Paul Mannet

An MBA degree can propel you forward in your business career, but it’s important to weigh the costs and benefits before jumping into what’s usually a two year course of study. Many prospective students fail to really think through what the Return On Investment (ROI) will be from getting this degree. Before you even start looking at schools with MBA programs, sharpen your pencil and figure out if it’s the smart thing to do in your situation.

How to Calculate the True Value of an MBA

There are many MBA ROI calculators on the internet, but none of them can give you an exact reading on what your return will be, since so many of the factors are subjective. That being said, you should be able to quickly get a general idea of what your total investment in an MBA will be and how long it will take to recoup that cost and start to truly profit from it.

The most simplistic way to calculate your ROI is to total the cost of your schooling (including books and other additional costs), figure out how much more on average you will make per year with your MBA, and calculate how many years it will take to pay down your investment. That will at least give you a snap calculation of how quickly you can be debt free, and enjoying any salary increase you’ve achieved as a pure profit.

Let’s say, for example, that your MBA will cost $50,000 total, and upon graduation you believe you can expect a salary increase of $20,000 a year. If you choose to put all your salary increase toward paying off school costs, you’ll be able to start enjoying the higher salary free and clear after two and a half years. Plan to work for 10 more years? Even without a raise, you would have a minimum $200,000 return on your school investment.

A Baseline Value Estimate For A Business Degree

That is certainly an over-simplified way of looking at the numbers, particularly since many people don’t immediately use their entire salary increase to pay down school debts. But it’s a good baseline calculation to start from. To calculate your own numbers, try to get a clear picture of how long you plan to work, based on your age, what kind of salary increase you can realistically get from an MBA in the particular business you want to go into and, of course, the cost of the school you are planning to attend.

Some good news to keep in mind is that online schools generally offer a lower total cost of an MBA than brick and mortar schools. But even within the online school category, you can benefit from being a smart shopper. Many lower-cost online MBA programs have emerged in recent years. Well-known schools like Western Governors University and New England College of Business and Finance, for example, offer MBA programs online at a total cost of less than $22,000., even before financial aid is calculated in. That’s a far cry from the more typical private school cost of $50,000-plus that a private school MBA costs, and a more reasonable investment that can improve your ROI picture a great deal. (Find out more about moderately-priced online MBA schools here.)

More Factors to Consider:

Will you be working while you get your MBA or become a full-time student?

If you’re working while getting your degree, such as in an online program, getting to the point where you are enjoying your ROI may take less time than it will for a full-time student who has no income while attending school. There’s no right or wrong way to get your MBA, but choosing an online option that allows you to keep working while you study can give you the option to use your salary to keep down school costs, helping you emerge from school with less debt.

Are you relying on student loans or other financing, which accumulate interest?

Obviously loans with interest mean that you’ll be paying more than the original price tag for your MBA. And the longer it takes to get your degree, the more interest you may accumulate (unless you get a government-sponsored subsidized Stafford loan, which you can put off payments on until you graduate). If you take more than the typical two years to finish an MBA, you’ll also have to wait longer for the pay increase it will hopefully bring you, adding more debt payments into your ROI calculation. Conversely, if your employer is financing some or all of your degree and guaranteeing a raise when you get your degree (not an unusual situation), your risk is much lower.

How much of your total excess income will you put towards school debt upon graduation?

It’s idealistic to think that once your salary increases, you’ll put the entire increase towards your debt (even though many internet ROI calculators make this assumption). Instead, most people increase their lifestyle with their salary. Look at your total debt and work out beforehand how much of your potential earnings increase you’ll put towards paying down your debt. Are you willing to keep your lifestyle simpler and pay down the debt faster, or would you rather make modest increases to your current living and take a little more time to pay off the debt? It’s important to think this through before you start so that you can maximize the financial value of an MBA when you graduate.

Is an MBA Worth the Investment?

Some careers, such as those in finance or executive marketing, most often require an MBA to move up the corporate ladder. However, you may be surprised to know that most jobs in business rely much more heavily on experience than a specific advanced degree. In fact, several studies have come out in recent years that show only 1 in 3 CEOs has an MBA (it also showed, amazingly, that the companies run by non MBAs tend to have better performing stocks!). This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get your MBA, but you should have solid experience first. Combining your degree with related experience is what will give you an edge over other applicants in your chosen career.

If you have a specific career goal, experience in that career, and an MBA that has given you knowledge to move forward, it can be a good investment at any age. But if you’re getting an MBA because you think it may help you, are uncertain about your future career goals, or think that getting this degree will take you out of unemployment, you might want to think again, especially if you’re well into your 30s. You need have at least a fairly good idea of which career path you want to follow for a MBA to offer you the chance of a real salary increase that will allow you to pay down your debt.

An MBA can be very helpful if you obtain and use it wisely. But getting an MBA without doing the research first could end up costing you much more that you ever bargained for.

Non-Profit Online Colleges & Universities Worth Considering

By Paul Mannet

Updated January 5, 2021

Click To A List Non Profit Colleges Offering Online Degrees
nonprofit online degrees

Understanding Not For Profit Colleges Online

In the early days of online learning, for-profit schools tended to be the most dominant force. But things have changed drastically since then. Nowadays just about every school in the U.S. is providing some type of online learning, and a very wide array of private and nonprofit state colleges offer masters and bachelor degree programs online. If you feel less than comfortable about attending an online school that earns a profit, you now have a very wide range of nonprofits to consider.

