Switching careers - lawyer to a teacher

[Anonymous]

Any former lawyers out there who have successfully made the transition from a lawyer to a teacher? I'd love to teach either middle school or high school government, but I'm not sure I'm up for going back to school to get my masters. For anyone who has made the switch, I'd be interested to hear the path you took and whether you are glad you did it.

[Anonymous]

You cannot be serious.

[Anonymous]

Please check out the threads about what teachers think about their jobs first, hon.

[Anonymous]

You don't *have* to get a masters if you teach at a private school.

[Anonymous]

Look into alt cert programs where you can at least earn some $ while you train to become a teacher - Urban Teacher Center, TNTP, TFA, Inspired Teaching, etc. Also, DC charters don't require certification usually but hard to get hired without teaching experience.

[Anonymous]

I think you will love it. I wish I had pursued teaching, what an impact you will make.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think you will love it. I wish I had pursued teaching, what an impact you will make.

But you did NOT pursue teaching...what makes you think this person will love it? Teachers are not loving it currently.Although, the legal background will certainly help as teachers need to lawyer up pretty much all the time.

[Anonymous]

As hard as it is, every time I walk in the classroom, I am happy. Every time.

I hope it works out well for you, OP.

[Anonymous]

Good luck, OP! I have a friend who did this--started teaching middle school and is just about the happiest person on earth now. Loves going to work every day. I wish I knew the specifics of the certification; I'll try to find out.

[Anonymous]

I would shadow a teacher for a few days to make sure this is what you want to do. Many public schools offer some reimbursement for graduate classes.

[Anonymous]

I have a relative to went back to law school in his late 40's because he couldn't stand teaching anymore...

[Anonymous]

I made the switch from marketing to teaching middle school. Agree with PP that I'm so happy in the classroom. But I also got very lucky - maternity leave sub position in high performing school district turned into tenure-track position when the teacher decided not to come back. Supportive administration, not too testing-crazy because our students overwhelmingly pass. But, things have changed a lot over the past five years and even despite my comfortable situation, there's a lot more scrutiny from administration and parents. Budgets are a lot tighter too. And the red tape in my district to get administrative approvals for anything is very frustrating.

The first couple of years were extremely hard as far as planning and grading. It took a long time to figure out the best routine for me - usually involves arriving by 6:45am - if I get there after 7 I feel like I'm running late. Planning and lunch periods are inevitably eaten up by meetings. I leave between 4 and 5:30, depending on the day, and often do an hour or two of work at home (occasionally more). When I first started I was in the building 7am-7pm with a couple more hours of work at home.

I would recommend the Masters, but be sure this is what you want to do before you make a switch. I did my MA at night while working my corporate job full time. It was really hard and I didn't have kids at the time, but I felt really prepared. I know people who did programs like Teaching Fellows and it was very sink or swim. Most left after 3-5 years. Probably goes without saying but be prepared for a pay cut. I knew going in that my salary would drop but I didn't realize how frustrating it would be at times, when I felt like I was working harder and having more success than teachers who had been there for 20 years and were paid 2x my salary. Also be prepared for the teachers union. I often don't agree with the teachers union but have learned to keep my mouth shut and fly under the radar.

All that said, I love my job. I have never laughed so much in my life or had so much fun at work, as when I'm teaching. I love being creative with lessons and I adore my students, some of whom I still keep in touch with ten years later.

(And before anyone asks, I'm on maternity leave which is why I'm posting in the middle of the school day)

[Anonymous]

I moved from finance to teaching after going back to school for certification. But right now there are not a lot of jobs for social studies teachers. If you're serious about making the switch, you should look into a field that is more in demand like science, math, ESL, Spanish (if you happen to be bilingual). I wanted to teach social studies too but I also got certified to teach Spanish (bilingual), so all the offers I got at the time were for Spanish teachers. I eventually made the switch to social studies and loved it.


Good luck.

[Anonymous]

One awful profession to another.

[Anonymous]

I'm making the same switch, OP. Don't let the negativity hold you back. If you think you'd be a good teacher, and you think you'd enjoy being in the classroom, start to look into it. Maybe spend a day shadowing a teacher to see what you think. Good luck!