Texas Career Guide for the Teaching & Education Fields

Written by Jenn Zukowski

The Best Education Jobs

What are the best jobs in Texas schools? Whether it's a higher education job or other types of teaching careers, working in the education field can be a great way to enrich one's working life and engage with a fulfilling career. But what are the best teaching careers, what are the highest paying jobs in higher education, and how can the qualifications be met to achieve one of these jobs?

Of course, the first thing one usually thinks of when considering education careers is teaching. There are all kinds of teaching careers to choose from, and some don't even require a four-year degree in education. Teaching assistants and teacher's aides in the K-12 system, as well as pre-K or preschool teachers, often require an associate degree or certifications only. Elementary, middle school, high school, and postsecondary teachers are very sought after, and a career in teaching at these levels can pay up to $80,000 per year, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Teaching in higher education often doesn't require a degree in education but rather advanced education in one's particular field of choice instead.

But teaching careers aren't the only jobs in schools that can make good education careers. Academic advisors, sports coaches, teacher's aides, school librarians, guidance counselors, school nurses, and administrative positions, including secretaries, registrars, and school principals, can be fulfilling careers in schools. These positions often pay more than the highest paying teaching position. In addition, consider a position as custodian, school bus driver, crossing guard, or food service provider.

Education Careers: Higher Education Jobs vs. K-12 Jobs

The decision to become a teacher is an important one that can lead to a rich and fulfilling lifelong career. There are all kinds of different ways to be a teacher at many different levels of education, and it's important to know which type is going to be the best fit.

Early Childhood Education Jobs

Starting with the youngest student body, there are teaching careers in early childhood education, childhood development, and daycare positions. These teachers are responsible for the enrichment and education of small children, from infancy through preschool. There are also teaching jobs at this level in ESL (English as a Second Language), which is for young children who don't yet speak English fluently, and in special education, which helps young children with disabilities thrive in their early education experience.

Teaching Jobs in K-12 education

Next, there is what is referred to as K-12 education, which includes kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, and high school age students. The curriculum and teaching duties will vary widely depending on what age and grade level a teacher is in charge of. A kindergarten teacher will often be doing some similar tasks as a preschool instructor, whereas a 4th-grade teacher will usually be in charge of all academic subjects for one classroom for a year at a time. A high school teacher will teach one subject in which they are best educated (English or science, for example) and teach multiple classrooms of students per day. The degree level and education requirements for these teaching careers will also vary widely, depending on the grade level and subject.

At the K-12 level, there are additional teaching and para-teaching opportunities available, such as teacher's assistants, sports coaches, art and physical education instructors, custodians, food service personnel, librarians, and administrators. These positions offer support and are essential to student success.

Non-Teaching Positions for K-12

There are many jobs in K-12 schools that are not teaching, and they often pay as much if not more than teaching positions do. These roles are also essential for a prosperous and well-run school, with happy, healthy, and successful students.

• Custodian: Keeping the school space clean is vital for a flourishing educational environment, and it's up to the custodians to make sure that happens. A more specialized custodian will also be in charge of the maintenance work and basic repairs of the school.
• Food Service: These positions entail preparing breakfast, lunch, and snacks for students, as well as various kitchen duties.
• Crossing Guard: Especially for the younger students in the early years of K-12, a guide for safe school entrance is vital.
• Teacher's Assistant (TA): Depending on the classroom, a Teacher's Assistant may take on some light teaching or tutoring duties.
• Coach: Sports coaching is a good way to interact with the students and help them succeed in a non-teacher capacity through athletics. Anything from an assistant coach to an athletic director are jobs in this category.
• Bus Driver: Drivers of school buses are in high demand, and are essential in transporting students safely from home to school and back.
• Counselor: Whether it's guidance counseling for a student's next step in life or a school psychologist with a scientific background, being a school counselor means adding to the well-being of the student body.
• School Nurse: This non-teaching position requires a high level of education.
• Principal/Vice-Principal: These crucial positions are necessary for a facility to run smoothly.
• Receptionist: Heads the central office of the school.

Higher Education Jobs

After high school, there are higher education jobs, including postsecondary teaching. These teaching jobs are very different from early education and K-12; all higher-ed professors teach classes solely in their specific field, in which they need to have at least a Master's degree level of education themselves. Classes are on a semester by semester basis and will vary in pay from adjuncts, who are paid by contracted credit hour each semester, all the way up to tenured professors, who are salaried and have full benefits packages, job security, and are required to have a Ph.D. in their field. Administrators at the postsecondary level are usually the highest-paid positions of all education careers, besides college sports coaches.

Non-Teaching Positions in Higher Education

It certainly takes a village to keep a college or university running smoothly, and this can only happen if there are numerous people working jobs alongside the faculty. Again, some of these positions can even pay more than the teachers fetch.

