Become a Teacher

If you are committed to ensuring a brighter future for our children and have the belief that all students can learn, you can start teaching and change the lives of our students immediately. And you don’t need a teaching license or classroom experience to do it.

In most cases, to become a teacher you only need a bachelor’s degree AND to be highly qualified—as defined by No Child Left Behind guidelines—in ONE of the following ways:

  • a major in the subject area you wish to teach OR
  • 24 or more credit hours in the subject area you wish to teach OR
  • by passing the Praxis II in the subject area you wish to teach (the Praxis I is not required to teach with MCS)

 

If you’re interested in teaching with Shelby County Schools in fall 2013 and don’t yet have full certification, you can apply as:

  • An Alternate Route teacher: Alternate Route teachers are eligible to earn a full Tennessee teaching license while working in the classroom. Alternate Route teachers must meet our minimum eligibility requirements, be highly qualified (as detailed above), and if hired, enroll in a Teacher Education Program at a state-approved college or university. MCS only hires Alternate Route teachers in high need subject areas.

  • Part of Memphis Teaching Fellows: For professionals with expertise in our high-need subject areas, we offer the opportunity to apply for acceptance into the Memphis Teaching Fellows program, which includes participation in an intensive six-week summer institute at no cost to Fellows as an initial preparation for a career in teaching. If accepted, Memphis Teaching Fellows will begin teaching in the fall and be paid like any other first year teacher.

  • A member of one of our other partner programs: Shelby County Schools is fortunate to work with a number of alternate route certification programs that allow mid-career or recent graduates without an educational background to enter the classroom including Teach for America, the national corps of outstanding recent college graduates of all academic majors and career interests who commit two years to teach in urban and rural public schools and become leaders in the effort to expand educational opportunity, and the Memphis Teacher Residency, which recruits, trains, and supports outstanding teachers within a Christian context.

 

Please note: If you are enrolled in Memphis Teaching Fellows or our other partner programs, you must also submit a Teach Memphis online application.

 

Please see our streamlined application process below.

 

  1. When received, we will review your application to ensure you meet our basic qualifications and quality requirements.
  2. If eligible, you may be invited to complete a 30-minute phone interview based on your self-reported information in your application as well as your essay responses.
  3. Upon successful completion of the interview, we may ask you to submit a tailored list of required documentation for admission to the Teacher Candidate Pool.
  4. If you are admitted to the Teacher Candidate Pool, you may search for available vacancies and arrange interviews with principals.