Both small and large nonprofit schools have moved into digital learning. For some small colleges and universities that have generally been known only in their own geographic regions, online programs have offered a new way of gaining national notoriety and attracting students from anywhere in the world. At the same time, larger state universities and even very famous private colleges have put degree programs online because it allows them to attract new students without having to spend money to expand campus facilities to house, feed and teach them.

Click to a listing of MBA degrees you can get online from non-profit colleges

The result is that regionally accredited non profit colleges and universities are now competing aggressively for students with the for profit universities. Nonprofits like Liberty University have become household names across the U.S. through large marketing campaigns.

Although they’ve generated a massive volume of publicity in recent years, the fact is that for profit colleges and universities actually enroll less than ten percent of all American college students. That number appears to be dropping slightly, as not for profit schools get smarter and more aggressive with advertising and online promotion to push their online programs.

What Does It Mean To Be A Non Profit University?

On the surface, it seems pretty basic: A for-profit school’s primary role may be to deliver learning programs, but it is operated as a business. Universities like Phoenix and Capella have to earn a profit from the tuition they take in, while non-profit schools, which are generally either private or state-funded public schools, don’t make any attempt to earn a profit. For profit schools generally must demonstrate earnings to shareholders, while no-profits have a variety of funding sources, but no actual shareholders. (alternatively, here are lists of religious private schools: Christian Online Colleges, and Catholic Online Schools).

Can a non profit school charge tuition?

The answer is absolutely yes — virtually all not for profit campus and online colleges charge tuition. They only difference is that they do not need to show a profit above their costs. Some of their administrators, in fact, are paid millions of dollars and given the kind of career perks one would normally expect only a corporate chief to get. Additionally, the online teaching programs at non profits are sometimes run somewhat independently of campus operations, and may have very high revenue goals for the school. As a result, a nonprofit degree from an online college may not necessarily be your cheapest option.

To you the student, the most first and most important issue is to make sure that any school you consider is accredited (keeping in mind that regional accreditation is the best, not national accreditation), that the degree program is targeted at a specific career that interests you, and that you will not be piling up too much debt during your education. Those all hold true whether you attend a for profit or non profit school. You will probably tend to find that accreditation is less of an issue with nonprofit schools, but don’t assume anything – make sure to research it yourself.

Generally, the non profit schools are more targeted in their online program offerings. They tend to focus more squarely on career training than private and non profit schools, which sometimes offer hundreds of degree programs in fairly exotic subjects. A few nonprofit schools listed below focus on just one or two online programs they’ve chosen to build a expertise in.

What Exactly Is A Nonprofit, Private or Not For Profit College?

The schools on this list tend to call themselves one of these three things. Is there a difference between the categorizations? Not really. The IRS says that “not for profit” describes an organization focused on one particular activity (like a hobby) while “nonprofit” is for an entity created for a purpose other than making a profit. If you think those two sound pretty similar you’re right. In practice, “nonprofit” and “not for profit” are used interchangeably. The two main types of schools in the non profit category are “private” colleges, which include many of the oldest, best known and most expensive schools in the U.S., and “public” schools, which are state or community schools that are supported financially by taxpayer money and administered through state governments.

For the sake of transparency, we should note that we are focusing here mainly on the nonprofit schools that have well developed programs and promote themselves nationally. And yes, we do earn a small fee if you inquire for information from one of them. If you have another school you would like to recommend for this list or feel one does not belong here, please feel free to write our editor here

Nonprofit Online College and University List

Can I Get An MSN Without A BSN?

By Paul Mannet

It’s absolutely possible to get an MSN degree without a BSN. There’s currently high demand for nurses with advanced practice and managerial skills, so colleges have gotten very creative about offering fast-track or accelerated programs to get you to a nursing master’s degree through a shorter path than nursing students have traditionally taken.

Click To List Of RN to MSN Programs With No BSN

You might wonder if you can get hired in some hospitals without a bachelor’s in nursing. The BSN degree has definitely grown more valuable in recent times, particularly given the so called “80/2020” initiatives being followed today by so many hospitals. Under this plan, issued in 2014 by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, U.S. hospitals could be designated as “magnet” facilities if 80% of their nurses had BSNs by the year 2020. That led to a wave of care centers and other health organizations adopting a policy of only hiring only BSN carrying nurses. (According to a variety of reports, by the way, the 80% goal has not yet been met in most institutions as we lead into 2020).

Will Hospitals Hire You With No BSN?

So what does that mean if you graduate from one of the MSN programs without a BSN? It’s a worry that many nurses have expressed in a variety of forums around the web. The answer is: there’s no absolute answer. But it seems fairly clear that having a nursing grad degree but no bachelor’s is almost never an obstacle. As an example, The University of Virginia Grad School of Nursing commented on allnurses’ forum: “We award an MSN degree to those from non-nursing backgrounds. None have had any difficulty being hired at Magnet facilities or at the V.A., which also has a BSN requirement.”

An MSN is a more advanced degree than a BSN, so it seems unlikely that many hospitals will consider you underqualified if you have only the nursing master’s. It may be hard to get hired to be a floor nurse doing 100% direct patient care. But you’ll probably get your MSN in the first place because you really want a more senior position in nursing management or education, or in an advanced clinical practice like nurse practitioner.

