Teacher Career Change

Marsha was in her 50s and hoping to make a career pivot. "Have I got chance?" she asked me. I'll tell you what I told her: Ageism in the job market is real. But, if you are prepared, you can overcome the obstacles. It had been years since she'd applied or interviewed for a job. We worked together on her resume, LinkedIn, networking, and interviewing to package her for the job she wanted. When she called to say she'd gotten an offer for a great new job in pharma, with a 30% pay increase, I was jumping up & down!! I want to be clear that this was not easy. It took a lot of focus. Here is the multi-pronged approach we worked on together: 🎯 Resume Strategy: ↳ Focus on impact ("Delivered $2M in savings" vs "25 years of experience") ↳ Go back no more than 15 years  ↳ Highlight current technical skills, leave off old ones ↳ Take the graduation year off all degrees ↳ Contact info should include only city, state (no street address) ↳ Ditch the AOL, and hotmail email addresses; they date you 🌐Networking Strategy: ↳ Reconnect with former colleagues & give them an update ↳ Practice talking about your skills and abilities ↳ Speak to others who've successfully overcome the age barrier ↳ Make sure your LinkedIn profile follows best practices ↳ Work toward 500+ connections ↳ Post and comment on LinkedIn weekly 🏢 Employer Strategy: ↳ Target 40-50 companies with age-diverse cultures ↳ Talk to people in similar roles & ask about key skills ↳ Ask HR/recruiters about their hiring process ↳ Follow each employer on social media to learn priorities 💡 Interview Strategy: ↳ Lead with energy and genuine interest ↳ Show you've done your research with deep preparation ↳ Be ready with stories that include cross-generational work ↳ Share examples of your adaptability and growth mindset ↳ Talk about new skills you've built and show you're on top of trends ↳ Communicate your experience working with diverse people 🤵🏼Personal Strategy: ↳ Take additional courses & certifications to keep your skills fresh ↳ Stay current in your field with podcasts and social media ↳ Make reasonable adjustments to your appearance ↳ Clothes should fit well and be current, but not "trendy" ↳ Avoid language that "dates" you (ask a trusted younger friend) Remember: You're not "overqualified" You have battle-tested wisdom. That, along with these strategies, will set you up as a strong candidate! ♻ Repost to help people who are facing ageism in their job search 🔔 Follow Sarah Baker Andrus for more strategic career insights

I sent an offer letter to a candidate who had been trying to transition out of teaching. When I called to tell them they got the job, the first thing they said to me was: “I didn’t think I would get this job because I didn’t think I had the skills to do anything but teach since it’s majority of my experience.” Now they’ll be working in our call center, helping customers daily and I’m so glad we saw what they didn’t yet see in themselves. Teachers have incredibly valuable skills that transfer seamlessly into corporate roles. Some of the skills they had on their resume? • Skilled in conflict resolution and de-escalation, consistently mediating issues between students, parents, and colleagues in high-pressure environments • Proven time management abilities, successfully balancing lesson planning, grading, meetings, and classroom instruction within tight daily schedules • Strong verbal and written communication skills, experienced in conveying complex information to diverse audiences including students, parents, and administrators • Customer service-oriented mindset, with experience handling inquiries, resolving concerns, and building positive relationships with families and stakeholders They didn’t leave the classroom empty-handed, they brought a full skillset with them. Congrats to them! 👏🏽

