Help Others Succeed
Are you passionate about people-centered work that transforms communities? You may want to consider building your future in Education + Human Services.
This career path is for those who want to become future educators, practitioners, scholars, community leaders, and change agents. Together, these professionals strengthen communities, address systemic issues, and support others through direct service, outreach, prevention, and advocacy. They are dedicated to the growth, development, and needs of individuals through work that includes teaching, child development, counseling, psychology, social work, social services, speech-language pathology, human resources, NGOs, and nonprofits.
If this sounds like you or who you want to become, learn how you can move forward to help others.
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Education + Human Services Bookshelf
Overview ofDiscover Options: Teaching K-12
For complete information on assessing yourself, choosing majors, and exploring careers, review our starter tips to Discover Options in all careers as well as the specialized tips on this page.
Getting Started
Teaching is a diverse profession pursued by people with a variety of interests, talents, and perspectives. If you are interested in the teaching profession, start by exploring and developing your identity as an educator. Understanding your individual strengths, motivations, and approach is an important part of the process. If you are innovative, creative, collaborative, and resourceful, and if you have a strong interest in working with students, this may be the path for you.
Here are some initial questions to ask yourself:
- Who do I want to teach? Elementary school, middle school, high school, or special education students?
- What subjects do I want to teach? Multiple subjects or a single subject?
- Where do I want to teach? In California, outside of California, or abroad?
- Is teaching a long-term goal or a short-term experience? What do I want to gain?
- Do I want to teach in public or private schools? Which environment suits me best?
Explore the tips on this page to gain deeper information on the best answers to these questions for you. If you would like to learn more about various aspects of your professional self, review our Self-Assessment page for details.
Teaching Environments
Each teaching environment works with a different age group of students and implements different methods of teaching. Explore the following tips to learn more about each specific position related to K-12 schools.
Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers instruct young students in basic subjects such as math and reading. Most people who choose this path enjoy working with children.
Middle School Teachers and High School Teachers are typically subject matter experts. If you enjoy English, math, science, or social sciences and want to specialize in a specific subject, then secondary education is likely the path for you.
If your interest involves working with students with a wide range of learning, mental, emotional, and physical disabilities, then becoming a Special Education Teacher may be a great fit.
If you want to work in K-12 school settings, but you are not sure that you want to become a teacher (either temporarily or permanently), you can also consider other occupations within school settings such as School Psychologists, School Counselors, School Principals, or Instructional Coordinators.
You can find the average salaries of public school teachers in California by searching on Transparent California for the school district that interests you.
Academic Preparation
Choosing Majors
The teaching profession accepts a variety of majors. However, you will need to satisfy the U.S. Constitution requirement with a course equivalency (e.g., History 17A or Political Science 12 at UCSB) or passing the U.S. Constitution Exam at an approved institution.
When pursuing a teaching career, students typically select a major that they enjoy, and may decide to teach material related to that major. For example, if you want to become a physics teacher, you may choose to major in physics because it already interests you or if you are interested in math, UCSB offers a B.A. in Mathematics with a concentration in high school teaching.
While it could be an advantage to choose a major that is related to a subject that you want to teach, it is also possible to teach subjects in which you do not have a background.
Adding a Minor
Consider a minor that would expose you to teaching or working with students. Through the Givertz College of Education, you can minor in Educational Studies or Science and Mathematics Education, which provide academic courses that can help you explore the field of education and its role in society. Some majors also have a minor that can prepare you to teach. For example, the Linguistics Department has a minor in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages and the Mathematics Department has a minor in Mathematics for High School Teaching.
Learn More
When deciding what minor you wish to pursue, make sure to read over the UCSB Undergraduate Minors Catalog and explore all options.
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