Beyond the Ivory Tower

Online Resources on Teaching in Private Schools

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By Gwendolyn Bradley

Secondary education is substantively different from college teaching, and a successful job search needs to take that into account, say many Ph.D.'s who've made the transition.

One major difference: When it comes to finding a job, many candidates work with recruitment firms. Recruiters do the legwork, dramatically reducing the amount of time candidates must spend combing ads and preparing application materials. They are familiar with the secondary-school market and have a vested interest in candidates' success, so they will often advise and help candidates increase their marketability. On the other hand, working with recruiters means abdicating a certain amount of control over the search.

The National Association of Independent Schools suggests considering these issues when looking for a recruiting firm: What specific services do they give you? Are there fees? Do they specialize in certain types of candidates, schools, or geographic areas? What restrictions are placed upon you? Can you simultaneously register with other agencies or pursue leads? In your field, what were the numbers of openings, candidates, and placements in recent years?

For more information, contact the National Association of Independent Schools. The association's Web site has advice on job searching and searchable links to hundreds of independent schools' sites, as well as information on the Association of Boarding Schools.

Carney, Sandoe & Associates

The Education Group

Educational Resources Group

Independent Educational Services

Teachers on Reserve

International Schools Services

Southern Teachers

Web sites with listings of independent-school jobs:

Academic Employment Network
This Web site offers free access to a database of jobs in education (secondary-school listings are mixed in with higher education and public-school listings). For a fee, job searchers can post résumés or get access to a more comprehensive job-search database.

Education Week
Education Week is a national weekly newspaper covering K-12 education. In addition to job ads, its Web site is loaded with information and articles from the newspaper and its sister publication, Teacher Magazine.

Edulink
This Web site features an "Online Recruiting Fair" where job-seekers and schools can browse listings or, for a fee, list themselves. All positions are abroad.

The International Educator
Job listings at overseas schools are available to subscribers of The International Educator, a quarterly publication.

Other sites with information on careers at independent schools:

The American Historical Association
This Web site offers general information about teaching history at all levels, collaborative projects between university and secondary-school teachers, and teaching resources. The job database, accessible to A.H.A. members, occasionally includes listings for secondary-school teaching jobs.

International Boys' Schools Coalition and National Coalition of Girls' Schools
These Web sites feature directories of member schools, with links to some school home pages.

National Council of Teachers of English
Besides information and resources for teachers of English at all levels, this Web site has job postings and a section where job-seekers can post information about themselves, both free.