Considering a Career in Online Education?

By Brandy L Ross-Jenkins

All the Buzz

Working from home seems appealing to many, and being a teacher is an incredibly wonderful career path. This leads many to wonder if teaching online might be a good career path. However, there are many considerations before you dig in.

How Dedicated are you to Teaching?

Some erroneously believe that teaching online is something that with a master's degree (or higher) in hand they are ready to tackle teaching. In reality, being an instructor takes a lot of skills which aren't necessarily taught at the university level. You will need to have an incredible amount of patience, flexibility, self-discipline and of course, really strong and tactful communication skills-like those of a diplomat! If you are passionate about imparting your own knowledge of your area of expertise these skills might come to you a bit naturally. But if you view online teaching as part-time income, you will be sorely disappointed with the amount of work and low pay.

Getting Started

It will take a lot of work and determination to get your first position. There are many, many qualified applicants applying for these coveted positions. Many faculty have to begin their careers at schools that are less than desirable. These schools have reputations for micromanaging faculty and make huge demands for work in short periods of time. And the pay is dismal. The good news is that these foot-in-the-door schools also have high turnover rates, which means your chances of getting in are much greater. You can find out which schools have high turnover rates by seeking out current online faculty and asking their advice.

Another great way to get started is to demonstrate you have teaching experience, even if it is not necessarily online. Consider applying for an adjunct position at a community college. If that isn't a viable option, be creative. Consider volunteering to tutor, or perhaps hosting a workshop related to your area of expertise.

Once you Get Hired

It takes some thick skin to get started in online teaching. Full-time positions are even more rare. A majority of online faculty members are part-time, and many find themselves teaching at several schools to scrape by. Most likely you won't be classified as an employee, but rather a temporary worker. By the very nature of contingent work you cannot count on receiving future courses. It is best to approach your teaching career like a business. You offer a service and the schools are your clients. It is up to you to determine how much work you can take on, and when it is time to ask for more, or seek new clients/schools all together. Paychecks will be sporadic at best and Ramen noodles will be plentiful at times. This is the development stage of your career. Things will get better.

Moving on to Better Horizons

Once you get a feel for several online schools you will begin to see which ones fit best with your personal teaching style. By this time, you will have also had the opportunity to network with other instructors. With experience (no less than 2 years) under your belt, you will find that better schools are starting to respond to you. This is when your career can really take off.

Some of the very best schools in online education offer full-time faculty positions to their remote workers. This is the gold! If working full-time for one school is your goal, try to get hired in part-time as soon as possible. Generally, you will need to work there for a time before being eligible for promotion.

Alternatively, some people chose to teach online part-time indefinitely as an addition to another traditional career in their field. This can be a very successful and rewarding path as well and certainly offers a lot more job security than those who seek online work as their sole means of employment.

It's a lot of work!

I began teaching online in 2006 and I have loved it. I found my calling! But, it has been a bumpy ride. I often have people say to me nonchalantly that they want to teach a few online classes, just for fun, extra money, or just something to do. Frankly, it is insulting. Teaching online takes so much work to get started and to sustain employment is an even greater task. If you are not serious about making a long-term career of it (full time or part-time in addition to another job), this is not the path for you.

One Last Piece of Advice

As with any company, there are vast differences in online schools. Some provide a high quality education, and others fleece unsuspecting students and offer worthless degrees. Because online education is still a relatively new concept, there are still many weak links out there. Don't be tempted to work for a school that doesn't offer a legitimate educational experience to students. My personal motto has always been that if I wouldn't be proud to say I graduated from there, then I can't teach there. I have left more than one school when they failed to live up to this. Don't lose sight of your own personal standards. Being a teacher means taking pride in serving students and providing a quality educational experience. Anything less is never acceptable.

I recommend the Babb Group for help with CV, applications, building your online presence, and professional networking.

http://www.thebabbgroup.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brandy_L_Ross-Jenkins