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Building substitute teacher education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a building substitute teacher. Building substitute teachers usually study elementary education, education, or business. 70% of building substitute teachers hold a bachelor's degree, and 23% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 883 real building substitute teacher resumes to see exactly what building substitute teacher education sections show.

The most common colleges for building substitute teachers are the West Chester University of Pennsylvania and the West Chester University of Pennsylvania.

There are also many online building substitute teacher courses to help get the education required to be a building substitute teacher.

There are certain building substitute teacher certifications that you should consider. These building substitute teacher certifications include Educational Certificate: K-12 (Ed:) and Microsoft Certified Educator (MCE).

What education do you need to become a building substitute teacher?

What degree do you need to be a building substitute teacher?

The most common degree for building substitute teachers is bachelor's degree, with 70% of building substitute teachers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 23% and master's degree degree at 5%.
  • Bachelor's, 70%
  • Master's, 23%
  • Associate, 5%
  • High School Diploma, 1%
  • Other Degrees, 1%

What should I major in to become a building substitute teacher?

You should major in elementary education to become a building substitute teacher. 20% of building substitute teachers major in elementary education. Other common majors for a building substitute teacher include education and business.

Most common colleges for building substitute teachers

Building substitute teachers often get their degrees at West Chester University of Pennsylvania, Central Connecticut State University, and Southern Connecticut State University. Here are the most common colleges for building substitute teachers in the US based on their resumes.
Building substitute teacher common collegePercentages
West Chester University of Pennsylvania8.99%
Central Connecticut State University8.47%
Southern Connecticut State University8.47%
Oakland University7.41%
Wayne State University5.82%

Best majors for building substitute teachers

RankMajorPercentages
1Elementary Education20.2%
2Education15.2%
3Business6.7%
4Psychology6.3%
5English6.0%

Best colleges for building substitute teachers

The best colleges for building substitute teachers are Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, and Johns Hopkins University.

A building substitute teacher with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for building substitute teachers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become building substitute teachers.

1. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$50,420

Enrollment

7,582

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

3. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Enrollment

18,946

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

5. SUNY at Buffalo

Buffalo, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$10,099

Enrollment

21,404

6. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Enrollment

31,503

7. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

8. University of Wisconsin - Madison

Madison, WI • Private

In-state tuition

$10,555

Enrollment

30,360

9. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

10. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

In-state tuition

$53,740

Enrollment

5,567

20 best online courses for building substitute teachers

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1. Music Education for Teachers

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In the Music Education for Teachers specialization, you will explore ways of integrating popular music into your teaching. You'll begin by learning from two highly experienced teachers, Krystal Banfield, the Vice President of Educational Outreach for Berklee College of Music, and David Alexis a Berklee Professor and long-time instructor for the Berklee City Music Program. They will take you through their process of incorporating popular music, improvisation, arranging, and music technology into...

2. Teaching Impacts of Technology in K-12 Education

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2% That’s the estimate of how many high school students in all of California took a Computer Science class in 2015. And yet, computers and data are everywhere. Just consider a typical 24 hours in your life … how many different computer devices do you use? We all live in multiple digital worlds that are changing rapidly with new apps, devices, and data analyses offering a constant stream of innovations and technology integrations for our lives.\n\nAs it's an integral part of our lives, we’re...

3. Educational Psychology & Special Education (Certificate)

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Informational content for educators and parents to learn about teaching and understanding exceptional children...

4. Master the FTCE Reading K-12

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Instruction and Practice on the 44 Skills Needed to Pass the FTCE Reading K-12 Exam...

5. The Teacher and Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)

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Social and emotional learning, or SEL, programs have flourished in schools during the last decade. These programs vary widely but most share a concern for five individual, student competencies: self awareness; self-management; social awareness; relationship skills; and finally responsible decision making. It is important for teachers and parents to know about and understand these programs. While lots of SEL programs emphasize K-12 student social and emotional learning, only a very few programs...

6. Educating Deaf Children: Becoming an Empowered Teacher

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Many Deaf children around the world still leave school functionally illiterate. In some cases, there is no allowance made for the education of Deaf children at all. This 4-week course provides you with invaluable knowledge and skills about teaching Deaf children. You will learn about the importance of Deaf culture and community, the need for a language-rich environment for the Deaf child from as young as possible, and that having access to sign language can help Deaf children academically,...

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Master Course for Teachers' Development: Grow Your Teaching-Learning Expertise to World-Class Level...

8. Seth Godin on learning and education

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Build the future of community, culture and possibility...

9. Online Learning Design for Educators

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This specialization is for educators seeking to improve and expand their repertoire of online teaching skills related to the design, development and delivery of effective and engaging online courses and lessons for school age and adult learners.\n\nLearning in the 21st century no longer takes place exclusively between the four walls of a physical classroom. With advances in technology, learners now expect to be offered flexible study modes outside of the traditional face-to-face model. This...