Everyone researches job reqs when planning a pivot. Almost nobody does this instead. If you're trying to pivot, the worst part isn't updating your resume. It's sitting there thinking, "Where do I even begin?" I've seen this happen a lot with senior professionals who want to move into a different lane. - They're capable. - They've built rock-solid careers. - But a pivot still feels like starting from scratch. Here's the LinkedIn search almost nobody runs. Let's say you're a teacher who wants to become a project manager. Your brain immediately goes to certifications, courses, and if you're "qualified." And suddenly it feels overwhelming. There's a simpler way. Find others who've already made that move. 1. Go to your LinkedIn homepage. 2. Type "Teacher" into the search bar. 3. Then click on "People." 4. Then hit "All filters." 5. Add "Project Manager" to keywords. Now you're seeing people who used to be teachers and are now project managers instead of guessing or building some imaginary bridge in your head. You're looking at proof. That makes it real. Let's go one step further now. Open a few profiles and look at their timelines. - What role did they take first? - Did they move straight into PM? - Was there a stepping stone midway? - What are they using in their headlines? - What did they emphasize from teaching? You'll start to see patterns. And once you see patterns, your pivot stops feeling like a leap into the dark. Now, at some point, you're going to think, "Okay… but how do I actually reach out?" Keep the message short. Tell them you found their profile while researching the pivot. Ask one question about how they did it. I dropped a template in the comments. You're not trying to impress them, you're just a person noticing someone a few steps ahead on a path you're considering. Sometimes that's enough to start a real conversation.

I see so many posts each day of educators venting their frustrations about applying to tons of jobs with no luck. Job hunting is hard on a good day, and making a career pivot is even more difficult. I get it, I've been there more than once. If what you're doing isn't working, here are some ideas: 1️⃣ Take a step back, stop applying, step away from your resume, and get intentional. 2️⃣ Make a list of all of the skills you've acquired in your current career. Not tasks, skills. Then, narrow that down to the 3-5 skills you want to use and develop regularly in your new career. 3️⃣ Identity a professional and/or personal value that aligns to each skill. Don't skip this part! This is the 'why.' 4️⃣ Research careers and job roles based on your skills and values. Network with people in those roles. 5️⃣ Pick your top 3 role types based on your research. Take your resume and make 3 digital copies. Start aligning your resume to each role type. (For example, I had a content marketing resume, an instructional design resume, and a corporate training resume.) 6️⃣ As you read job descriptions, look for your skills and values in them. If a job description doesn't match at least 3 of the 5 skill/value sets you've identified, it's not for you--don't apply. Stay focused. I transitioned out of the classroom in just 3 months back in 2022 using this method. Then, I changed industries in 2024 in under 3 months using the same process. I can't guarantee what your timeline will be, but this technique works. When you're clear about what you want and what you bring to the table and can communicate it succinctly, it's easier for others to see how your personality and former experience make you a great candidate. Try it. What have you got to lose? 👇🏿👇🏻👇🏼👇🏽👇🏾👇🏿👇🏻👇🏼👇🏽👇🏾👇🏿 Hi, I'm Lauren and I'm a #formerteacher turned Creative Marketing Manager. Follow me for more content related to #education, #mentalhealth, and #transitioningteachers!

🚨 2025 is the worst year to move from teaching to L&D. I’ve seen this take floating around… and I couldn’t disagree more. This week alone I had 3 calls with aspiring teachers making the switch. Interest is higher than ever. And honestly? That’s a good thing. Here’s the nuance 👇 ➡️ In teaching, the focus is the learner. ➡️ In L&D, the focus shifts: it’s about helping people change behavior in service of business goals. And that’s where reality hits. Because once you land in L&D, you meet… limitations: ⚡ Stakeholder management drama ⚡ Platform access headaches ⚡ Budget constraints ⚡ Local bureaucracy rules ⚡ And, of course, the politics nobody told you about No matter how many prep courses you take, these challenges will still appear. They’re messy, they’re unique to every company, and they take practice to navigate. And here’s the secret: 👉 No amount of courses will prepare you for every corporate challenge. So instead of telling teachers-turned-L&D to memorize another “Top 10 Things You Must Learn” list… I’d rather highlight what you already bring to the table: ✅ Classroom management = stakeholder wrangling ✅ Curriculum planning = end-to-end program design ✅ Differentiation = personalization and accessibility ✅ Assessment = measuring impact ✅ Storytelling = engagement superpower And that’s just scratching the surface. 🔥 So here’s what teachers ALREADY bring to L&D (skills that give you a serious edge over other career switchers, even from HR). With this post, I want to support people who are joining the same journey I chose years ago myself. ➡️ Save & share this with someone in your network who’s considering the jump. And if you’ve made the leap already - what was the most transferable skill for you?

