You took early retirement, now what?

Imagine you are working at your long-term job. You enjoy interactions with colleagues, the work you do, you have become an expert in your field and look forward to your days in the office.  And then COVID-19 hits…

Thirty days later your company has moved all employees home for safety reasons due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Sixty days after that you have taken early retirement. With the sudden downturn in business due to the pandemic, the company needed to downsize, and you either left earlier than planned or were nudged into retirement.

You are not alone. The total number of workers age 55+ in the U.S. economy shrank from 37.8 million in February, before the COVID-19-related layoffs began to take effect, to 32.7 million in May (Marketwatch, Hannon, June 2020).

You enjoyed retirement but are concerned about financial security

Although you are enjoying your retirement, you are not ready to be done working and are also concerned about your financial security. You have much to offer in experience and expertise and miss being in the workforce. You are contemplating a second career that will be stable and fulfilling. Maybe teaching.

Explore a second career as a teacher

Some of the best teachers start in fields like business, scientific research, and the arts. Is the classroom calling you? Becoming a second-career teacher may be easier than you think.

If you already possess a bachelor’s degree in the subject you’d like to teach but lack the required teacher-education courses for certification, you can become a K-12 teacher relatively quickly through a Graduate Teaching Licensure or Master of Teaching program.

Why become a teacher?

• It is an essential job in society
• Share your acquired knowledge
• Want to make a difference in the lives of children
• Incredibly fulfilling
• Income and benefits

Michael Hildebrandt said it well in his doctoral dissertation, “If you decide to become a second-career teacher, you’ll bring the benefit of your experience, expertise, and enthusiasm to the classroom. You’ll also bring a unique perspective to your career and share information about your subject area that other teachers don’t have.”

The educational transition to teaching

Many colleges offer programs for adult learners to become teachers. The College of St. Scholastica offers a fully online program that can be done from the comfort of your own home until you are ready to start student teaching.

Recent graduate Wade Petrich found teaching as a second career and is currently working as a middle school teacher. “This program is designed to make you successful if you’re looking to make a transition into education,” Petrich ’18.

To learn more visit us at css.edu/gtl.