10. Virtual Teacher Final Project

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The Final Project will be a hands-on, comprehensive project that practitioners of virtual education can implement in their profession. For this final project, learners will draft a design plan for an online learning module utilizing materials learned from the virtual teacher series. Learners will choose the subject matter, method of delivery, tools, instructional strategies, and assessments, with the goal of creating a module of online or blended instruction that meets the needs of their...

11. Complete Google Classroom Course: Teaching Google Classroom

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12. Complete Google Certified Educator Level 1 and 2 Masterclass

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Google Certified Educator Level 1 and 2 Training - Mastering Google Classroom - G Suite - Teaching Online - Google Drive...

13. Advanced Instructional Strategies in the Virtual Classroom

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Welcome to Advanced Instructional Strategies in the Virtual Classroom! This course will help you apply strategies to the critical areas of K-12 virtual instruction to significantly impact virtual education. We will examine the pitfalls beginning teachers run into and learn how to overcome them by focusing on the fundamentals that have the greatest impact on student learning in a blended or online environment. By the end of the course, you will be able to empower your students to be voracious...

14. Critical Issues in Urban Education

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Urban school reform in the United States is characterized by contentious, politicized debate. This course explores a set of critical issues in the education and educational reform space, with a focus on aspects of the field that have sparked controversy and polarized views. We will dig into these debates, situating them within the larger history of public education and school reform, and considering the viewpoints, the evidence, and translation of issues into educational policy. We will...

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Putting Theory Into Practice in the ESL/EFL Classroom...

17. Uncommon Sense Teaching: Part 2, Building Community and Habits of Learning

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In Part 2 of Uncommon Sense Teaching: Building Community and Habits of Learning, you will explore the following areas more deeply—helping you to connect with the latest insights into research and have fun while you are doing it! • The hidden strengths of neurodiversity: Dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, and other syndromes that relate to learning • The value of forgetting • How to use habits formed by the procedural system to help you with classroom management •...

18. Breastfeeding and Adequate Substitutes

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Ensuring adequate nutrition is essential for infants to reach their full potential, as early-life nutritional imbalances and deficiencies may result in detrimental and often irreversible adverse health consequences. "Breastfeeding and Adequate Substitutes" focuses on the important aspects of human milk composition, human lactation, breastfeeding practices, and the use of breastmilk substitutes. In addition to the theoretical and practical aspects of infant nutrition, we also provide the latest...

19. TESOL - Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages

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20. Mindfulness for Life Coaching Success: Teacher Certificate

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Top 10 most affordable universities for building substitute teachers

The most affordable schools for building substitute teachers are Baruch College of the City University of New York, california state university - long beach, and brooklyn college of the city university of new york.

If the best universities for building substitute teachers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for building substitute teachers.

1. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

2. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

3. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

4. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

5. Lehman College of the City University of New York

Bronx, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,210

Cost of attendance

14,359

6. California State University - Fullerton

Fullerton, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,886

Cost of attendance

17,645

7. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

8. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

9. California State University - Fresno

Fresno, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,587

Cost of attendance

16,915

10. USF Sarasota-Manatee

Sarasota, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,587

Cost of attendance

13,043

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for building substitute teachers

The hardest universities for building substitute teachers to get into are Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, and Johns Hopkins University.

Some great schools for building substitute teachers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for building substitute teachers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

2. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

3. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

4. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

Admissions rate

5%

SAT average

1,520

5. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

6. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

7. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

8. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

9. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

Admissions rate

23%

SAT average

1,398

10. University of Rochester

Rochester, NY • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,422

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for building substitute teachers

The easiest schools for building substitute teachers to get into are Barry University, gwynedd mercy university, and mount saint mary's university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a building substitute teacher without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for building substitute teachers.

1. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

2. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

3. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

4. The University of Texas Permian Basin

Odessa, TX • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,046

5. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

6. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

7. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

8. Our Lady of the Lake University

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,002

9. Saint Martin's University

Lacey, WA • Private

Admissions rate

96%

SAT average

1,111

10. Fresno Pacific University

Fresno, CA • Private

Admissions rate

85%

SAT average

1,053

Average building substitute teacher salary by education level

According to our data, building substitute teachers with a Doctorate degree earn the highest average salary, at $33,344 annually. Building substitute teachers with a Master's degree earn an average annual salary of $31,983.
Building substitute teacher education levelBuilding substitute teacher salary
Master's Degree$31,983
High School Diploma or Less$28,294
Bachelor's Degree$30,367
Doctorate Degree$33,344
Some College/ Associate Degree$29,626

Building substitute teacher education FAQs

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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