Careers for People Who Like Teaching but Don't Want to be Teachers?

[JumpyTheFrog]

I'm looking for career ideas. I like tutoring and coaching sports, but I don't want to be a classroom teacher. Other than tutoring, what are some career ideas for me? I want to have a back-up career that can support my family if DH ever becomes disabled.

 

I wanted to be a doctor as a kid until I read a book about what residency is like. I am still interested in health and nutrition, but most of these careers require FT college programs. They aren't available PT in my area. DH is supportive of homeschooling but isn't interested in doing it himself. There are no suitable schools for my kids.

 

I have a bachelor's degree but changed majors several times because I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life.

 

Any ideas? I'm looking for something that is easy to do PT, not something that is generally only a FT job. (I thought about accounting and took two courses, but it is boooooring!)

[goldberry]

If you like tutoring, would you maybe like classroom teaching on a substitute basis? That's a good part-time thing.

[plansrme]

How about teaching ESL to adults? There are paying jobs in that, though I don't know how many. If you have a solid grasp of grammar, and I do mean solid (try explaining the "whys" of English to someone without it), it would be fairly easy to get ESL certified.

[Tita Gidge]

My brother is a paid coach for a club team. It's not terribly lucrative (!) but it's income and fits his passion. It'd be a great P/T or supplemental gig.

 

Or in that vein, what about teaching in spurts? City rec departments are always looking for people to teach short-term courses - you can do a sports course, or a tutoring course (writing, math, whatever you like) and it can be aimed at adults OR children OR seniors. Pretty flexible.

 

If it fits your personality, consider becoming a fitness/life/health/nutrition type coach or mentor. Garner an internet presence, let it feed a local presence. Build up a reputation and name over time, and work it to your schedule. Start with small health food stores, or a blog, or both.

 

Personal trainer and/or instructor at a gym.

 

Test prep or tutoring-type seminars (as opposed to full-on tutoring). Find a niche, work it. Can also be done online.

[Embassy]

An OT or PT might be a good option. It is medical related and teaching related. It can also be part-time work :)

[Um_2_4]

If you have your bachelor's and some experience/ideas for cool curriculum you could teach online courses for homeschooled kids? Plus teach some local county rec programs and that should add up to a good income. Several sites have this and I have thought of doing it myself when the twins are a bit older and I could "teach" undisturbed for an hour. kwim.

My backup plan has always been after school tutoring/care and teaching online classes for HSed kids.

[Dandelion]

What major did you graduate with?

 

Other than tutoring, some ideas that come to mind are:

 

- Health/nutrition coach. You can do this without a college degree (as long as you don't call yourself a "registered dietician" or "nutritionist" - state laws and regulations vary, but that's what I found when I looked into this). There are shorter training/certification programs (6 months-2 years). I went through such a program and became a certified health coach. This qualified me to teach health/nutrition classes at schools, hospitals, etc. I was in business for myself at the time, and just pursued this certification to enhance my credentials. I looked into teaching at my local hospital, but didn't pursue it because my schedule was too full as it was. Health food stores also hire health/nutrition coaches to teach workshops, answer customer questions, etc.

- Fitness instructor. Since you like coaching sports, would this be an interest? All the fitness instructors I know seem to have no problem finding clients, whether they work for a gym or are in business for themselves.

- Online teaching/tutoring. Just a different variation on the teaching/tutoring theme. You could start up an online business where you teach/tutor over the phone and internet (which fits with your desire to avoid a classroom teaching position).