What Can You Do With an Education Degree? Jobs & Salaries (2026)

Key takeaway: An education degree leads to classroom teaching, school and district leadership, counseling, curriculum and instructional work, and postsecondary instruction. Median annual wages across these occupations run from $43,350 for tutors to $105,870 for K-12 education administrators (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS national medians). The decisive requirement in this field is not the degree by itself: teaching in a public school requires a state license, which means a state-approved preparation program, supervised student teaching, and state examinations, and principal and school counselor roles require separate licenses on top of a master's degree.

Jobs you can get with an education degree

These are the occupations education programs feed into, with national median annual wages.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS national medians. A median is the midpoint: half of workers in the occupation earn more and half earn less. Teacher pay in particular is set by district salary schedules tied to degree level and years of service, so figures vary widely by state and district. Many teaching contracts also cover roughly nine to ten months rather than a full year.

Elementary school teacher, at a median annual wage of $63,970, teaches most subjects to a single group of students, usually kindergarten through fifth or sixth grade. The work is generalist by design: reading and math instruction take the largest share of the day, plus science, social studies, and a great deal of routine building, behavior management, and family communication. Preparation programs pair subject coursework with child development and literacy methods, then place you in a supervised classroom for student teaching.

Middle school teacher, at a median annual wage of $64,370, teaches one or two subjects across several class periods to students who are moving from a single classroom to a departmental schedule. Licensure areas here are usually subject-specific, and adolescent development is a distinct part of the preparation because the age group is.

Secondary school teacher, at a median annual wage of $72,040, teaches a specific subject at the high school level: English, mathematics, a science, social studies, a world language, or a career and technical field. Secondary licensure requires demonstrated content depth in the subject, typically through a major, a substantial concentration, or a content-area examination, in addition to the pedagogy sequence.

Education administrator, K-12, at a median annual wage of $105,870, covers principals, assistant principals, and district-level administrators. The job is operational leadership: supervising and evaluating teachers, handling budget and scheduling, student discipline, compliance with state and federal requirements, and working with families and the community. Almost every state requires a separate administrator license that assumes a master’s degree and several years of classroom teaching experience.

Education administrator, postsecondary, at a median annual wage of $104,590, includes deans, registrars, admissions and student affairs directors, and academic program administrators at colleges and universities. These roles do not require a teaching license. They generally expect a master’s degree and experience in higher education, and the specific background varies far more than in K-12.

Postsecondary education teacher, at a median annual wage of $75,350, refers here to faculty who teach education courses at colleges and universities, preparing the next group of teachers. Tenure-track faculty positions in education normally require a doctorate, usually an EdD or PhD, and often a record of K-12 practice. Community college and clinical instructor roles are sometimes filled with a master’s plus significant classroom experience.

Educational and career counselor, at a median annual wage of $64,330, includes school counselors who support students’ academic planning, course selection, postsecondary transitions, and social and emotional needs, as well as career counselors working in colleges and workforce settings. School counseling is a licensed role in its own right: states require a master’s degree in school counseling and a separate credential, not a teaching license.

Tutor, at a median annual wage of $43,350, covers instruction delivered outside the classroom, one to one or in small groups, in schools, tutoring companies, and independent practice. No license is required, hours are frequently part time or variable, and the category includes many people without an education degree, all of which pulls the median well below teaching. For education students it is common paid experience during a program rather than a destination.

What the degree level changes

Associate degree. An online associate in education supports paraprofessional and teaching assistant roles and preschool positions in some settings, and it transfers into a bachelor’s program. It does not lead to a teaching license on its own.

Bachelor’s degree plus licensure. The online bachelor’s in education is the standard route into K-12 classroom teaching, but the degree alone is not sufficient. To teach in a public school you need a state license, and that requires completing a state-approved educator preparation program, a supervised student teaching or clinical practice placement, and the examinations your state requires, typically a basic skills test, a subject-area content test, and often a performance assessment. Verify that any program you consider is approved for licensure in the specific state where you intend to teach, since approval and reciprocity are state by state and an online program approved elsewhere may not qualify you directly. Private schools set their own hiring standards and often accept unlicensed teachers with a bachelor’s in the subject.

Master’s degree. An online master’s in education serves three distinct purposes. For licensed teachers it usually means a pay-schedule increase and deeper specialization in curriculum, instructional design, literacy, or educational technology. For career changers with a bachelor’s in another field it can be the licensure pathway itself, through an initial-licensure master’s program with the required clinical placement. And for people targeting school leadership or counseling it is the required foundation beneath a separate administrator or school counselor license. Confirm which of the three a given program is designed for before enrolling, because they are not interchangeable.

Doctorate. An EdD or PhD is the expectation for tenure-track education faculty and is common among superintendents and senior district and university administrators. It is not needed for classroom teaching or most principal positions.

Roles outside the classroom. An education degree also supports instructional design, corporate training, curriculum development for publishers and education technology companies, museum and nonprofit education programs, and admissions and student services work. None of these require a teaching license, though classroom experience is often what makes a candidate credible for them.

Common questions

What jobs can you get with an education degree?

Elementary, middle, and secondary school teacher, paraprofessional and teaching assistant roles, tutor, instructional designer and corporate trainer, curriculum developer, school counselor and educational or career counselor with the required master’s and credential, K-12 principal or district administrator with an administrator license, postsecondary administrator, and college faculty with a doctorate.

How much do education majors make?

Median annual wages are $63,970 for elementary school teachers, $64,370 for middle school teachers, $72,040 for secondary school teachers, $75,350 for postsecondary education teachers, $105,870 for K-12 education administrators, $104,590 for postsecondary education administrators, $64,330 for educational and career counselors, and $43,350 for tutors (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS national medians).

Do you need a master’s degree in education?

Not to teach. A bachelor’s plus state licensure is the standard entry credential for K-12 classroom teaching. A master’s is required for school principal and school counselor licensure, is the licensure pathway for many career changers, and typically raises pay on a district salary schedule for teachers who already hold a license.

Do you need a teaching license to teach?

Yes, to teach in a public school. Every state licenses teachers, and licensure requires a state-approved preparation program, supervised student teaching, and state examinations in addition to your degree. Requirements and reciprocity differ by state, so confirm approval with the state licensing agency where you plan to work. Private schools set their own standards and may hire without a license.

Can you get an education degree online?

Yes, and coursework transfers well to online delivery. The part that cannot happen online is the supervised clinical placement, so licensure-track online programs arrange student teaching in a school near you. Check that the program can place you in your state before enrolling.

Is an education degree worth it?

It is worth it if you intend to teach or lead in schools, because licensure is built on it and there is no substitute route in public education. Weigh the district salary schedules where you plan to work against your program cost on the is an education degree worth it page.

Keep exploring

• Start at the online education degree hub, then compare levels: associate, bachelor’s, and master’s.
• Narrow your focus at the education concentrations hub, see what you will study in the curriculum guide, or weigh the decision on is an education degree worth it.
• Find programs near you at the education programs by state index, or compare related fields: early childhood education, special education, and psychology.

Data verified: August 12, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

← Back to Online Education Degree Programs