Searching for School Principal Openings
Searching for school principal jobs openings is no longer something that can be done by pouring over the classified ads of a major newspaper. Most of the job listings for school principal vacancies can be found over the internet. The advantage to this is that it provides us with modern job search tools and that our search is no longer limited by geographic location.
We can expect a significant increase in demand by school districts for talented people to fill their school administration vacancies in the months and years to come. This is corroborated by the U.S. Department of Labor’ statements that demand for employment for school administration is expected to “grow as fast as the average for all occupations through 2014.”
Even if schools are expecting cuts in their annual budgets, we can expect a stable demand for principal jobs due to the high retirement rate anticipated among current school administrators in the coming years.
Prior to your search for school principal openings, you must first chart out a plan based on your personal and professional goals. Among your considerations while mapping out your plan are the following:
- Geographic location (zip code, city, state, country)
- Commuting distance (You must also remember that some schools require a certain residency period.)
- Job level (elementary, middle, junior high, high school)
- Relevant job titles (It is important for you to learn the various variations of the same position. For example, a “principal” job can also be termed “school principal,” “private school principal,” among others)
- Salary range (Things you must consider are your current salary, contract period, position offered, responsibilities, geographic location, among others)
- Bonuses and other additional benefits (Superintendent positions often get a lot of additional benefits, principal positions however generally only receive few stated benefits.)
When you do your search, you must consider several job titles. As well as positions that you think will fit well with your credentials and previous work experience. If you will need to relocate, you must also consider the many costs associated with it including travel, moving, housing and storage costs. There are some schools however that provides relocation assistance to deserving candidates. On the other hand, these are deductible from your taxes.
Other things that you must consider if you are to relocate are the cost of living, including housing, as well as additional certification required by the city or state you are moving to. This may help you decide whether it would be beneficial for you to move or not.
The salary requirements for principal positions usually do not vary much. The difference may lie in the school’s location, level and other school policies. Schools located in the East and West coasts and cities in general provide more than modest salaries. The salary levels go down with rural and small town schools.
These are the things you must consider for your job search. Apply these to your job search plans and I’m sure you’ll land a great principal jobs position in no time.
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