teaching jobs in NM (Albuquerque, Santa Fe: spring break, credit, job market)
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just curious on the job market for teachers in NM? I'm currently living in california working on my credential and from the sounds of it budget cuts are looming,meaning no jobs for awhile for teachers in california. how is it in NM?
just curious on the job market for teachers in NM? I'm currently living in california working on my credential and from the sounds of it budget cuts are looming,meaning no jobs for awhile for teachers in california. how is it in NM?
I am a teacher in Albuquerque. There seems to be enough jobs here to go around if you apply now for the beginning of the next school year. Some principals start interviewing after spring break.
The smaller towns always have a high need for teachers, as do the reservations. If you teach special education, there are still many unfilled openings here that are being taught by substitutes. There is a high demand for high school math and science teachers. Because of NCLB, you have to be highly qualified in the area that you teach which means you have to have so many hours of college math/science (or an undergrad minor) and/or pass an exam in that area. Therefore, it's difficult to find "highly qualified" math and science teachers because of the low teacher pay.
The salary structure for the state is set up in three tiers. First year teachers start out at tier 1 (teaching on a level 1 license). After 2 or 3 years you would submit a dossier with certain requirements to the NM State Departement of Education and would then advance to Tier 2 (level 2 license). After a two more years at level 2, you repeat the dossier process and advance to level 3. Also, to move to level 3, you have to either have a master's degree or be nationally board certified (a rigorous process). You can also choose to just stay at level 2 for the rest of your teaching career.
The starting salaries for the levels are:
Level 1: $30,000
Level 2: $40,000
Level 3: $50,000
This link might help:
Teach NM: Overview: The 3-Tiered Licensure System (http://www.teachnm.org/overview.html - broken link)
well I'm working on my multiple subject and masters degree and my CLAD will i still start at tier 1 with a salary of 30,000? what are the good school districts?
I can't speak for the rest of the state, but from what I've heard on the news, I would stay away from the Santa Fe Public Schools. You could not afford to live there on a teacher's salary anyway and would have to commute from Albuquerque or Rio Rancho.
Albuquerque Public Schools is the ONLY district in the city of Albuquerque (which is the largest city in NM). It serves over 88,000 students, has 130 schools, and has over 12,000 employees with half of that number being teachers. It is so large that it has been scrutinized for being a big bureaucracy that isn't fiscally responsible and doesn't get much accomplished. Some city counselors want to split the district up into two districts, but so far that hasn't happened.
Rio Rancho is a suburb of Albuquerque with its own district (Rio Rancho Public Schools). They seem to have their act together pretty good. Rio Rancho is a lot smaller with only 13 schools. It does have higher test scores (different demographics when compared to looking at a larger city) and it does a better job of building schools before existing ones get too overcrowded.
You would still start out at a level one even with a master's degree, but you would have the ability to move up to a level 3 within 5 or 6 years. Without the master's degree you would have to stay at a level 2.
I'm assuming that "CLAD" is some type of English as a second language endorsement. It's called ESL out here. If you have that type of endorsement, you will be VERY marketable because principals are required to have an ESL endorsed teacher at every grade level within the school. By having that endorsement, you would net you an extra $3K or $4K per year added to your base salary.
The nuts and bolts:
• Must pass the Content Knowledge Test(s) of the NMTA or predecessor New Mexico teacher licensure examinations, or accepted comparable licensure test(s) from another State in each subject area the teacher teaches, or
• Successfully completed an undergraduate academic major (24-26 semester hours), or coursework equivalent to an undergraduate major, or a graduate degree in each subject area the teacher teaches.
lobo, to clarify, your requirements are for the upper level teachers.
Those aiming for elementary ed (some states call it multi-subject) do not have to have the coursework equal to a major in each of the subject areas.
NM starting pay is deplorable.
If you want to teach, you will be very handicapped by lack of bilingual creditial/endorsement in Spanish in many of the schools, areas, elementary levels, and less-shortages subjects.
lobo, to clarify, your requirements are for the upper level teachers.
Those aiming for elementary ed (some states call it multi-subject) do not have to have the coursework equal to a major in each of the subject areas.
Correct. Elementary teachers need only pass the NM competency exam to be highly qualified at the elementary level. The poster asked about math/science, so I assumed the person was seeking info for math/science.
NM starting pay is deplorable.
Correct -- starting salary is very low. The potential to move up quickly is there though. Cost of living is here is fairly low.
If you want to teach, you will be very handicapped by lack of bilingual creditial/endorsement in Spanish in many of the schools, areas, elementary levels, and less-shortages subjects.This really depends on where you teach. In Albuquerque, it is not really an issue. I don't know about other areas of the state.
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