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I'll have a Ph.D: Public or Private?

by Lane

Nov 15, 2010

Hi there,

I am a graduate student at American U in D.C. and I'm considering teaching high school Social Studies for a few years after I finish my program and before going into teaching in higher-ed because the salaries for starting professors are generally non-existent since many professors are working as adjuncts teaching 5 classes for 3k a piece.

I don't know really what I'm looking for other than a good starting salary, good health coverage, and decent kids in NJ/NYC area.

How do I start looking for a school? And will I be exempt from any certification requirements if I'm coming in with a Ph.D? What do starting salaries look like for Ph.D/Ed.D folks coming in?

view previous comments

Katherine Parr I'll echo Dave on a couple of things:

1. In some ways, your experience is field-dependent. In US history, you might get away with claiming that your TA experience is relevant, since you'd likely teach 11th graders. I taught freshman for 5 years, and private schools *did* give me credit for that, as well as my TA experience. BUT, if you te...See MoreI'll echo Dave on a couple of things:

1. In some ways, your experience is field-dependent. In US history, you might get away with claiming that your TA experience is relevant, since you'd likely teach 11th graders. I taught freshman for 5 years, and private schools *did* give me credit for that, as well as my TA experience. BUT, if you teach world history, European history, etc., you might very easily be teaching 9th or 10th graders. That's an entirely different kettle of fish from 11th/12th, and schools will not be happy with TA experience or even university experience alone. You should consider volunteering at a local school. Without some way to show your *interest* in young people, private schools will assume you're merely another desperate PhD.

2. Search firms may take you, I don't know all of your personal qualifications. They took a number of AU grad students in earlier years, but those were better times. Recently, search firms have received a lot of applications from unemployed or underemployed PhDs in history. The abysmal job market and the salary freeze at many universities have driven a lot of people like you (and me) to seek secondary employment.

So they (CSA etc.) have begun to reject people frequently. So you will have to think of yourself in terms of marketing and should not presume that your PhD is so desirable that it will get you in.

Dave is right that you want to be competitive. This is an important issue in getting to choose where you work and in getting a better salary. However, I am not certified, nor are about half the people with whom I work. I have considered pursuing certification but don't know whether I will. I was hired early in the season by a school that had no interest in my certification status, CSA didn't consider it a problem, and I was referred to numerous schools which cared not a whit.

That said, you will have an exponential increase in your options if you are certified. Not least, having a PhD plus certification plus being single plus a couple of years of experience would make you a pretty *good* candidate for some overseas schools. And it's absolutely irrefutable that getting hired in a public school (which could be a lot more money - here it would be close to 20k more than I make now) will require certification now or soon.

There is a lot more to certification than knowing your subject area. I think those of us who were in higher ed tend to assume that certification means you're "an expert" in your area so you can teach. No. It is a range of training related to all the things scholars know about learning and about adolescence. And it's helpful in that you will have about a million questions about what to do and how to do it. Certification will give you chances to answer those questions with the guidance of experienced teachers. Think of it as the job training academia almost never provides.

Oh, and since you're at AU: why not pursue public history? Alan Kraut, Richard Breitman, etc. are all deeply involved with the State Department, the Holocaust Museum, the Parks Service, the NEH and the AHA. Those are areas where a PhD is the essential degree and where you might find a good position.

Jan 3, 2011

Dave The only thing I want to emphasis is that first, the education job market of now is not the job market of 2 years ago. There are a LOT of social studies (history) teachers that are unemployed out there. Social studies has always been a hard area to break into, its never been a "high needs" area.

Second, I approached my responses based on ...See MoreThe only thing I want to emphasis is that first, the education job market of now is not the job market of 2 years ago. There are a LOT of social studies (history) teachers that are unemployed out there. Social studies has always been a hard area to break into, its never been a "high needs" area.

Second, I approached my responses based on the assumption that you wanted to do BETTER then teaching as an adjunct at I believe $3,000 a class, and 5 classes a semester which is about $30K a year? Which is about market average for private school salaries. To do better you either need to go into public school or be very, very competitive.

