Opinion
Teacher Preparation Opinion

Balancing Student Teaching and Job Searching

By AAEE — September 09, 2014 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Graduation is around the corner and your to do list seems to be growing faster than it is dwindling. You may ask yourself “How I can think about job searching when I have to finish student teaching, prepare for graduation and enjoy senior year?” The key to completing these tasks with as little stress as possible is learning how to tip the scales in your favor, not balance them.


  • Use the semester prior to student teaching to think about the lesson plans you would like to implement in your classroom.
  • Start working on your résumé and cover letter semesters before student teaching. It takes a minimum of three revisions before an acceptable document is ready for submission. Have you Career Center Advisor, faculty members, host teachers, etc. review your documents for feedback.
  • Network, network, network! If you start networking early and maintain those relationships your contacts can refer you to job openings as they become aware of them.
  • Understand the industry. Every industry has select times in which they conduct the majority of their hiring. Pay attention to these trends and plan accordingly.
  • Set realistic deadlines and work backwards to achieve them. If you want to have a job at graduation you have to start your search at least six months prior to graduation.

Student teaching, job searching, graduation, etc. each weighs a different amount in our lives. Instead of focusing on standing still to not tip the weights, learn how to enjoy the movement!

Tradara McLaurine, Assistant Director

Career Center, Indiana State University

Related Tags:

The opinions expressed in Career Corner are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.