Types of MSN Programs Without BSN

There are few different types of programs available to get a nursing master’s without a nursing bachelors. They key types your likely to find from either campus or online nursing schools are:

Accelerated RN to MSN With No BSN: As the name implies, these programs are designed to take licensed RNs who have clinical experience and, usually, an associates degree, and move them quickly to an MSN that qualifies them for indirect care, leading and educating staff, community work and other senior tasks. Some of these programs, which have online listings stating that they do not confer a “step out” bachelor degree, are focused on one particular specialty such as nursing leadership.

Direct Entry Programs: These are for students who have a bachelor’s degree in a non-nursing specialty. Some programs of this type are only open to licensed RNs, but most are designed to have you take the NCLEX-RN test at the end of your studies and get your licensure then. (More on direct entry here). If you have no nursing experience whatever and wish to move into an advanced practice position, this type of degree is likely your best choice. You will get considerable clinical training in virtually any direct entry MSN program.

Accelerated Nursing Master’s Degrees

Virtually all these programs can be taken on an accelerated basis. That gives you a tremendous benefit in terms of how long it takes you to finish your grad degree and, naturally, how much it will cost you. But you should be prepared to handle a heavy workload of you go the accelerated route. There’s some variation in the number of credits required to complete these programs. But essentially, they’re all designed to cram a course of study that could take anywhere from two to four years into a much shorter period of time. To succeed in an accelerated MSN program, you need to be very committed to doing all the work on schedule.

Time And Credits For Your Grad Degree

The number of credits required for your degree can vary. Chamberlain University, for example, offers one Accelerated RN to MSN that takes three semesters of full time study and 45 credit hours. But it has another RN – MSN with a specialization in clinical nursing leadership that requires 52 credits and takes four full semesters. The school advertises that these accelerated degrees are great for people who want to earn a nursing masters while working at a full-time job, because they eliminate the typical MSN prerequisites that force you to get a BSN as part of the process.

Many accelerated RN-MSN programs can be completed in two years with intense work, though a few schools advertise that you can complete this degree in 21 months. That compares to a three to four year effort it would normally take to go from RN to MSN through a non-accelerated program.

In comparison, a direct entry MSN program, open to students with a bachelor’s in a non-nursing specialty, generally takes about three years, and involves some basic nursing courses.

MSN Prerequisites And Application Requirements

Since RN – MSN candidates don’t have BSNs, schools insist on a variety of prerequisites and requirements for admission, largely designed to confirm the applicant’s commitment to nursing and ability to do the coursework.

You must have an RN license for any of these programs. Many schools also insist that you have an associate’s degree, and not just a nursing diploma. The grades you earned in any previous coursework you’ve done will be important. At Gonzaga University, for instance, applicants are “preferred” for the RN to MSN degree program if they have a GPA of 3.0 or more in all college courses they have taken previously, regardless of topic. Virtually all degrees of this type include 180 or more clinical hours. Online schools generally allow students to fulfill this requirement near their home locations with the help of a practicum. Keep in mind, however, that even online programs sometimes require students to visit the school’s actual campus for one or more brief clinical training sessions or intensive classroom meetings.

With or Without GRE

GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) scores are required by most – but not all – nursing master’s schools. And some schools that ask for GRE scores may waive the requirement if you have a strong grade point average in previous college work (some schools will insist on a 3.25 or 3.5 average for the waiver). Alternatively, if you have several years of nursing experience, you may also be able to be admitted without GRE scores. These types of options aren’t necessarily obvious on each school’s website. You often need to ask the admissions office about them to find out the correct rules (the same type of waiver options are also available for Miller Analogies Test or “MTE” scores). At some schools, you may also be able to get your GRE score requirement waived if you already have a master’s degree in specialty outside nursing.

Transcripts and Recommendation Letters

You’ll need to provide transcripts of all your previous grades when you apply for your nursing master’s. Some schools will ask for them at the start of the process while others will request them once you have been identified as a student they would like to admit.

Another standard application requirement is one or two letters of recommendation from someone you have worked with. You don’t want to choose just anybody to do this for you. It’s not unusual for a school to contact the person who writes a recommendation, to ask them directly about your skills and commitment to nursing. Some school admission departments may insist that one of your recommendation letters be academic – in other words, written by someone who taught you during your associate’s program.

Other typical admission requirements may include a letter, written by you, about your personal goals and intent, and a resume listing all your job experience both in and out of nursing.

Skipping a BSN so you can go directly from RN to MSN can help you attain a job in managing or teaching nursing, or qualify you to work as a nurse practitioner. When you possess your nursing masters degree, you’re not likely to suffer from not having a bachelor degree in hand. After all, some MSN’s make double the salary of nurses with a BSN as their highest degree.

Can I Become A Nurse Practitioner Without A BSN?

The answer is yes, you can do it without doing a full undergrad BSN degree, if you take an RN to MSN program. You do need the MSN degree to become an NP who can work in an independent setting or in an “advanced” nursing categories in a hospital setting such as nurse anesthetist. If you have a bachelor degree in an non-nursing specialty, you’ll need to take a “direct entry” program that will get you both a BSN and MSN. You may be able to work as a nurse practitioner with only the MSN, but some NP specialties Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, which is earned after an MSN.

