Say I get a degree in Biology and have gen chem I&II, O-chem I&II, and a few other chem classes but not an actual degree. Could I still teach Chemistry at the high school level? I know I'm personally capable, I'm just wondering if I'd be allowed to. I'm not really sure what I want to do, but teaching is a possibility.
I ask because I could graduate next spring if I skip out on two chemistry classes. I really don't want to stick around a full extra semester just to take two classes.
Sure why not? Heck, you don't have be born in the US to be the President, why not teach Chemistry without a Chemistry degree? There are no rules, standards or expectations-this is AMERICA!
you could teach chem at a private school
Just take the classes. Problem solved.
It probably depends on the school system. I live in a fairly large metropolitan area with a good school system, and one of my friends' father gave up being a salesman to become a middle school science teacher; I'm pretty sure he didn't have a degree in that. But as another poster said, just take the classes! One semester is not a long time, and you might wish you did in the future.
You want to leave college why? Listen kid, take the remaining classes or you will regret it. There are no jobs now anyway so why in such a hurry? Enjoy the college life. Party, get girls, stay up late, go out, live the american dream. If you do not follow these directions you need to get your head straight. I suggest going for a long run.
It depends on the state I think but I taught chemistry at the high school level for 8 years without a chem degree. As long as you can pass the certification test you can teach anything. I had a degree in biology and that was my primary certification but I quickly realized I didn't want to teach 9th graders and got my chem certification within the first 6 months of teaching. Hell I think I did better on the chem cert. test than I did on the biology one. Good luck.
not sure, but if you can pass ochem-II i don't see any reason you shouldn't be able to teach high school chemistry. that class was a beast.
Relax man, it's not like you ever had a chance of becoming president no matter where you were born.
This is America wrote:
Sure why not? Heck, you don't have be born in the US to be the President, why not teach Chemistry without a Chemistry degree? There are no rules, standards or expectations-this is AMERICA!
seriously man wrote:
not sure, but if you can pass ochem-II i don't see any reason you shouldn't be able to teach high school chemistry. that class was a beast.
I actually really liked Organic Chemistry. They were two of my favorite classes, but mainly because my prof was all about mechanism and I just really enjoyed solving problems. I'm in inorganic now and character tables are giving me some trouble. The two extra classes are quantitative analysis (4 credits, two hours of lecture and 6 hours of lab a week), and Calc II (should be easy as I got a 5 on the AP test in HS, but don't really want to bother with it). I was only going for the BA since I knew I didn't want to be a chemist.
I think pretty much anyone who got an A in Gen Chem I could adequately teach HS chemistry, but I'm sure principals would prefer those with Chemistry and/or Chem-Ed degrees.
I'd much rather teach biology and biology related subjects if I was going to teach.
Rather than asking folks on a message board, call your local school district to ask.
From what I have seen there are a lot of teachers who are not educated in the areas they are teaching so it would not be that odd.
Just do not get cancer and start cooking meth.
I know people who teach science subjects in which they do not have a degree, but I can imagine that a few districts might have a rule about it. Bio is so close to Chem, though, and with the shortage of science teachers as it is, it would have to be a fairly bureaucratic district to DQ you!
Here's a suggestion from someone twenty years out of college this fall: why not stay the extra semester, take those two classes, and otherwise have the time of your life? Experiment. Take a photography class, or film studies. Sign up for coed intramural water polo. Date several sorority women. Whatever you personally have always dreamt about, do it. Because ...
... you will never have your college experience back again. Never. The working world can be harsh, and it is relatively much more structured and much more lonely. So make the most of your youth while you still can. You have the rest of your life to make a living. (And it's not as if you'd be graduating into a great economy.)
Good luck.
Like several have said before, it probably depends on the school district.
I'm currently teaching h.s. biology and integrated science. I have a b.s. in biology, and I'm getting my Master's of Arts in Teaching. I'm only certified to teach h.s. biology, and I cannot teach chemistry or physics because I do not have all the required classes. Although I feel I could teach them since I got As in college chem, o-chem, and physics, my grad. school will not let me get certified. No school district around here will let me teach them without the certification...