I have a BS in Dental Hygiene. I love that I can work part time and make good money while my children are young and not in school. However, it is not something I want to do the rest of my life nor do I receive any type of benefits package. I am interested in getting my teaching certificate for elementary school ages.
How would I go about that being that I already have a BS? Would my classes just transfer over and I would get another BS or would I just have to go through a certification program? My degee is from TWU and I know they have a teaching program. Should I just plan on meeting with a counselor? Also what would it take to become a school counselor? Would that just requre teaching experience or would I need to plan on getting my Masters?
Obviously everyone wants to spend as little time and money as possible. I would highly be interested in online courses or getting as many classes that I can at TCC first.
Thanks for the info and keep it coming. My youngest is only a month old so I have lots of time to complete schooling as I would not want to start until he goes to school. I realize the job market may be flooded right now but I always have dental hygiene to fall back on until I find something that suits me. Thanks again! I will probably talk to a counselor and start substitute teaching a little in the meantime.
Many school systems will hire you with a BS and sponsor your teacher certification. You can work as a teacher while you work toward certification. Check the school systems websites and contact the recruiters in the area. To become a counselor you have to do significantly more schooling. Masters definitely. You might have a hard time getting into a masters program for counseling with your Dental Hygiene BS.
I have my BS in Biology and I went through alternative certification to become a certified high school biology teacher. I was hired by a school system in NH that was willing to endorse me. This basically means that they just appointed a person who would serve as my mentor. There is a whole list of things that you need to prove you can do, most of which you accomplish by actually teaching. I had a lot of previous experience substitute teaching and volunteering, so the certification process was fairly easy for me. I made a 4-inch thick binder to prove myself, and voila, I was certified. It was really more of paperwork for me than anything else.
I later served as dept. head of the science dept where I helped other teachers go through the alt. process as well. I am sure it varies by state, but in NH there are specific alternatives geared toward teachers who want to be certified in what the state deems "critical shortage areas". With your background it may be a good move to try to teach science rather than elementary ed, if you want to try this route.
Please feel free to email me with questions you may have. The alt. process is very inexpensive and I think it is your best shot as far as being the easiest, cheapest, and least stressful.
Good luck!
Somewhere out there is program for you that will not take a hundred years, will not cost a lot and may obtain you a job. Do not feel discouraged. But do your homework. Check out several colleges besides the one you went to. I have thought about all of this myself. You never know what is transferable until you try. There are a lot of naysayers, but I say go for it, nothing ventured nothing gained. And no one can take that away from you. The time will go by anyway. If you are willing to be flexible you may be pleasantly surprised.
Just a heads up that getting a teaching job, depending on where you are located or willing to relocate, is hard to find. I have more friends then I can count on my hands and toes who have been looking for teaching positions for two years now (some have had success by moving out of state or taking any teaching job anywhere in the states BUT others can not move due to spouses job and are finding nothing with in a 60 mile radius).
I taught elementary before staying home with kids and am now trying to get a job teaching again. I will caution you in saying that just because you get a teaching degree, doesn't mean you will get a job. I have been trying for 1-2 years now and so have alot of my friends who are teachers and do have experience. If the economy will get better, I think there will be more teaching jobs, but right now, they are hard to get!
