Jobs for ex teachers

By the Vocatia team · Updated 20 October 2026 · How we write our guides

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Jobs for ex teachers include training and learning and development, tutoring, careers advice, education and exam-board roles, the civil service, NHS and charity work, and digital learning design. The skills you use every day in a classroom – explaining, planning, managing a room and keeping records – are valued well beyond schools.

Right now Vocatia lists 1,536 UK jobs involving teaching, training or working with children and young people. The most common are nursery practitioner, early years practitioner and teaching assistant. (Live figures, 20 October 2026.)

Browse 1,536 teaching and childcare jobs ›

Start with how you want your day to feel

Most people leaving teaching are not short of skills. What they want is a different kind of day. It helps to decide that first, then look at job titles.

Ask yourself which of these matters most:

  • a calmer pace, with fewer moments where everything needs you at once
  • more time at a desk and on a computer
  • fewer people, or working with adults rather than children
  • still helping people, or still explaining things
  • working from home some or all of the week
  • part-time or more predictable hours

Each of those is a filter on Vocatia. You can combine them with your town and see which jobs fit, including ones you might not have thought of.

Skills employers recognise from teaching

Teaching job titles do not always translate outside schools, so describe what you did in plain words. Employers in other sectors look for:

  • explaining complicated ideas clearly to different audiences
  • planning and delivering sessions, then checking what people have learned
  • managing a busy workload to fixed deadlines
  • keeping accurate records and using data to make decisions
  • handling difficult conversations with parents, colleagues and young people
  • safeguarding and following procedures carefully
  • leading a team, a department or a project

Jobs ex teachers often move into

These are common next steps. Pay figures come from National Careers Service job profiles and are typical ranges, not promises. They vary by employer and region.

Learning and development or trainer

Trainers design and deliver training for staff in businesses, councils, charities and the NHS. The day mixes planning, delivering sessions to adults and evaluating how well they worked. The National Careers Service puts typical pay at about £24,000 for a starter, rising to about £40,000 with experience. Employers usually value training or teaching experience, and CIPD learning and development qualifications can help.

Trainer or learning and development60 jobs ›planning and delivering training for adults

Digital learning design

E-learning developers and learning designers turn training into online courses, videos and interactive modules. It is mostly desk and computer work, often with remote options. Typical pay is about £25,000 for a starter and up to about £45,000 with experience. Teachers often move in through learning and development work, and a portfolio of a few sample modules helps.

Learning designerbuilding online courses, mostly at a computer

Tutoring

Tutoring keeps the part of teaching many people enjoy most – explaining things to one person or a small group – without a full timetable. You can work for a tutoring company, a school or online, or for yourself. Pay is usually per hour and varies widely, so compare a few offers before committing.

Tutor43 jobs ›one-to-one or small-group teaching, often flexible

Careers adviser

Careers advisers help people of all ages make decisions about learning and work. Typical pay is about £25,000 for a starter, rising to about £40,000. You usually need a career guidance qualification, such as a postgraduate diploma, but you can also train on the job or through an apprenticeship.

Careers adviserone-to-one guidance in schools, colleges and services

Learning support and SEN roles

Some teachers move to roles supporting individual pupils, such as learning support, special educational needs or teaching assistant work. The day is usually less about whole-class planning and more about one-to-one help. Pay is lower: the National Careers Service gives about £19,000 to £26,000 for teaching assistants, often term-time only. It can work well as a bridge or a part-time role.

Learning support and SEN1,301 jobs ›supporting individual pupils, often term time

Education welfare and pastoral roles

Education welfare officers work with families and schools to improve attendance and support pupils facing difficulties. Typical pay is about £24,000 to £32,000. Experience in teaching, youth work or social work is often accepted for direct entry.

Education, exam and charity organisations

Exam boards, education charities, museums, publishers and education technology companies all employ people who understand schools. Roles include assessment and resources writing, education officers, school-partnership roles and customer success for edtech products. Job titles vary a lot, so search by the kind of work as well as the title.

Colleges and universities

Further education colleges, universities and adult learning services employ lecturers, assessors, student support advisers, outreach officers and disability support staff. The work still involves teaching or supporting learners, usually adults, often with a different pace and pattern from a school.

Office and corporate roles

Teachers also move into project coordination and project management, bid and proposal writing, accounts and finance, recruitment and operations. These roles use the same planning, deadline and writing skills, and some employers actively recruit former teachers. Expect to start at a junior or mid level and build up, sometimes with a professional qualification along the way.

A complete change of pace

Some people want work that is nothing like a classroom: practical, physical or outdoors. Former teachers have moved into driving, security, instructing in sport or outdoor activities, and the emergency services. If that appeals, start with the hands-on, outdoor or on-your-feet filters rather than job titles.