Lastly, I work in Italy at a private school in Rome. A single, certified teacher with a Ph.D and a couple years of experience would be a very attractive candidate. If you were interested now, there are many schools in Asia that would hire you now. While your gross salary would be about the same now they typically include free housing and utilities, the economies have a much lower cost of living and no taxes. If your interested post in the "Teachers Abroad" forum.

On 1/03/11, Katherine Parr wrote: > I'll echo Dave on a couple of things: > > 1. In some ways, your experience is field-dependent. In US history, you > might get away with claiming that your TA experience is relevant, since > you'd likely teach 11th graders. I taught freshman for 5 years, and > private schools *did* give me credit for that, as well as my TA > experience. BUT, if you teach world history, European history, etc., you > might very easily be teaching 9th or 10th graders. That's an entirely > different kettle of fish from 11th/12th, and schools will not be happy > with TA experience or even university experience alone. You should > consider volunteering at a local school. Without some way to show your > *interest* in young people, private schools will assume you're merely > another desperate PhD. > > 2. Search firms may take you, I don't know all of your personal > qualifications. They took a number of AU grad students in earlier years, > but those were better times. Recently, search firms have received a lot > of applications from unemployed or underemployed PhDs in history. The > abysmal job market and the salary freeze at many universities have driven > a lot of people like you (and me) to seek secondary employment. > > So they (CSA etc.) have begun to reject people frequently. So you will > have to think of yourself in terms of marketing and should not presume > that your PhD is so desirable that it will get you in. > > Dave is right that you want to be competitive. This is an important issue > in getting to choose where you work and in getting a better salary. > However, I am not certified, nor are about half the people with whom I > work. I have considered pursuing certification but don't know whether I > will. I was hired early in the season by a school that had no interest in > my certification status, CSA didn't consider it a problem, and I was > referred to numerous schools which cared not a whit. > > That said, you will have an exponential increase in your options if you > are certified. Not least, having a PhD plus certification plus being > single plus a couple of years of experience would make you a pretty > *good* candidate for some overseas schools. And it's absolutely > irrefutable that getting hired in a public school (which could be a lot > more money - here it would be close to 20k more than I make now) will > require certification now or soon. > > There is a lot more to certification than knowing your subject area. I > think those of us who were in higher ed tend to assume that certification > means you're "an expert" in your area so you can teach. No. It is a range > of training related to all the things scholars know about learning and > about adolescence. And it's helpful in that you will have about a million > questions about what to do and how to do it. Certification will give you > chances to answer those questions with the guidance of experienced > teachers. Think of it as the job training academia almost never provides. > > Oh, and since you're at AU: why not pursue public history? Alan Kraut, > Richard Breitman, etc. are all deeply involved with the State Department, > the Holocaust Museum, the Parks Service, the NEH and the AHA. Those are > areas where a PhD is the essential degree and where you might find a good > position. > > >

Jan 3, 2011

Katherine Parr Dave, I agree with almost everything you said.

But adjuncting is not a job. It's rare to get 5 classes in a term, you have no job security, you spend a substantial portion of your salary on commuting (it's very, very common to have 1 class here, another up there, a third out farther...). Much, much more problematic is the fact that you ha...See More

Jan 3, 2011

Dave I agree with you mostly, though I would call being an adjunct a "job" and TT a career. I agree with your other points as well (I was an adjunct). No job security, you seldom get a full load, low per diem rate, and no benefits.

However, what you dont get is the experience and the contacts needed in the ivory tower. If the OP leaves the tre...See More

Jan 3, 2011

Lane Thanks Katherine, you've been most helpful!

On 1/02/11, Katherine Parr wrote: > Lane, you won't find one good place to get your questions answered, > but you might have more luck on the forums of the Chronicle of > Higher Education. There is a forum called "Leaving Academe" that > has some threads about how to get involved wit...See More

Jan 10, 2011

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