9 Best Jobs for Retired Teachers

If you’re set to retire from teaching but are still looking for a consistent salary, there are plenty of great ways to build on your career in education? But what are the best jobs for retired teachers (or those who are approaching retirement) who just want to keep on going?

I’ve done some research for you and have found a handful of fantastic post-teaching work opportunities that will not only keep money coming in, but which will also help to keep your mind active and challenged. Ready for a whole new adventure? Let’s look at some of the US’ most lucrative post-teaching jobs…

Test invigilator

If you’ve spent most of your career preparing students for big tests as well as marking them, then invigilating doesn’t seem like too big a leap away. 

In this role, you’d undertake seasonal work to help monitor exam conditions. You can also score and grade exams, too – meaning that if this was one of your favorite parts of teaching, you can keep on going long beyond retirement.

You don’t need much extra training or expertise to start scoring exams provided you have the teaching credentials to match specific topics – so make sure to reach out to local testing bodies for more information.

Educational consultant

With years of teaching behind you, you’ve likely seen how the system works from the inside. You know what fellow teachers are going through, and there’s a good chance you have a few ideas you’d like to explore with regard to supporting students for years to come.

An educational consultant helps other schools and educational bodies produce plans and curriculums to better engage with students and teachers alike. As a teacher, you have valuable insight – which, like with the above, means you likely won’t need to take on any extra training.

Always keep an close eye on job boards and communicate with local schools for opportunities. The more experience you have, the more likely it is your position will be valued.

Online tutor

You don’t have to stop teaching just because you leave the classroom. With the advent of distance learning thanks to the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people took their children into homeschooling – with the assistance of private tutors, available for one to one sessions through video chat.

Working freelance on a private basis, it’s easy enough for retired teachers to find individual tuition jobs across their local area, as well as elsewhere in the country. In fact, the internet breaks down all kinds of barriers – you may even find some online opportunities that let you connect with students overseas!

Again, a great place to start is to check out job boards and search engines. Do also keep in contact with your local community, such as via Facebook or other neighborhood social media, for news on opportunities.

Corporate trainer

Again, if you’d like to keep on teaching, don’t think your journey starts and ends in the classroom. When your teaching career ends, you could carve out a new niche as a corporate trainer, in that you can help professional adults learn more about how to use software, adhere to company policies, and more besides.

This type of role may require an additional qualification or two in some cases. However, your credentials as a teacher will likely help you get a firm foothold on this lucrative career move.

This career will likely help you find varied work in a series of offices and workplaces, helping people to develop in their own professional careers. You won’t be working with children, so there’s a slight change in audience – but the role’s otherwise fairly similar!

Teaching recruiter

Now – to become a recruiter, you likely will need some form of additional training or expertise to top up your years of training. However, as a retired teacher, you will still have unique insight into what you think makes an effective tutor.

Recruiters work hard to interview and assess candidates who wish to work in schools, colleges, and universities. They may be looking to teach, or move into HR in the education sector. Regardless, your wealth of knowledge and firsthand experience will help you narrow down the best candidates for a variety of different schools and bodies.

Of course, it’s important not to let any kind of personal judgments get in the way! Use your knowledge of the education sector and – of course – gut instinct comes in handy here, too.

Curriculum developer

Having spent years working to curricula beyond your control, now’s your chance to create the curricula yourself!

Again, your knowledge and unique experiences will put you in a great position to offer lots of insight into what works, and what doesn’t.

What’s more, this can be a highly satisfying role – you’ll know that you’re helping teachers who may be struggling with learning materials, and who may not know how to encourage and engage with their students for the best.

This can also be a remote position, and it tends to pay fairly well – around $50k on average – which means you can continue saving money far beyond your teaching career just by sharing your expertise.

Museum guide or educator

Yet again, a different type of teaching role, but one that will likely appeal to retirees with a thirst for knowledge. Great for retired teachers who revolve around creative arts and/or history, museums hire tutors to give lectures and tours to welcome children and adults alike.

Museum educating tends to move at a slower pace than elementary school teaching as a starting point – which means it can be a slightly calmer but still enriching role where you can put your skills and experience to fantastic use.

What’s more, you get to explore museums to your heart’s content – and may even get discounts on entry to certain exhibits.

Proofreader

As a retired teacher, you’ve likely seen your share of scribbled homework and grammar mistakes over the years. Therefore, you’re in a fantastic position to become a freelance proofreader!

Thanks to the rapid rise of the gig economy (which has only grown since the pandemic), it’s now possible to find proofreading jobs and projects as one-offs online. Consider using platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr, for example, where you can bid for certain jobs.

Alternatively, you can use your teaching experience to forge and boost a whole new career. You could, for example, set up your own private business, or apply for in-house or agency roles. 

Again, one of the best places to look for jobs like these is through online job boards or repositories. You may also find some opportunities through communities such as Craigslist!

Lesson planner and consultant

If there’s one thing thousands of teachers likely agree on, it’s that lesson planning can be pretty exhausting! While you may be the sort of teacher who loves creating plans and new ways for kids to learn, there are likely more out there who really could use the extra support.

As well as creating and sharing lesson templates that you can sell through Etsy and other platforms online, you can also reach out to individual teachers and schools to work as a consultant on lesson planning.

Here’s where your experience and knowledge of learning practices really comes in handy. While learning aids and technology will always change and evolve, lesson plans will always be highly useful in schools across the country – maybe even the world.

You could also consult on lesson planning through video meetings. That way, you could earn money by sharing your teaching expertise without ever having to leave home! 

To get started, network with local teachers and educational bodies – LinkedIn, for example, is a fantastic place to start.

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