Teaching and training jobs near you

1,536 jobs

  • Supply Chain Skills Coach

    Mostly sitting From home Working alone

    Tina Lacey Recruitment · Liverpool

    £35,000 a year

    Full-time

  • Outreach Tutor

    On your feet Working alone Helping people

    Reeson Education · Orpington

    £30.00 an hour

    Full-time · Term time only

See all 1,536 ›

Choose a place

What you might miss, and what you won't

People who have left teaching often say the same things. Many miss the pupils, the sense of purpose, the camaraderie of a staffroom and the school holidays. Most do not miss the marking, the evening and weekend workload, the accountability pressure and the politics.

It helps to be honest with yourself about both lists. If you will miss the pupils, look at tutoring, learning support or college roles. If holidays matter, look at term-time only jobs. If the workload was the problem, check how a new role handles deadlines and whether work comes home.

NHS jobs for ex teachers

The NHS is one of the largest employers in the UK and has roles that suit teachers without needing a clinical background:

  • learning and development or training roles for NHS staff
  • health trainers, who support people to make healthier changes (about £24,000 to £30,000)
  • support roles in learning disability and mental health services
  • administration, coordination and patient services roles

Clinical education roles, such as clinical skills trainers, usually need a health qualification. NHS vacancies are listed on NHS Jobs, and most use the national Agenda for Change pay bands, so the pay is shown on the advert.

Civil service jobs for ex teachers

Many government roles suit teachers' skills in planning, analysis and clear communication. The Department for Education employs policy and delivery staff, and Ofsted recruits inspectors as well as policy, data and support staff. Ofsted school inspection roles usually ask for senior leadership experience, such as headteacher, deputy head or head of a large department.

Outside education, executive officer roles across government involve casework, reports and managing budgets. The National Careers Service gives typical pay of £30,000 to £45,000. Civil service vacancies are listed on Civil Service Jobs and normally show the salary and grade.

Work from home jobs for ex teachers

Online tutoring, learning design, curriculum and resources writing, marking and assessment work, and some training and customer success roles can be done fully or mostly from home. Read each advert carefully: some say remote but expect regular office days.

Our guide to genuine work from home jobs explains how to spot real home-based roles and avoid scams.

Work from home computer jobs

1,054 jobs

See all 1,054 ›

Choose a place

Pay after teaching

Teacher pay in England rose by 3.5% from September 2026. Outside London, the advisory main pay range runs from £34,069 (M1) to £46,940 (M6), and the upper pay range from £49,134 (U1) to £52,835 (U3). Academies can set their own pay.

Many first roles outside teaching start lower than the upper pay range, especially if you are new to the sector. Some, such as civil service, training and learning design roles, can reach similar or higher pay with experience. Compare the whole package: holiday, pension, hours and how much work comes home with you.

How to leave teaching well

Resignation dates

In maintained schools in England and Wales, teachers on standard terms usually need to resign by:

  • 31 October to leave on 31 December
  • 28 or 29 February to leave on 30 April
  • 31 May to leave on 31 August

These come from the Burgundy Book conditions. Academies, free schools and independent schools can set different notice terms, so check your contract. Leaving on another date usually needs your school's agreement.

Your Teachers' Pension

Your pension does not disappear when you leave. If you have at least two years in the scheme, your benefits are usually kept in the scheme until you can take them. With less than two years, you may be able to claim a refund of your contributions. Rules depend on your membership, so check with Teachers' Pensions before you decide.

A bridge: supply or part-time teaching

Supply, part-time or tutoring work can pay the bills while you retrain or apply for jobs. It also gives you time to try something new without leaving education completely.

Rewrite your CV for other sectors

Replace school language with what employers outside schools understand. "Planned and delivered lessons to classes of 30" becomes "designed and delivered training sessions for groups of up to 30". Lead with results, such as improved outcomes, a project you led or a system you introduced. Keep it to two pages.

Common questions

What jobs can ex teachers do?

Common choices include trainer or learning and development roles, tutoring, careers advice, learning design, college and university roles, project and bid work, education welfare, exam board and education charity work, the civil service and the NHS. Your subject, experience and the kind of day you want will narrow it down.

What is the best job for ex teachers?

There is no single best job. People who want to keep explaining things often enjoy training or tutoring. People who want a calmer, desk-based day often prefer learning design, administration or policy work. Start with how you want your day to feel.

Can ex teachers work from home?

Yes. Online tutoring, learning design, resources writing and some training and assessment roles can be done fully or mostly from home.

Do ex teachers earn more outside teaching?

Sometimes, but not always at first. Many career changers take a lower starting salary and catch up with experience. Compare pay alongside hours, holiday and pension.

When do teachers have to resign by?

On standard terms in maintained schools in England and Wales, the deadlines are 31 October, 28 or 29 February and 31 May. Academies and independent schools can differ, so check your contract.

Start with how you want to work

Pick the kind of day you want after teaching, then see which jobs fit near you.

Browse 1,536 teaching and childcare jobs ›

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