🚨 #Transitioningteachers: Stop doom-scrolling LinkedIn looking for jobs. If your entire strategy is refreshing the same oversaturated job boards as everyone else… You’re not job searching. You’re entering the most crowded room in the market. And it’s draining your energy. The most competitive boards = the least strategic use of your effort. If you want traction, you have to search smarter. Here are a few of the job boards I actually recommend 👇 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 & 𝗔𝗱𝗷𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱𝘀 • EdSurge: https://lnkd.in/gZvN8sDM • Edtechjobs: https://edtechjobs.io/ • Skip: https://edskip.com/ • EdTech: https://www.edtech.com/ • HigherEdJobs: https://lnkd.in/gU8urqjy 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 & 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻-𝗗𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 • Union Jobs: https://www.unionjobs.com/ • Idealist: https://lnkd.in/gPTJ55Rg • Work for Good: https://workforgood.org/ • On Purpose Careers: https://lnkd.in/g9H4DGTN 𝗟𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 & 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 (There’s often less competition here) • City and county career sites • State government portals • Community colleges and universities • Public agencies (many post roles separately) A few strategy notes most people miss: ➝ Smaller niche boards = less saturated applicant pools ➝ Government roles often value educators’ leadership + systems experience ➝ Search by job title AND the problem you solve (ex: "Training Specialist" + "slow onboarding times") Don’t just search harder. Search intentionally. 🎯 Save this for later. Repost so another teacher finds it. And drop a board I missed below 👇 ___ I’m Carissa 👋 I help overworked and undervalued teachers and administrators transition into fulfilling, sustainable careers without burning out or starting over. 🔔 Follow for honest transition strategy and grounded clarity ♻️ Repost for an educator who needs to see this 📅 Book a free Career Clarity Call to build your exit plan (link in bio)

The biggest mistake career pivoters and transitioning teachers make? ❌ Not having clarity. Many transitioning teachers are at the end of their rope.  They want to “hurry up and leave teaching.” They desperately list on their headline every possible career: Customer Success, Project Management, Edtech, Copywriting. ❌ This approach does NOT work. Here's why: ➡ If you aren't clear and specific about what you are looking for, it will be hard to convince a hiring manager or recruiter that you are the right fit. Once I decided to change careers, I started by evaluating my skills and strengths. I listened to teacher transition podcasts. I found teachers who had successfully transitioned out of the classroom. I heard project managers share about their roles, and it resonated with me. I knew I had the skills and passion for project management. I dove in to upskilling. I curated my resume to reflect a project management lens. Within 3 months, I was in a Project Manager role and passed the PMP exam. ➡ Take time to narrow in on the industry or career you want to be in. ➡ A focused, intentional resume and job search plan is what you need to successfully transition out of the classroom or into a new role. Don’t underestimate this step.  If you don't have a plan, you're not ready to apply to jobs. Make a plan. Know what you want. If you need help with resources, send me a DM. Bonus: Another mistake I see career pivotors make? Vague headlines. ➡ Make sure your headline is clear in what you are looking for. Don’t focus on being a “transitioning" teacher or “former military.” Your headline is a first impression and what we see when you leave comments. Make it count. #transitioningteachers #careerpivot #jobseekertips #projectmanagment

5 skills that helped me move from teaching high school math to becoming a Data Scientist: 1. Communication I used to explain algebra to teenagers. Now I explain models to stakeholders. Same skill, different audience. 2. Problem Solving Teaching taught me to think on my feet. That same mindset helps me debug models faster than I ever fixed lesson plans. 3. Adaptability Tech changes constantly. My ability to learn new tools quickly came straight from years in the classroom. 4. Commitment I kept going when things didn’t click right away. That discipline from teaching is what carried me through tech. 5. Clarity The best data scientists don’t hide behind jargon. They make the complex sound simple. ✨ Teaching prepared me for data science in ways no bootcamp ever could. You already have transferable skills. You just have to see them differently. P.S. What’s one skill from your past job that still helps you today? #DataSistah 📌 Save this if you’re pivoting careers. 🔁 Share this to remind someone their experience still counts.

