandbookJobs former teachers move into
Instructional designer
Builds online courses and training materials for companies, universities and edtech firms. It is lesson planning with a bigger budget and no bell schedule. Suits teachers who like designing units more than delivering them.
- What it takes
- No license needed. Employers want a portfolio more than a certificate, and learning a course-authoring tool helps.
- First step
- Take one unit you already teach and rebuild it as a short self-paced online module to use as your first portfolio piece.
Corporate trainer or learning and development specialist
Runs onboarding, skills training and workshops for employees. Suits teachers who are at their best in front of a room and like seeing people get it.
- Pay
- $69,280 median, May 2025 (training and development specialists)
- What it takes
- Usually a bachelor's degree. BLS lists education as one of the fields these specialists come from.
- First step
- Rewrite three bullets from your résumé so they describe training adults (new teacher mentoring, PD sessions, parent nights) in plain business terms.
Instructional coordinator or curriculum specialist
Develops curriculum, chooses materials and coaches teachers on using them, usually for a district or school. Suits experienced teachers who want to shape how a subject is taught.
- Pay
- $77,440 median, May 2025
- What it takes
- BLS lists a master's degree and 5 years or more of related experience, such as teaching, as typical.
- First step
- Ask your district's curriculum office whether they have committee or summer writing work you can join.
Customer success or onboarding at an edtech company
Helps schools and teachers get set up with a product and keep using it. Your classroom experience is exactly what these companies want when they talk to their customers.
- What it takes
- No license needed. Knowing the tools schools already use is a real advantage.
- First step
- List the edtech products you use every week and look at each company's careers page for customer success or implementation roles.
Education program manager at a nonprofit
Runs tutoring, literacy, after-school or youth programs: planning, staff, budgets and reporting to funders. Suits teachers who like the mission of education but want more say over how a program runs.
- What it takes
- Usually a bachelor's degree plus teaching or program experience. Grant and budget experience helps.
- First step
- Volunteer to help run one after-school or summer program so you can point to something you managed end to end.
School counselor
Helps students with academic planning, social and emotional needs, and college or career choices. Suits teachers who want to stay in schools but spend more time with individual students.
- Pay
- $64,330 median, May 2025 (school and career counselors and advisors)
- What it takes
- BLS lists a master's degree as typical, and public school counselors need a state-issued credential.
- First step
- Look up your state's school counselor credential requirements and talk to your building's counselor about what the job is really like.
Human resources or recruiting
Hires, onboards and supports employees. Teachers bring years of hard conversations with parents, careful documentation and reading people quickly. Many start in recruiting, often for schools, districts or education companies.
- Pay
- $75,940 median, May 2025 (human resources specialists)
- What it takes
- Usually a bachelor's degree. A certification can help later but is rarely needed to start.
- First step
- Ask your district HR office if you can help with interviews or new-hire orientation this spring.
Specific moves, step by step
What carries over, what to build, a 90-day plan and your résumé rewritten for each one.
Sample conversation
How a conversation with Carmen starts
Carmen asks before she suggests. An illustrative example, not a real person.
Nine years teaching 7th grade science. I love the kids, I can't do the rest of it anymore.
Nine years is a lot of planning, explaining and managing thirty people at once. Which part would you miss most if it disappeared tomorrow?
Building the labs, honestly. Figuring out how to make something click.
Then instructional design is the first thing to look at. It is that part of your job, all day, for adults. Want me to help turn one of your labs into a portfolio piece?
Work it out with Carmen, free
30 free minutes with Carmen and the team. No card needed.
Questions & answers
- What jobs can former teachers do?
- Instructional design, corporate training, curriculum work, edtech customer success, nonprofit program management, school counseling, HR and recruiting, and school administration. Most of them use the planning, explaining and people skills you use every day.
- Will I take a pay cut if I leave teaching?
- Not necessarily, but it depends on the role and where you live. Compare real postings in your area against your current salary and benefits, including pension and summers, before deciding.
- How long does a career change from teaching take?
- Many teachers plan it across one school year: build proof of the new skill in the fall and winter, apply in spring, and start in summer. Moves that need a new degree or credential, like counseling or administration, take longer.
- Can I move into school administration instead of leaving?
- Yes. BLS notes that principals need several years of teaching experience and typically a master's degree. Assistant principal is a common first step.
More for teachers
Change careers
Sources
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: High School Teachers
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Training and Development Specialists
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Instructional Coordinators
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: School and Career Counselors and Advisors
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Human Resources Specialists
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Elementary, Middle, and High School Principals
Last checked September 29, 2026.