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Substitute school teacher education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a substitute school teacher. Substitute school teachers usually study elementary education, business, or education. 65% of substitute school teachers hold a bachelor's degree, and 14% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 3,350 real substitute school teacher resumes to see exactly what substitute school teacher education sections show.
The most common colleges for substitute school teachers are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.
There are also many online substitute school teacher courses to help get the education required to be a substitute school teacher.
There are certain substitute school teacher certifications that you should consider. These substitute school teacher certifications include First Aid, CPR and AED Instructor and Microsoft Certified Educator (MCE).
What education do you need to become a substitute school teacher?
What degree do you need to be a substitute school teacher?
- Bachelor's, 65%
- Master's, 14%
- Associate, 13%
- High School Diploma, 3%
- Other Degrees, 5%
What should I major in to become a substitute school teacher?
- Elementary Education, 13%
- Business, 13%
- Education, 10%
- Psychology, 8%
- Other Majors, 56%
Most common colleges for substitute school teachers
| Substitute school teacher common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Phoenix | 15.36% |
| Pennsylvania State University | 5.99% |
| California State University - San Bernardino | 5.62% |
| Ohio State University | 5.62% |
| Ashford University | 5.24% |
Best majors for substitute school teachers
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elementary Education | 13.0% |
| 2 | Business | 12.7% |
| 3 | Education | 10.4% |
| 4 | Psychology | 7.8% |
| 5 | English | 5.6% |
Best colleges for substitute school teachers
The best colleges for substitute school teachers are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard University.
A substitute school 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 substitute school 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 substitute school teachers.
1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
3. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$53,948
Enrollment
17,238
4. New York University
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$51,828
Enrollment
26,339
5. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$50,420
Enrollment
7,582
6. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
7. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,488
Enrollment
30,018
8. SUNY at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$10,099
Enrollment
21,404
9. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,354
Enrollment
7,083
10. University of Washington
Seattle, WA • Private
In-state tuition
$11,207
Enrollment
30,905
20 best online courses for substitute school teachers
Advertising disclosure
1. Teaching Impacts of Technology in K-12 Education
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...
2. Educating Deaf Children: Becoming an Empowered Teacher
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,...
3. Educational Psychology & Special Education (Certificate)
Informational content for educators and parents to learn about teaching and understanding exceptional children...
4. Moodle: From Novice Teacher to Expert Online Educator
The definitive guide to creating Engaging Online Courses in Moodle for any student, including School, College & Business...
5. The Teacher and Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
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. Music Education for Teachers
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...
7. Teaching with Google Classroom
Learn how to create, use, and teach creative, memorable lessons using Google Classroom...
8. Teacher Training - How to Teach Online - Remote Teaching 1Hr
Crash Course! Learn to Teach Online. Coronavirus Has Now Made Online and Remote Teaching a Necessary Teaching Skill...
9. ICT in Primary Education: Transforming children's learning across the curriculum
Why and how are teachers integrating ICT (Information and Communication Technology) into primary education? In this course we analyse examples from schools in different parts of the world, and bring professional teachers, headteachers and policymakers together to share their best ideas and inspiring stories. The materials in the course are based on studies carried out for the UNESCO Institute of IT in Education, Moscow. Learning Outcomes: to be aware of the range of reasons for using ICT to...
10. School Health for Children and Adolescents
Children and adolescents spend so much of their time in school regardless of where they live in the world. Health and learning are closely connected in the school setting, where good health and healthy practices create the optimal conditions for students’ academic success. And the contrary is also true: poor heath and unhealthy practices build tall barriers to student learning.\n\nThe courses of this specialization are designed to equip learners to manage common health conditions including...
11. Outcome Based Education (OBE) & Academic Quality Assurance
Master Course for Teachers' Development: Grow Your Teaching-Learning Expertise to World-Class Level...
12. Complete Google Classroom Course: Teaching Google Classroom
Mastering the Art of Teaching with Google Classroom - Teaching Online with Google Classroom - Google Certified Educator...
13. Online Learning Design for Educators
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...
14. Breastfeeding and Adequate Substitutes
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...
15. Master the FTCE Reading K-12
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16. TESOL - Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages
Teaching Skills and Classroom Management...
17. Virtual Teacher Final Project
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...
18. THINK GLOBAL: TEACHERS TRAINING COURSE (IDP-ICE)
A group of seven European partners from Catalonia, Belgium, and Wales worked together on the Erasmus+ funded ‘Think Global’ project on global competence. The project seeks to address the following research question through development and piloting of practical classroom activities: What is global competence, and how can it be learned effectively? The Think Global project explores, through international collaboration, how global competence is defined, taught, learned, and measured in the...
19. TESOL Teacher Training: Second Language Acquisition (SLA)
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20. Learn to Teach Yoga to Children
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Top 10 most affordable universities for substitute school teachers
The most affordable schools for substitute school 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 substitute school 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 substitute school 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. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
5. Lehman College of the City University of New York
Bronx, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,210
Cost of attendance
14,359
6. USF Sarasota-Manatee
Sarasota, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,587
Cost of attendance
13,043
7. California State University - Fullerton
Fullerton, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,886
Cost of attendance
17,645
8. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
9. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
10. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for substitute school teachers
The hardest universities for substitute school teachers to get into are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard University.
Some great schools for substitute school 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 substitute school 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. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
3. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
4. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
5. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
6. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
20%
SAT average
1,419
7. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
13%
SAT average
1,445
8. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
22%
SAT average
1,420
9. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
10. Brown University
Providence, RI • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for substitute school teachers
The easiest schools for substitute school teachers to get into are Gwynedd Mercy University, barry university, and felician university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a substitute school 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 substitute school teachers.
1. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
2. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
3. Felician University
Lodi, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
999
4. Holy Names University
Oakland, CA • Private
Admissions rate
70%
SAT average
849
5. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
6. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
7. The University of Texas Permian Basin
Odessa, TX • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,046
8. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
9. Curry College
Milton, MA • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
1,026
10. Saint Martin's University
Lacey, WA • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,111
Average substitute school teacher salary by education level
| Substitute school teacher education level | Substitute school teacher salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $36,759 |
| High School Diploma or Less | $31,002 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $34,203 |
| Doctorate Degree | $38,952 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $33,049 |
Substitute school teacher education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025