List of Online Schools Offering RN to MSN programs with no BSN requirement Sponsored Schools

Grantham University RN to MSN
The program allows students to earn 25 undergrad credits on their way to a nursing masters in one of several specialties. The program is for RNs who possess an associate’s degree in nursing (AAS, ASN or ADN).
Get free info on Grantham’s RN to MSN program

Walden University
Walden is a very large online school that allows several options in it’s nursing master’s programs including BSN to MSN, RN to MSN or an accelerated option for RNs who want to earn both a BSN and MSN. Options for RN to MSN degrees, some of which are open to holders of nursing diplomas, include:
Adult and Gerontology Acute care Nurse Practitioner
Adult and Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
MS in Nurse Education for RN’s
MS in Nursing – Family Nurse Practitioner for RNs

South University
Designed to allow RN’s to advance their nursing practice by moving quickly from being a registered nurse to an MSN degree holder.
Get info on South University’s RN to MSN – Specialization in Nurse Administrator Degree
Get info on South University’s RN to MSN – Specialization in Family Nurse Practitioner
Get info on South University’s RN to MSN – Specialization in Nursing Informatics
Get info on South University’s RN to MSN – Specialization in Nurse Educator

Direct Entry MSNs For A Fast Track to a Nursing Master’s

By Paul Mannet

what's an msn direct entry online degree A direct entry degree program in nursing is designed to qualify you as quickly as possible for an advanced nursing position. They make it possible to start your nursing career many steps up from he bottom, even if you have not taken the educational and employment path that most RNs do in their early stage of their careers. The main beneficiaries of direct entry masters (sometimes called simply “MDE”) degrees are:

Practicing nurses (generally RNs who have come out of an associates nursing program) who do not have a BSN.
People who have a bachelor’s degree in something other than nursing, and want move quickly through both a BSN and MSN degree and get out into the nursing workforce as fast as they can.

Confusion About Direct Entry MSNs

The problem, if you’re searching for colleges that offer this option, is that many schools with direct entry degrees call them by other names on their websites. You’ll find programs meant to get you quickly to your nursing masters called “BSN to MSN” or “nursing “bridge” programs or MSNs for non-nursing majors. Some schools call them “entry level masters” degrees. Some of the programs are in general nursing, but the most popular ones focus on preparing grads to be nurse practitioners, nurse leaders, educators or some other type of advanced practitioner.

Some key points to be aware of:

Getting a master’s if you’re a practicing nurse with no BSN

Working nurses who have only an ADN, ASN or AAS can find a variety of relatively quick programs designed to get them through the requirements for a BSN and then complete a master’s degree. If you do the entire program, for example, at Purdue Global’s nursing school, the entire process from start to finish, generally take around three years – one year for a compressed version of a BSN and then two more years to complete you nursing. The first part of this and many other program will provide you with the core courses needed to finish your nursing bachelors. A few of these allow you to actually take some of your MSN credits while you are earning your bachelors.

MSNs for those with a non-nursing bachelors who want a career change

The steps you’ll need to take will vary depending on what you earned your bachelor’s degree in. It won’t be necessary to re-take any courses. You’ll find that some direct entry MSN schools only admit students with bachelor’s in a health-related subject. Other schools are more open accepting people with non-nursing majors from all academic backgrounds. Before truly diving into your master’s program work, you will be required to take some prerequisite “core” courses in health science topics like biology, nutrition or public health. Some schools also give preference to applicants that have some kind of clinical experience either as a volunteer nursing assistant in a hospital or through training to be an EMS. In most cases it should take three years of study at a normal past to complete all aspects of this type of degree.

Similar approach with entry level nursing (ELM) programs

ELM is essentially another term that describes a direct entry program. It’s a master’s degree designed for a student who has an undergraduate degree in something other than nursing. Most programs have a requirement that if you are taking an entry level nursing masters, you must finish a certain portion of your training aimed at licensure, and then pass your NCLEX-RN exam at a specific point in the program. It’s important to be aware that, while most of these MSNs take two years to complete, there are a wide variety of course structures, meaning that the degree can be completed in different time frames at different colleges. Some grad programs will allow you to get out and start your nursing career in less than two years. A search for entry level MSN’s will turn up many of the same schools you’ll find looking for direct entry programs.

Does every school require GRE tests?

The Graduate Record Examination or GRE test is accepted by many schools offering all types of masters. But in many cases today it’s not required. If can be to your advantage to take the general GRE if you feel you will be successful at demonstrating your verbal and mathematic analytical skills. Additionally, you can take a subject specific GRE in biology, chemistry or other science area, which can be of value if you got a humanities bachelor degree and would like to demonstrate that you have a strong aptitude for the sciences. But before you make this effort, look closely at the school you want to get your MSN from. If you’re not a great test-taker, he school may be willing to accept you without any GRE test score.

Reasons To Get Your MSN

The goal of virtually all direct entry MSN program students is to get their bachelors and masters degree in less time and at less cost than it would take to do the two degrees separately. The specialization areas that these masters degrees can open up include:

Nurse Practitioner
Nurse Educator
Nurse Midwife
Clinical Nurse Leader
Executive Nursing Manager
Nurse Case Manager

Many schools will also ask you to focus a specialty in your MSN program such as neonatal care, gerontology, pediatrics or women’s health.

