<p>Hello again,</p>
<p>I know that is not a good idea. These ideas are just my strongest options, that’s all, I’m just scared to tell specifically my mom. </p>
<p>She actually demands at times for me to say EXACTLY what I want to do, and she won’t let go til she gets an answer. I keep telling her need time. </p>
<p>Are there any good resources that can help me with the teacher option (websites)?</p>
<p>And I am actually not in college, I am a junior in high school.</p>
<p>So yeah, go ahead and call me crazy fro already knowing what I want to do. Well, sort of.</p>
<p>Hi again, neuronerd36. I don’t have any websites to suggest, but maybe you could do a search for something related to “Why I Am a Teacher”. But I’m sorry your mom is so demanding. It makes me sad.</p>
<p>My D is even younger than you (8th grade) and she has been sure for a few years now that she wants to teach. She has tutored since 6th grade-officially-but she’s been helping her classmates with their work since she started school. She may yet change her mind, but I think she’ll always be helping kids learn in some way-I think that for some young people, when you know, you know. Good luck.</p>
<p>For teaching K-12, the credentialing process varies depending on where you teach. So look up “teaching credential [state you want to teach]” in a search engine and see what comes up.</p>
<p>Not sure what the best method to deal with tiger parents is – after all, your parents have veto power over your college plans (by withholding money) until you are 24, married, or a military veteran. However, you can take the pre-med courses alongside any major (if you major in chemistry, you would likely only need a year of biology in addition to your major courses), so you can at least be doing pre-med alongside preparing for teaching chemistry.</p>
<p>ucbalumnus - I didn’t even think of it this way. That’s pretty neat actually.</p>
<p>I’ll see what else I can search up.</p>
<p>Any one else with more ideas would be greatly appreciated!</p>
<p>Neuroscience is also still consdiered “black magic” to some people,… will that be a concern at all?</p>
<p>How competitive will the education sector be specifically? If I apply to college with this as a major/pathway, will that downgrade me in any way?</p>
<p>No college is going to look down on someone who’s majoring in science because they want to teach. Quite the contrary, in fact – there are universities across the country that boast about having a program specifically designed to help train math and science majors become teachers. UTeach was the first program of this sort; here’s a list of others around the country: [UTeach</a> Programs Nationwide :: The UTeach Institute](<a href=“http://uteach-institute.org/community]UTeach”>http://uteach-institute.org/community)</p>
<p>Does anyone think I am limiting my options?</p>
<p>Thanks again.</p>
<p>Limiting in what way? Finances? Well, you’ll probably make a LOT more as an engineer or a doctor, the two most common majors on CC. But it’s not like you’ll be starving or spending your weekends begging for change-you’ll be making a decent wage, and in some districts make a premium as a science or math teacher. You’ll also be eligible for special loans and grants for teachers only. Limiting in terms of career? I don’t think so. A family friend has taught every grade from pre-K to 12 and has worked in every setting from a small private daycare to a large “top” public high school. She’s taught and mentored new teachers, taught classes at the local U and at community college too. For fun she has taught summer school and now semi-retired still tutors kids in her neighborhood. I wouldn’t say she’s limited. Travel? My niece has already traveled more than her parents, as a teacher of foreign language. </p>
<p>I guess my point is that you’re only limiting yourself if you let that happen-you have many options as a teacher.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>One last question - does it seem to be that biology teacher applicants are med school dropouts or wannabes? I also seem to think that chemistry is more versatile.</p>
<p>Also, I am a female. Does this affect anything? There seems to be more female teachers…</p>
<p>It’s funny-a century ago, MEN were the primary teachers, as women who taught often had to leave their jobs when they got married. Today it’s sometimes considered “women’s work”. At my D’s school, it’s about half and half. The school does project-based work, so a single science project might include biology AND chemistry, or earth science AND physics, for example.</p>
<p>I don’t know about the “med school dropout” factor. Are you friendly with any of the science teachers in your school? You could ask them how they got to be where they are. My high school chem teacher had worked for a major international chemical company and decided to slow down and leave the big city for her hometown and teach. My physics student teacher was in a rock band but realized that wasn’t going to pay the bills and he had a talent for science so went into teaching. There are probably many reasons people choose to teach and subject. I’ve never believed the old adage “Those who can’t do, teach.”</p>
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<p>You may have misunderstood what I was saying. I said that you shouldn’t rule out a neuroscience major just because there are no neuroscience high school classes. With a science major of any kind, you are going to be overqualified. I don’t think every high school science teacher majored in science, even though it may be becoming more common today. Don’t limit yourself by trying to become the “perfect” candidate for being a teacher by changing your major; you are already overqualified.</p>
<p>No, you don’t need an MD for neuroscience. If you really want to do neuroscience research at the highest level, you’ll need an MD or a PhD. It’s not any different than other science majors in the need for a higher degree. (To be a neuro<em>surgeon</em>, yes, you do need an MD plus years of residency; if people you are talking think neurosurgery is the same thing as neuroscience, you need to find more knowledgeable people to talk to.) Even though having a higher degree helps, you can still work in industry with only a masters or BS, but you won’t be directing the research. And like any liberal arts degree, plenty of people go into different companies which have nothing to do with their major. If you added an MBA at some point, you could go into the business end of a pharmaceutical company (or any other company.)</p>
<p>The problem with polling people (“everyone” in your words) about what makes sense for career options in science is that the vast majority of people don’t know what they are talking about.</p>
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<p>Ain’t THAT the truth! A degree in the sciences is no automatic ticket to success (what college major is?), and not all STEM majors are created equal, either. (In recent history, chemistry and biology seem to have the poorer career options.) </p>
<p>I have a master’s degree in organic chemistry, had a great career in pharmaceutical research, lost that job during the big outsourcing and downsizing wave of the early 2000’s, and will have my teaching certification in another two semesters. Some of my friends who also lost their jobs during that wave of layoffs now work as patent agents, lawyers, lab managers, stay-at-home mothers, marketing analysts, and researchers for government agencies. A very few are still in research, but those jobs are hard to find and keep. Several became chemistry teachers - in my district, we have many teachers who have transitioned from the lab to the classroom. Supposedly, this on-the-job lab experience is seen as a bonus by the school district - but I’ll see for myself in about a year.</p>
<p>As stated by many, there doesn’t seem to be a uniform criterion across the country. In the school districts I’m familiar with, I’m told the #1 most useful qualification is “connections”. I have no idea how accurate this is, and how much is just heresay, but I was told that nobody gets hired by just mailing a resume, and knowing the right person is a clincher. (I can say the same for some other non-teaching positions, but that’s another story, anyway). I do know a Masters are not required, but quite a few of the teachers get one while being a teacher.</p>