By Ranjan K Baruah
Before publishing about NDA exam in the last edition, we had published career options related to education. We are publishing more information on education as a career. Some of the areas where one might get employment apart from regular teaching are as follows:
Curriculum Developer: Schools and textbook companies hire individuals with a Masters in Education to assist in the research and development of curriculum. This may be in different languages. These days, there are options in creating digital contents too.
Trainer/Motivator: Corporations prefer to higher individuals with Masters in Education who are highly skilled to train and motivate employees. Training and motivation are part of many companies to achieve more targets and business and hence they also contribute towards training. Aspirants must be well-skilled to be successful as trainer or motivator.
Tutor: Tutoring can be a very flexible and lucrative career option with a Masters in Education degree. This can be teaching directly or may be through online mode. Online mode of tutoring is new and is becoming popular.
Child Care: The knowledge and skills obtained with an MA/ M.Ed. will greatly equip you to provide leadership and support to children, teachers, and families of a developmentally appropriate child care programme. One may be working in the government sector or non-governmental sector when they are engaged with child care.
Educational Consultant: Many private schools hire consultants with Masters in Education for classroom design and management, increased parent involvement, fund-raising and motivating staff.
Counsellors: Academic counselling or career counselling is required for students and one may become counselors after completing course in Education. Career counseling and life skills have become important since school days which bring opportunity for trained, motivated and committed young people.
Educational Policy Developer: The government is interested in hiring candidates with Masters in Education to develop, revise and promote educational policies. This is important in countries like India and hence there are possibilities for young people to be into policy development.
Special Education Teachers: Special education teachers are highly trained individuals who teach and supervise students with diagnosed emotional or physical impairment. They are the teachers who help prepare, implement and assess Individualised Education Programs. They may create specialized curriculum to meet the student’s requirements.
Managing NGOs: NGOs which are focused on educational development needs qualified people and aspirants from education background may be part of similar NGOPs or other civil society organisations.
Like MA in education we also hear about B Ed and M Ed. Well, B Ed course can be pursued after graduation. It prepares teachers for upper primary or middle level, secondary and senior secondary classes at the school level according to the National Council of Teacher Education (NCTE). It is usually a one-year course that can be pursued only after a Bachelor’s degree. Similarly one may think of M Ed after completing B Ed course. B Ed degree can be matched to a variety of career options other than just school teaching.
Students may also go for higher education like MPhil or PhD in education. Every one may not get job immediately. What we need is to think like ‘edupreneurs’ and plan ahead to be in the industry or in the sector. One must be well-trained and it is good to have exposure of the current scenario. It is important to be technologically sound.
(Ranjan K Baruah is a career mentor and can be reached at [email protected] or 9864055558 for any career related queries)