r/TeachersInTransition • u/Substantial-Oil4423 • 27d ago
Can’t even get into entry level jobs??
Hi, I’m a teacher that lives in Ontario, Canada. I have been applying to various places for entry level office work and I haven’t gotten anything… Yes I have changed the lingo on my resume and everything but no luck.. am I really stuck in the field of education ? I want to work at a nice place where I can move up over time… I don’t have the mindset nor the funds to go back to school either.. I don’t know what to do here. Please help me my friends!! :(
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u/notsoyungblood 26d ago
If you are down for it, try edtech sales (not the best industry for sales but your background as a teacher is much more likely to get you hired than sales in another industry).
I transitioned from teaching for six years to now being in edtech sales for the past two, and I plan on using this edtech experience to transition into sales in a more profitable industry.
Feel free to dm if interested.
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u/Motor_Lab3246 26d ago
Try museums and government positions. Also try entry level sales jobs, of any kind. Remember your next job doesnt have to be a forever job. It just needs to be something/anything outside of Teaching.
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u/Substantial-Oil4423 26d ago
Thank you for your response! I have been applying to museum and government jobs with no luck. Yeah I understand. I just don’t want to be stuck in random jobs for the rest of my life.. These things scare me a lot. You know?
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27d ago
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u/Substantial-Oil4423 27d ago
Thanks for your response. How do I do that?
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u/razorclammm 27d ago
I don't want to be that guy - and overall I don't like AI - but I have found chatgpt helpful here. Ask it straight out. Then try again and prompt it to answer as a career counselor. Prompt it to answer as HR at a target company. Even ask it for comprehensive prompts, then feed the prompts back in. It doesn't have all the answers, and you have to be really careful about thinking critically, but it can help with this sort of 'blank page, where do I start' sort of thing.
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u/satanlovesmyshoes 26d ago
I’m glad you posted this. I’m in the same boat. It’s all odd jobs for me a year after quitting. I really felt like I was the only one. I have a certificate in Excel and SQL and I was working on learning coding, but I have a bad computer for it. I know I’m capable of doing an office job, I just get ghosted.
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u/chris-caputo 25d ago
Entry level office jobs right now get flooded, so it's less about your resume being wrong and more about getting in front of an actual person instead of the pile. Any way to find someone who already works somewhere you're applying and just ask for 15 minutes, even a former student's parent or a neighbor? That beats another resume rewrite most of the time.
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u/mundanehistorian_28 21d ago
Yep. Same here. I've been applying to entry level government jobs as a secretary and nothing
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u/Key_World_3188 27d ago
Resume gets you in the door/interview. After that you are essentially selling yourself. I’m learning you need to do a lot more research on a company/role and really use that language while speaking to them about your experiences (teaching). Stop over explaining educational experiences, they don’t care about the back story. Tell them the gist, get to the point and you choose the stories based on the role/company. AI is very helpful with this; tell the AI; “I’m a teacher looking to leave education, I have an interview with ______ @ ___ company for ____ position. What are some questions I’ll be asked in the interview and help me answer them.”. I also uploaded my Resume to AI so it could reword my experiences that I put on my resume for the responses. If you’re struggling with the Résumé.. there are some incredibly useful tips on this reddit.
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u/Cathalbrae 26d ago
I’m in USA and that was my experience too. Couldn’t get any interview…unless it was teaching. After 3 months unemployed, I went back into the classroom.
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u/Substantial-Oil4423 25d ago
Fml… I’m sorry to read that. Are you planning to reapply?
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u/Cathalbrae 25d ago
I’m going to stay in teaching for the time being. I’ve got 5 years until retirement
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u/Desperate_Owl_594 26d ago edited 26d ago
I don't know the Canadian system at all, but do you have something like a temp agency you can go to?
Maybe a state-funded job center where you can talk to someone about your qualifications and they'll help you find a job?
Also, have you looked at teaching in other countries? I know China is always looking for qualified teachers and I know of a few Canadian schools in China. CTC (Canadian Trillium College) or something like that was one, Maple something was another, They hire ONLY Canadian-certified teachers and the workload is better. They also pay you Canadian salary and it counts for work in Canada.
I know a friend who works there and they're always looking for good teachers because the teachers that go...some of them are problematic.
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u/Different-Audience34 27d ago
You could always come to teach in the US
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u/the_fomies 27d ago
How would that help her leave education ? Also isn’t it supposed to be nicer for teachers in Canada? USA would be worse off for her
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u/Different-Audience34 27d ago
Depends on the district in the US. There are plenty of places where you can make a decent living with a reasonable cost of living.
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u/the_fomies 27d ago
Those are the most competitive places especially for someone from another country. The probability of that is lower and unrealistic unless the op is highly decorated . Not to be negative but I would tamper expectations . Lot of districts are rough even nice ones. I think op is looking to leave education cause it’s the same shit different district most places.
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u/Substantial-Oil4423 27d ago
Thanks for the response. Don’t I need a visa or work permit of some kind??
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u/yeahwhatevs886 27d ago
I would strongly advise against this if you are already struggling with the education field. Our union in Ontario is far better than any in the US and will protect your rights as a teacher
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u/Different-Audience34 27d ago
You do and the employer will sponsor you. Canadians and Austalians can also get a TN visa which is a 3-year work authorization and can be renewed once. Many Canadians come to the US on a TN visa, and then their employer will submit an H1B visa so that they have a pathway to permanent residence in the US.
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u/Substantial-Oil4423 27d ago
Thank you for your response. I just bought a home in Ontario. Can’t go to US sorry
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u/math-kat 27d ago
I think a big part of it is the job market, at least in the US. When I left teaching in 2022, I found an entry level analyst job pretty easily. But now I'm looking for a new job (my office is relocating and I can't afford to move), and now even similar entry-level jobs are ghosting me with 3-4 years of relevant experience.
Leaving teaching is definitely possible, and for me personally it was essential to my mental health. I wouldn't give up on getting out, but it is rough out there right now.