What Can You Do with a Master’s in Education?

The field of education is a wide one with as many different job descriptions as there are workers to fill them. No two days are the same in an educational career as educators, principals, paraprofessionals and others prepare a new generation of students for their future vocations. Earning a bachelor’s degree in education is a key step in meeting these students’ academic and personal needs for many teachers; however, there are many graduate degrees available that can enhance these skills and increase educators’ versatility within the field. Earning a master’s degree in education boasts a wide array of benefits – so what can one do with this type of degree, anyway?  

At Concordia University, Nebraska, over ten education-related master’s degrees are available for graduate students, including curriculum and instruction, early childhood special education and even educational administration! Evidently, the roles that one can fulfill with a master’s in education are not strictly limited to the classroom – so if the field of education is where your calling is, but being a classroom teacher isn’t your preferred method of involvement, a master’s degree can open doors into other careers beyond that of a classroom teacher. Non-teaching roles could include administrative careers, school counseling, guidance counseling or consulting.  

A master’s degree in any field serves to teach students more about how systems within it operate and how they might function more effectively. Regarding the educational system, students may learn field-specific research methods, how to incorporate new technologies into classrooms or what ethnic diversity in a school can look like. These unique focuses and skill sets can help them advance their career or serve their school in new ways. 

Furthermore, future teachers can earn a master’s degree to make them more qualified for their first teaching job – and any they get after their first. More specialized coursework, opportunities for further field experience, and subject area endorsement certificates can all contribute to students gaining skills that will make them more effective in the classroom. When schools hire teachers to fill positions, salaries of master’s-level educators are likely to be higher than those with only a bachelor’s degree. Teachers with master’s degrees earn, on average, over $2000 more than those with bachelor’s degrees during their first year of teaching.  

At Concordia, master’s degrees in early childhood education, special education, or various teaching endorsements can serve to strengthen the skills of teachers who wish to remain in the classroom but want to gain more knowledge and insight.  

Of course, the bottom line and most important aspect of a career in education is its impact on the students it serves. Earning a master’s degree can improve one’s skills in lesson planning, educational leadership, curriculum choice, and much more – and these improvements add up when it comes to making a difference in classroom environment, effectiveness and the overall impact of a school year on children’s educational journeys.  

The competitive edge that teaching candidates gain with a master’s degree only scratches the surface of the degree’s benefits. From being able to gain knowledge about the broader educational system to opening doors beyond the classroom and, of course, learning how to relate to students in a way that will change their lives for the better, continuing one’s education in the field is an undeniably beneficial decision. Whether you want to gain more knowledge about your current area of specialty or transition out of the classroom and study instructional technology or curriculum, earning a master’s degree in education is the way to do it.  

Want to earn a graduate degree in education at Concordia Nebraska? Learn more here.