Advice for #transitioningteachers heading into 2025: Some of these are hard pills to swallow, but stick with me–– 💡 "EdTech" is not a role. It's a whole field/industry that encompasses a host of actual roles. Do some research, pick a lane, and network within that lane. 💡 Study the upskilling required to transition into the type of role you're focusing on; you may have a wealth of general skills and experience, but Instructional Design, L&D, and curriculum roles require specific experience and knowledge that classroom instruction alone may not provide. More importantly, you also need to learn to discuss your experience in ways that will translate to people in these fields. I speak from experience when I say that folks who have never taught don't usually understand how that experience will translate into these positions. 💡 Chances are good that you haven't actually designed curriculum; you've delivered curriculum (or lessons/materials), but most K-12 teachers haven't actually designed curriculum at any sort of scale. Research how to discuss your actual experience honestly but persuasively. 💡 Much of the work you've done outside of the classroom is what's going to land you your next role. I taught for 15 years, but most teachers have similar classroom experiences. What landed me my current ID role was more than a decade of working directly with SMEs on assignment and course design, designing and delivering hundreds of workshops to audiences beyond students, and designing and delivering training and professional development for my staff of 50+ tutors; those skills and experiences differentiated me from hundreds of teachers whose work happened almost exclusively in the classroom. 💡 Networking entails a whole lot more than building a follower count on LinkedIn. Just because you're connected with someone doesn't mean they're going to have a meeting with you or offer you a referral; no one owes you anything. Conversely, there are plenty of incredibly helpful folks on this platform who create insightful, educational content for job seekers. 💡 Don't get sucked into the echo chamber of transitioning teachers. You know the phrase, "Dress for the job you want and not the job you have"? The same applies to networking when you're on the job market. If you want to be, say, an Instructional Designer, you should be concentrating your time on this platform learning from experienced Instructional Designers. While I have immense love for transitioning educators, they can also be a pretty insufferable bunch sometimes. I've been in too many online groups of transitioning teachers that quickly devolve into grousing, blaming, and generally cringe-y whining. Stay as far away from that nonsense as possible.

Most difficult part of transitioning out of teaching? Not having the slightest idea what other jobs were even out there 😳 and what would be a good fit for me. I've wanted to be a teacher from the day I was born. ...and the only other jobs I knew were the cliches--doctor, lawyer, policewoman... firefighter 🤷🏽♀️ It took months of conversations, reading, listening, and research to get a handle on what options were actually available in the "real" world. It was stressful, exhausting, and discouraging. So how does one go from teacher to ... something else? Start having informational interviews. -What? An informational interview is an opportunity to learn more about a role without the intention of getting hired. -Why: Because as teachers we have no idea what we want to be when we grow up. You THINK you want to be an instructional designer, customer success manager, SDR, marketer, Human Resources manager, account manager, recruiter… But *spoiler alert* you ACTUALLY don’t have a clue if you want to be these things… -How: 1. Find a person/people who has/have this job. 2. Start in their comments. Show them you’re invested in who they are and what they’re bringing to LI 3. Once they would recognize your name, slip into their DMs and ask them if they wouldn’t mind having a five minute conversation about their day to day. 4. Have pre written questions at the ready. *what does your every day look like? *what are the best and worst parts of your job? *what skillset do you utilize most frequently? *what part of your job is the most fufilling? * etc. 5. When you meet, ask the questions and make sure to take notes. 6. Send a follow up thank you after the call. 7. Rinse and repeat By the time you’re ready to apply/interview you’ll have a clear direction for what jobs are the best fit. Is this THE BEST METHOD to go from teacher to corporate? No idea. It is just what I did, and it worked, and I wanted to share. Teacher friends, you got this. 💪🏼