the words "think outside the box" written on a chalk board

Thinking Outside the Box: 10 Unique MAEd Careers

October 24, 2017

Many people who earn a Master’s in Education (MAEd) degree go on to work in classroom and school administration settings. These are the types of careers most commonly associated with an MAEd degree. However, there are a wider variety of careers available to MAEd graduates. Thinking outside the box can uncover a multitude of ways that MAEd graduates can work outside of traditional school systems.

Here are ten nontraditional careers that MAEd graduates are qualified for, particularly when their MAEd education is paired with a degree concentration like Adult Education or Urban Environmental Education:

MAEd graduates can start their own educational, social justice nonprofits around causes they are committed to, such as Tracy Rector’s Longhouse Media and Shawn Fields’ Connecting Generations Community Services.
Zoos, aquariums, museums, and similar institutions often hire educational coordinators or education specialists at the MAEd level to organize educational curriculum for visitors. This can be a great opportunity to enrich the education of people of all ages and backgrounds, in vivid, interactive, and sometimes highly unusual environments.
MAEd graduates can work as organizational and corporate trainers, designing and implementing educational programs to help volunteers and employees acquire new skills such as procedures, policies, software, etc. in a variety of ways, such as face-to-face training events, or via group chats and conference calls.
MAEd graduates can create educational workshops and after-school programs that teach people crucial information, such as social skills learned through tabletop gaming and Drama Therapy, filmmaking skills to broadcast stories that need telling, and an appreciation for people across the lifespan through intergenerational programs.
MAEd graduates can use their master’s level credentials to advocate for curriculum changes at administrative and legislative levels, to help improve our existing systems in ways that enhance the quality of education that students receive.
MAEd graduates can work for or collaborate with social and environmental justice organizations at an upper level, to teach students in nontraditional learning environments, such as the Natural Leaders Network and Legacy Camps, with the Children and Nature Network.
MAEd graduates can draw from their graduate education to create high-quality content for educational programming, such as television shows, textbooks, documentary films, and more.
MAEd graduates can help drum up enthusiasm and sponsorship for scientific projects and similar causes by creating educational materials that teach the general public why the science behind the project or cause matters.
MAEd graduates can apply their nuanced understanding of American educational systems towards a career in the US government, working to develop educational policies at the county, state, and/or federal levels.
MAEd graduates with Drama Therapy specialization can become a Registered Drama Therapist (RDT), a unique career path that blends psychotherapeutic and educational principles with the healing power of theatrical exercises and performance art.