Which is harder, NP School or PA School?

Nurse Practitioner and Physician Assistant programs are both among the most demanding in the health field. For someone who is looking to get into direct patient care, the only more difficult path would be to go to medical school with the goal of being a full-fledged MD.
Many students see less value becoming a doctor than in the past. The cost of medical school is tremendous, the time commitment, particularly when you consider the internship most young doctors have to do after they graduate from med school, can be anywhere from six to 10 years, and the career of a physician tends to pay less and involve much more stress than it once did.

That’s not to say it’s easy to become an NP or PA. Both courses of study can require up to two thousand hours of clinical study. In terms of time commitments, which type of degree is tougher can depend on how you choose to pursue it. NPs tend to specialize in a particular area like midwifery, while PA’s generally are generalists.

PA school is generally three years in length. The effort required to become an NP, on the other hand, is highly variable. Depending on whether you obtain an MSN degree or take a “bridge” program or a direct entry degree that gives you a BSN plus an MSN in an abbreviated time frame.

Many nurses are attracted to these specialties because they can allow you to practice with more independence than a nurse can in a typical hospital setting. Also, both NPs and PAs generally earn an average salary in excess of $100.000. per year. If you’re thinking of going the NP route, however, be aware that it has become more of an expectation in the health field that a practicing NP should have a doctorate or DNP degree. This isn’t necessarily a hard and fast rule, but it’s something to consider, as the doctorate degree can involve a good deal of work and extra time on your part.

Here are examples of requirements for some key online direct entry msn programs

Purdue Global
Purdue is a public school that’s now one of the largest online learning providers in the U.S. It’s fast track RN to BSN degree is:
For RNs who have a nursing associates’s degree or diploma.
As students complete their studies for a BSN, they also take core requirements for the school’s master’s degree in nursing.
Upon completing the BSN and masters core requirements, the student’s can take a “condensed” MSN program that can be completed more quickly than a standard program.
Purdue Global’s Accelerated BSN to MSN
See all of Purdue Global’s degree programs

Walden University
Walden offers several “bridge” programs that can be RN to MSN track for practicing nurses with a hospital diploma or associate degree, or can be taken as RN to BSN “Accelerate into Master’s” (AIM) track where students earn credits toward a master’s as they complete a bachelor’s degree.
MS Bridge for Registered Nurses – Education
MS in Nursing Bridge – Nursing Informatics
MS in Nursing – Bridge for Registered Nurses – Adult & Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
See all of Walden’s programs

Grand Canyon University
Grand Canyon has several bridge programs designed for RNs who have a bachelor’s degree in health sciences or some other related field. After completing prerequisites for a nursing bachelor’s, students choose a track for their MSN:
MS in Nursing Education – Bridge
MS in Nursing – Public Health – Bridge
MS in Nursing – Emphasis in Leadership in Health Care Systems – Bridge

Search Full Database of Online Nursing Master’s Schools

How Long Does It Take To Become A Kindergarten Teacher?

By Paul Mannet

how long to be a kindergarten teacher It will normally take you four years to earn a bachelor’s degree to teach kindergarten. In addition to your degree in early childhood or a closely related subject, you’ll need to complete your student teaching requirements and certification tests, which vary from one state to another, to realize your goal of becoming a full-fledged kindergarten teacher. Exactly how long it takes you to end up actually teaching young children will depend on key factors like:

The type of college degree you pursue.
How much work you want to do to “accelerate” your education.
Which state you want to teach in.
Whether you get your kindergarten teaching degree through a school in a same state you want to teach in.
What kind of public, private or charter school you’d like to get a job at.

Here are all the requirements you need to fulfill beyond your kindergarten teaching degree. They may or may not take more than than four years, depending on your particular program, state rules and which type of school hope to start running your class in as a paid professional.

Key Skills For A Kindergarten Teacher Job

Almost everyone who succeeds as an instructor at this level has an abiding love of working with young children. Without a doubt, one of the unique joys of kindergarten teaching is the fact that it allows you to fulfill a goal most educators hold dear: to teach not just a subject, but to develop a whole person. Being able to focus the emotional development, social skills and basic thinking skills of young children can give you an opportunity to have a lifelong impact on your students that teachers don’t necessarily get at higher grade levels. Although most schools ask the teacher to apply some type of curriculum to kindergarten, they also tend to place a high value on creative teaching approaches involving games, props and play acting, which can make it satisfying and fun work for the teacher. At this level, the teacher also tends to get a good deal of time to work with each student on a one-to-one basis.

These are the steps you must take to become a kindergarten teacher and how long each one will take.

Confirm that you’ll like teaching kindergarten early.
Time investment: very little.

Before jumping into a degree program for early childhood learning, you can make some smart moves to confirm it’s the right investment for you. You should begin with an awareness that along with the rewards of kindergarten teaching, there are stresses. More than any other job skill, you’ll need patience to deal with a class of 5 and 6 year olds five days a week. Children’s moods can vary wildly from day to day at this age, and the first year in school is a time when some kids just begin to show evidence of learning disabilities and delays that may require special attention. Nowadays, there’s also rising pressure to get kids reading and learning at a higher level – to make kindergarten more “academic.” This can put the teacher in a position of having to push some children to learn in ways they may not be truly ready for.