• Coach: If you've got the know-how and the inside knowledge to get in, a college sports coach can make millions.
• Office Assistant: all departments and administrative divisions have an office, and every office needs workers with good organizational and communication skills.
• Academic Advisor: Sometimes, it's faculty that are in charge of this job, but more often these days, it's an administrator who can focus on just this non-teaching side of college organizing and give students a good guide as to what path to take through their degree.
• Administrator: There are so many of these great (and well-paying) jobs available at the college level, from registrars to deans, and they're there to help organize and run smoothly any number of offices, committees, and divisions in a higher education institution.
• Groundskeeper/Landscaper: Those beautiful quads and gorgeous ivy-clad walls won't maintain themselves!
• Custodian: responsible for the cleanliness and maintenance of the many rooms or buildings on a college campus takes a good band of janitors to make sure everything looks clean, polished, and is working well.
• Food Service: On campuses with dormitories and/or food courts, food service workers of all kinds are essential. Sometimes these jobs can even include bartending, or being a barista!
• Alumni Relations: Robust relationships with graduated students are a big part of the continuing vibrance of colleges and universities, and they need people-pleasers to lead those charges.
• Public Relations/Marketing: You don't have to be a teacher of marketing to be a vital part of the growth of a higher education institution, recruiting new students and faculty to join the community of the college. You just have to know how to advertise it.

Pay Me: The Highest Paying Jobs in Education

The Occupational Outlook Handbook (at bls.gov) provides a base rate of pay for most jobs in education, and there is as wide of a range of pay as there is in job descriptions.

The highest-paid teachers are those who teach at the postsecondary (or university) level on a full-time or tenured basis, and in fields such as law, economics, engineering, and health. Those positions can pay almost $200,000 per year. However, some of the lowest-paid teachers in education are also at the postsecondary level. For example, adjunct faculty members usually make between $20,000 and $30,000 per year, and professors in the humanities as a whole are usually paid less than professors or instructors in other fields. Four-year universities offer a greater rate of pay than community colleges; however, many community colleges require professors to hold a Master's degree, whereas four-year universities may require professors to have a Ph.D. in their field.

Postsecondary Teaching Careers and What They Pay

According to the BLS, these are some of the 2023 median pay rates for full-time and/or tenured faculty positions for various types of postsecondary teachers:

• Law: $127,360
• Economics: $115,300
• Engineering: $16,910
• Business: $97,130
• Psychology: $82,140
• Nursing: $80,780
• Art, Drama, Music: $80,360
• Foreign Language and Literature: $78,130
• Education: $73,240

Some of the highest-paying jobs in education are in the administrative sector; postsecondary education administrators can make close to $100,000 per year, and an elementary school principal can make nearly that amount as well.

Educator Education

Below is a basic rundown of what kinds of degrees, certifications, or other requirements are needed to be qualified for the various teaching jobs that are out there, according to the BLS:

• Preschool (pre-K) Teachers: Associate Degree
• Kindergarten, Elementary School, and ESL Teachers: Bachelor's Degree
• Career & Vo-Tech Teachers: Bachelor's Degree
• Special Education Teachers: Bachelors or Master's Degree
• Middle School Teachers: Bachelor's Degree
• High School Teachers: Bachelor's Degree
• Postsecondary Teachers (junior college/community college): Master's Degree
• Postsecondary Teachers (university): Ph.D.

Usually, a teacher for the K-12 age group is required to have a degree in education to be qualified to teach in a classroom. Depending on the school (and often whether it's a private or a public school), a high school teacher may need their degree to be in the subject they teach. Postsecondary instructors and professors will always need to have advanced degrees in their area of teaching and expertise, in order to teach in a college or university classroom. Even adjunct faculty and teachers at community colleges tend to face high-level competition for their teaching jobs, and will often be required to have a higher level or terminal advanced degree (like an MFA or MBA), or even a Ph.D.

TExES Exams

The Texas Educator Certification Programs are essential for any Texan wanting to move forward in their career in education. After all, TExES teacher certification is necessary for most teaching jobs (especially those in K-12), and the TExES exams are an easy way to get this credential taken care of before entering the education field. The TExES exams are a great way to make sure a prospective teacher has all the proper credentials in place needed to enter the education field ready to tackle the best teaching jobs in Texas.

It's a simple process; after the TExES exam registration with the State Board for Educator Certification/Texas Education, then it's merely a matter of going through the preparation and then testing process:

• Check out the step-by-step guide online (TExEStest.org)
• Find the correct TExES preparation manual for the certification exam of interest
• Find the tutorials, guides, and other resources for the upcoming test
• Sign up online to register for the exam
• The TExES test can be taken up to four (4) times in order to achieve an optimal score

Getting the Best Credentials for Education in Texas

Texas is a great state for finding solid credentials for educational job goals besides the TExES exams. Not only does Texas boast a long list of schools where a prospective teacher can get associate, bachelor's, or even graduate degrees in education, but Texas has also won accolades as far as high quality and affordability, such as the Kiplinger's Best College Values and the U.S. News & World Report's Best of lists for education.

Depending on what level of certification or degree is necessary for a job at the level of a job seeker's choice, there are plenty of high-ranking Texas programs that will fit the bill. Those listed below are only some of the Texas schools that ranked high for education degrees - there are so many more to choose from just in Texas alone.

U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Education Programs (Latest online rankings: 2024)

What are the best education careers out there, and how can a job-searcher land the one best suited for them? Jobs in schools, whether they're higher education jobs or other kinds of teaching careers, can be a fruitful and fulfilling life path in a field made for improving the community. Knowing what direction to look in as you embark on your own education can help you achieve your goals within the education field. Get the proper degree or certification, take the TExES exams, and keep your sights set on the highest paying, most fun, most fulfilling, or all three, jobs in education to best match your expertise and goals.