

Ask HN: “Soft” tech career options for future ex-teacher? - TeachThrowaway

I have been a high school English teacher for the last 8 years. Due to a combination of long commutes to suburban high schools, a little burnout, and a growing need for diversity in my working life, I am considering changing careers to something related to the tech sector. Based on my English degree and work experience, I think corporate training or technical writing jobs would best use my existing skill set. For those of you who have experience working in or hiring these types of positions, I would appreciate your advice on how to proceed in terms of upskilling, certification, and how &#x2F; where to pitch myself.<p>With regard to training roles, I am already comfortable working with large groups and presenting complex information to novices. However, I don&#x27;t know how much emphasis is placed on instructional ability as opposed to content &#x2F; product familiarity. Similarly, both writing and editing are central to my skillset, but I would like to know what other skills may be valuable for  technical writers. For example, I&#x27;ve seen a number of positions calling for front-end web development skills. I have some modest HTML&#x2F;CSS and LaTeX experience, but are there other specific technologies that I should invest time in learning?<p>Though I would love to find something before this fall, realistically I expect to start another ten month teaching contract in September. This gives me some time to consider certification programs, MOOCs, or other resources that you suggest. In addition to your thoughts on the specific jobs mentioned earlier, I&#x27;m open to suggestions for other roles that might fit my skills. Finally, I&#x27;m based in Seattle, so any Seattle-specific advice would be most welcome.
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chanachor
Since there are many ed-tech companies looking for ex-teachers to provide a
pov on their product, you could consider educational consulting or even
joining a team where you can code and provide product direction. I would start
by joining a meetup in Seattle for Ed-Tech
link:([http://www.meetup.com/EdTechSeattle/](http://www.meetup.com/EdTechSeattle/)).
This gives you the opportunity to network which you finish up your teaching
contract and line up something you would love to do whether it is coding,
teaching on a MOOCs platform, or consulting.

Good Luck!

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MalcolmDiggs
I came from teaching high school Algebra with a Political Science degree to
being a full-time developer. One of the lovely things about this industry is
nobody really cares about the path you took to get here; it's all about
whether you understand the problems and can do the work well.

My tech career started by walking into Barnes and Nobles and buying a "for
dummies" book on C++. That was a decade ago; these days you have a ton of
better/interactive resources at your disposal.

The biggest determining factor is: Do you enjoy this kind of work? If you like
it, just keep honing your stills. Finish one class, take another one. See if
you can do some cheap work for a few clients to build up your portfolio.
Before long you'll be able to look at a hiring ad and say "I can do that!"

If you'd really rather do technical writing or corporate training, those
opportunities are there as well. But don't feel limited by your "current"
skill-set. NOBODY is born knowing this stuff; we were all in your position
once.

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anishkothari
You could teach students HTML/CSS and whatever else you know in technology.
You may want to find high school students at first and see how it goes. Or
find another audience if you don't want to work with kids. If it takes off,
then come up with an e-book or video course. Good luck!