How Do I Know If I’ll Be A Good Kindergarten Teacher?

Before you start your college education in teaching, do some some real world research. Test yourself by volunteering to be a teacher’s assistant at a school or day care facility in your town. Alternatively, you might ask an experienced kindergarten teacher if you can sit in on his or her classroom to see what the work is like. Trying out the classroom environment can help you save yourself a lot of wasted effort, particularly if you realize that you’re not cut out for this kind of work. But if you find you’re comfortable in the kindergarten environment, you’ll feel very confident as you work your way through the degree and certification requirements needed to get a real job teaching kindergarten.

Another good tip is to give some thought to where you might want to live and work geographically for the long term. This can be tough to decide if you’re just coming out of high school, but if you’re an adult making a career change into teaching, you may have a better sense of where you’d like to live. It’s not critical that you get a kindergarten teaching degree in the state where you want to work – in fact, online teaching degrees that are national in scope are extremely popular — but you can, in some cases, get through the teaching certification process a bit faster if you go to a school in the state where hope to work. It’s also true that many elementary schools have a tendency to hire graduates of schools in their area.

What Degrees Do You Need To Become A Kindergarten Teacher?

It’s possible to get hired to work in nursery schools and other Pre-K settings with an associate’s degree or, in some limited cases, just a high school diploma and a teaching certificate. But if you want to work as kindergarten teacher in a full-fledged elementary school, you’ll need a bachelor’s degree.

Kindergarten teacher education.
Time investment: 4 years.

You can teach kindergarten with an early childhood education degree, but other types of education degrees can help you reach this goal. Virtually all these programs, which can be either BA (Bachelor of Arts) or BS (Bachelor of Science), will generally require you to earn 120 credits and will take four years to complete if you work at a normal pace. Don’t be frightened off, however if you see a credit requirement that’s more than 120. Because the way colleges define the term “credit,” there can be huge variations. Purdue University Global, for instance, requires 180 “quarter credit hours” for completion of it’s online BS in Early Childhood Development, but it’s generally completed in four years like just about all the 120 credit teaching programs out there. How long it ultimately takes you to get an early childhood teaching degree will, of course, depend on how much time you can dedicate to your schoolwork. But how many years it take you will depend heavily on whether you attend school on a part-time or full-time basis.

Can You Teach Kindergarten With An Elementary Education Degree?

Generally, you can teach any grades from kindergarten right up to 8th grade with your degree in elementary ed. You do not necessarily have to take a degree that’s called “early childhood education.”

Tip: Spend some time researching the requirements you’ll have to get a teaching certification in your state before signing up for a degree program. Some states work closely with teaching colleges and impose unique requirements that can make it take longer to finish your degree.

Tip: A kindergarten teacher degree online can offer you options to get through your education faster. Because online schools have many adult students who are in a hurry to complete a career change, they tend to offer more options for accelerated degrees than traditional universities.

Alternative Path To Teaching If You Already Have a Bachelor’s Degree
Time Investment: 2 years.

If you’ve already completed a bachelor’s degree in a non-teaching specialty and have decided on a new direction or a career change, you can look at master’s programs that can get you trained and certified as a teacher. These Master of Education or M.Ed. programs generally take two years to complete. But if you are currently working you may have to pursue school on a full-time basis, which can mean it will take 3 – 4 years to complete your degree. The good news is that many of these programs, particularly those given by online schools that focus on adult learners, will move you through the process of certification, including background checks, student teaching and other requirements. Key subjects you’ll study in an online master of education program include: instruction for young learners, strategies for unique learners, evaluating students, teaching many different content areas, how to develop curriculum and English as a second language teaching.

Although you may need to complete some certification requirements in the state you wish to teach in, many online or classroom-based M.Ed. programs will give you the pedagogy, content and Praxis exams you need towards your teacher certification.

Student teaching.
Time investment: One to three semesters, within your college degree program.

Virtually all teaching bachelor degree programs require you to take a practicum, a student teaching requirement or both. These are two slightly different things. A practicum is a classroom experience where the teacher in training works as a partner with a classroom teacher, and it’s a part of one of your teaching courses. You will receive feedback but not necessarily a grade for your practicum – you’ll get a grade for the course that the practicum was part of. Student teaching (sometimes called “demonstration teaching”) means taking more full control of a classroom, and possibly even meeting with parents and the PTA. You’ll almost certainly be expected to create and present good quality lesson plans. Student teaching is considered a free-standing course unto itself, and you will receive a grade based on observation of your work. While classroom training work can be hard, student teaching and practicums are tremendously beneficial, as they can increase your confidence about becoming a kindergarten teacher. Remember that when it comes to student teaching, different states have different minimum requirements. They can have an influence on how much time you’ll have to spend doing this type of work before graduating from your school.

Tip: Online teaching degree schools also require student teaching. They generally have specialists who can set you up to do your in-classroom work under an authorized observer in your local area.

Is education an easy major?

Some have written that it is one of the easiest courses of study you can take in college, since so much of it is based on common sense. But different people respond to the curriculum in different ways. Here’s a post by one teacher who took an alternative career path because of difficulties she saw in a standard teaching degree program.

Teaching Certification
Time investment: Varies from state to state, but generally one or two years at most.

To teach in any state in the U.S., you will need to take and pass a certification test. Keep in mind that it may be possible to do this while you are still in college working on your bachelor degree program – obviously a desirable approach to get you out into a teaching job faster. But many teaching college grads begin working toward their certification after they’ve finished their degree.
You’ll need to take an approved teacher prep program. These types of programs are approved by state organizations with names ranging from “education professional standards board” to a basic state board of education. But there will only be one credible approval board for each state, which you can quickly locate through internet research. Some schools will actually hire you and allow you to work on getting certified while you teach. But they may only give you up to one year to complete this process.

What Tests Do You Take To Be Certified As A Kindergarten Teacher?

In virtually every state, you’ll need to take an appropriate course and test for your particular area of teaching specialty, sometimes called a “content specialty” test or “Praxis” test for professional subject areas. For kindergarten teachers, most states offer a certificate for “birth through kindergarten.” Many states also require unique courses for certification that are not focused on academics, but which might loosely be referred to as “sensitivity training.” New York State, for example, requires all prospective teachers to take a course called “Dignity of All Students.”

Be area that several steps in the teaching certification process can involve fees. A background check, for example, is required for teacher certification in most states. That can cost you $100. or more. There may be a fee of $100 to $150 for simply submitting your teacher certification application.

Your state educator preparation program is likely to include an in-classroom teaching element and a test or series of tests. The testing varies tremendously from one state to the next. Many states have created several of their own tests to certify teachers. Again, some quick internet research will show you which organization you need to apply to for prep courses and certification tests in your own state.

Teaching In A Different State Than You Went To College In

If you have gone through the preparation process or even taken and passed the certification test in one state and then decided you would rather work in a different state, you may be in luck. Many states have “reciprocity” agreements under which they accept credentials teachers have earned from each other.

Tip: As you work through your student teaching, prepare a “teaching portfolio” with your evaluations, a list of the classes you’ve taught and a statement of your philosophy of teaching. When it’s time to go job hunting, it will help employers to see you as a polished, professional educator.

Tip: Get a specialty teaching certification. Either within your bachelor degree program or right afterward, you might consider getting certified in an in-demand specialty like English as second language or special education. Some of these certifications can be done through online colleges.

How Long To Find A Kindergarten Teaching Job And What Salary Can You Expect?
Time investment: Should take less than one year, though there’s no guarantee.

What’s the employment picture for kindergarten teachers? According to the,
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (USBLS), kindergarten and elementary school teachers across the U.S. had a median salary of about $58,000. per year. Payscale.com estimates that
kindergarten teachers earn an average of $40,128. But that number can be pushed higher by bonuses, and at public schools in particular, kindergarten teachers may receive significant benefits packages. Payscale.com pegs the full range of kindergarten teacher salaries at $27,000. to $57,000.

How Many Jobs Are There For Kindergarten Teachers?

According to USBS, there were over 1.5 million jobs in this specialty. The immediate job grown outlook, for 2018 to 2019, was estimated at 3%. That’s a bit lower than the average, but the agency notes that the picture varies significantly from one region to the next.
What kind of school to you want to teach kindergarten in?

What’s The Best Kind Of School To Teach Kindergarten In?

Before starting the hard work of a job search, try to make a considered choice about what kind of school you want to work in. The first question you’ll want to think over is “do I want to teach in a public, private or charter school.”

Public schools, which are supported by taxpayer dollars, tend to be the gold standard in terms of offering good salaries and job benefits, although there is tremendous variation from state to state. Virtually all kindergarten teaching jobs will give you the summer months off, But in a public school system, that time off will likely be paid. Chances for advancement, health benefits and strong retirement packages are still widely offered to public school teachers. The downside is that even local public schools are pretty big institutions where class size is large, job politics can result in unpleasant work relationships, educational styles such as Common Core can be forced on teachers one year an then disappear the next, and parents who pay school taxes can be demanding of both teachers and administrators.

Private schools, which are supported purely by tuition, are often the most open to hiring freshly minted teachers right out of college. In most cases they pay significantly less than public schools. But in many cases they offer more freedom to teachers, smaller classes and a less political work environment. Private schools in upscale areas in particular may place less pressure on teachers to rush young children along academically, and have classes with fewer disciplinary problems than public schools. It can be a great place to “cut your teeth” as a teacher. Many young teachers work in a private school for several years before moving on to a teaching position in a public school kindergarten.

Charter schools, which are independent schools supported by public funds in most cases, have grown considerably in the past 10 years. Most of them choose students either by lottery or admission requirements, and many are designed to achieve higher learning goals and a better rate of college admissions at the end of high school than other schools. But charter schools have come under considerable criticism for pushing kids too hard and taking a factory approach to education. Pay scales for teachers in them vary widely, with some actually paying more than public schools. But many charter schools expect teachers to work more days each year to earn their base salaries.

Where to look for a kindergarten teaching job

There’s no hard and fast rule as to where you should seek employment as a teacher. It’s good to keep in mind though, that demographics in each area will affect the number of students coming in each year and, naturally, the number of teaching jobs that will be offered. Rural districts across the U.S. are generally facing a decline in student populations as more young parents migrate to cities. That affects how many teaching jobs exist in a typical rural area school today. Many suburban districts near the major cities have more stable or even growing student populations, but you’re likely to find that the more upscale schools with few discipline problems and more engaged parents have a lot more people applying for teaching jobs.

Kindergarten teacher hiring process

Once you have identified a school you would like to work, you can generally expect to go through a process of three interviews. The first, which may involve you filling out a written application, will be a relatively brief talk that may take place at a job fair. If that goes well, the next interview will be with a more formalized and lengthy talk with the school’s human resources representative. The final step is generally either a one-on-one meeting with a school principle or with a group of teachers and administrators on the school’s hiring committee.

Tip: When you start your search for a kindergarten teacher job, get as many interviews as possible. Even if you spend time talking with schools you’re not excited about working in, getting a lot of live interviews under your belt will quickly increase your comfort level with answering even the toughest interview questions.

So how long exactly does it take to become a kindergarten teacher? If you are starting from the very beginning of your college education, you can realistically hope to be working in a school within 5 – 6 years.

What tasks do you perform as a kindergarten teacher?

Kindergarten teachers work to use a mix of instruction and play-based learning to prepare children for the academic, social and interpersonal skills they will need to be successful as they move through grammar school and high school. Key jobs the kindergarten teachers are typically expected to perform include: Creating a learning plan that keeps students engaged throughout the day. Teaching students to regulate their emotions and reactions to each other and communicate effectively. Speaking with parents about the progress of their children. Provide students with exercises that will increase their ability to think in a more organized way. Improve students find motor skills. Apply discipline in a way that reinforces a positive self-image for students. Present clear rules for classroom behavior that are important in later grades and in the real world.

What courses will I take to get my degree to teach kindergarten?

Basic early childhood education Health Literacy and language Lesson planning Psychology of young children Special needs education Intervention management with problem students. Beginning math, English and social studies teaching with young children. Teaching early childhood science. Early childhood literacy. Community and family engagement.Accordion Sample Description

Do some employers want you to have a master’s degree to hire you as a kindergarten teacher?

Yes, but it’s the exception rather than the rule. A master’s degree in teaching can offer major benefits to your long-term career, but it’s usually not required to get a job as a kindergarten teacher.

Do kindergarten teachers get summers off?

Virtually all schools give their teachers the summer off from work. There may be seminars or faculty meetings the teachers must attend during the summer months, but most of the summer is generally free. Not all private schools pay their teachers for the summer, however.

What are the key qualities of a kindergarten teacher?

An ability to stay cool, calm and collected with a group of young children in your care is a key attribute. A love of creativity and an ability to apply your school’s curriculum to your teaching without making the class boring is important. Dealing with parents who are anxious about their child’s progress is also a key skill.

Who will I be teaching in kindergarten?

The vast majority of students in kindergarten are between the ages of 5 and 6, though some children come in at 4 ½ depending on what time of year they will be turning 5. Students enter kindergarten with a wide variety of academic and social skills. Those who have attended a quality Pre-K program will likely be more comfortable in a classroom environment. But it’s usually up to the teacher to make sure that students who have never been in a classroom before are also drawn into the learning process. What will you do on a day to day basis as a kindergarten teacher You will likely have a set of goals virtually every day in your classroom. Kindergarten teachers generally have a map of what they want to accomplish over the course of the year in all the basic subjects like reading and writing, arithmetic, science and social studies. But in kindergarten you’ll also have a set of interpersonal skills to teach like controlling emotions and communication. You will need to consistently modify your teaching plans over the course of the year to meet your own goals as well as the curriculum that’s been given to you by your school. This curriculum may integrate a number of learning standards dictated by the state you are teaching in, which may include a choice of books or other teaching tools. You’ll need to meld these goals into teaching the kids in your own class.

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Key Skills For A Kindergarten Teacher Job

These are the steps you must take to become a kindergarten teacher and how long each one will take.

Confirm that you’ll like teaching kindergarten early. Time investment: very little.

How Do I Know If I’ll Be A Good Kindergarten Teacher?

What Degrees Do You Need To Become A Kindergarten Teacher?

Kindergarten teacher education. Time investment: 4 years.

Can You Teach Kindergarten With An Elementary Education Degree?

Alternative Path To Teaching If You Already Have a Bachelor’s Degree Time Investment: 2 years.

Student teaching. Time investment: One to three semesters, within your college degree program.

Is education an easy major?

Teaching Certification Time investment: Varies from state to state, but generally one or two years at most.

What Tests Do You Take To Be Certified As A Kindergarten Teacher?

Teaching In A Different State Than You Went To College In

How Long To Find A Kindergarten Teaching Job And What Salary Can You Expect? Time investment: Should take less than one year, though there’s no guarantee.

How Many Jobs Are There For Kindergarten Teachers?

What’s The Best Kind Of School To Teach Kindergarten In?

Where to look for a kindergarten teaching job

Kindergarten teacher hiring process

Confirm that you’ll like teaching kindergarten early.
Time investment: very little.

Kindergarten teacher education.
Time investment: 4 years.

Alternative Path To Teaching If You Already Have a Bachelor’s Degree
Time Investment: 2 years.

Student teaching.
Time investment: One to three semesters, within your college degree program.

Teaching Certification
Time investment: Varies from state to state, but generally one or two years at most.

How Long To Find A Kindergarten Teaching Job And What Salary Can You Expect?
Time investment: Should take less than one year, though there’s no guarantee.