Is teaching still a realistic option for me?
Graduating with a teaching degree while facing social anxiety and a lack of job offers makes the entire career path feel heavy and discouraging. This lack of experience and confidence leaves new graduates unsure whether to keep trying or to walk away and figure out a completely different direction.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- The most recent one is from October 2026.
- This comes up 12.3× more often in r/Teachers than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Working other jobs that require less mental effortDid this help you?
- 2switching to a different major or career path such as healthcare or dentistryDid this help you?
- 3Pushing through the lack of formal trainingDid this help you?
- 4Comparing performance to veteran teachersDid this help you?
- 5Relying on personal stamina and ongoing learningDid this help you?
- 6considering returning to a previous employerDid this help you?
- 7attempting to automate repetitive tasks with softwareDid this help you?
- 8taking a holiday to reflectDid this help you?
- 9Considering switching to alternative majors like architecture, paralegal, vet tech, or finance despite market concernsDid this help you?
- 10Planning to take financial accounting a different semesterDid this help you?
- 11Evaluating personal interests and strengths to find a less miserable career pathDid this help you?
- 12Evaluating whether the position is full-time or part-time/adjunctDid this help you?
- 13Taking the job anyway to build resume experienceDid this help you?
- 14Seeking advice from experienced professionals on career mobilityDid this help you?
- 15continuing the job search in the original fieldDid this help you?
- 16considering alternative certification routes for teachingDid this help you?
- 17Switching majors multiple times across different healthcare programsDid this help you?
- 18Seeking advice from professionals on online forums about alternative degreesDid this help you?
- 19Switching college majors repeatedlyDid this help you?
- 20Considering teaching as a fallback optionDid this help you?
- 21Asking online communities for alternative career recommendationsDid this help you?
- 22Staying home to care for the newborn instead of applying for teaching positionsDid this help you?
- 23Switching careers into insurance or the tradesDid this help you?
- 24Keeping certification active while staying homeDid this help you?
- 25taking prerequisites for an accelerated nursing programDid this help you?
- 26considering taking the LSAT for law schoolDid this help you?
- 27pursuing professional certifications like CPA, CIA, CFE, or CPPDid this help you?
- 28taking a step back in salary to move forward into traditional accounting or auditingDid this help you?
- 29Trying out teaching for a year or two to see if it is enjoyable before deciding to pivotDid this help you?
- 30Looking into alternative education industry jobs in the commercial sector or other non-teaching rolesDid this help you?
- 31Working as a substitute teacher or paraprofessional to test the watersDid this help you?
- 32Majoring in a specific subject instead of education for secondary levelsDid this help you?
- 33Having a backup plan or double-majoringDid this help you?
- 34Getting part-time subbing experience to test the reality before finishing the degreeDid this help you?
- 35Treating the job strictly as a paycheck to fund hobbies and life outside of workDid this help you?
- 36Learning something new on the side while maintaining steady employmentDid this help you?
- 37Carving out early morning time for personal activities, workouts, or hobbies before the workday startsDid this help you?
- 38Asking experienced professionals online if feeling confused early on is normalDid this help you?
- 39Comparing oneself to confident peers to gauge expected knowledge levelsDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Thing is I dread going to work every single day and even when I leave at 5 I feel myself anxious and upset over work.”source ↗
“I've had a shitty couple of months at work to the point where my manager is asking what's up and honestly how can I say 'Its my entire career'”source ↗
“I miss who I used to be when I was laid off and was forced to be something awesome to find a job and now that I have one I am stuck with it to pay rent and provide for my family.”source ↗
“Every single accountant I know at my job loves being an accountant and I just can't relate.”source ↗
“I don't know where to go or what to do but every day I jump at a teams notification I feel one step closer to dying miserable.”source ↗
“I know what they were working on but I was unsure why they were doing different things etc.”source ↗
“I am worried that since I don’t understand it, I won’t be a very good person for the job role.”source ↗
“I’m used to picking things up quite quickly and therefore since I didn’t understand it quickly, I question my compatibility with the role.”source ↗
“Some part of me do regret leaving Big4 a little too early because I felt like if I stayed longer maybe better opportunities will arise and also because I have actual friends there too.”source ↗
“I guess I am just a little lost - I am unable to explore jobs without employers questioning job hopping (I understand that is a valid concern).”source ↗
“my thing is I don’t want to get pigeon holed because can I even make 100k or 150k or 200k in this field??”source ↗
“need advice idk what to do with my life and I’m scared I get pigeon holed in payroll cause people talk shit about it”source ↗
“yea I don’t want to be pigeon holed to this field”source ↗
“I’m a sophomore accounting major and from the posts i’ve seen on this subreddit and others, I feel that it may not be a career worth pursuing.”source ↗
“The thing that’s been scaring me the most are the mass layoffs I’ve seen people talking about on here.”source ↗
“What’s the point of working hard in college toward a career where even if I build a stable foundation in a job, get promoted, and make more money, I could still get kicked to the curb?”source ↗
“In short, I had a mental breakdown and I'm not mentally well enough to continue with this financial accounting class.”source ↗
“I'm so scared of how rigorous this course is and how the concepts keep building on each other and Im just getting behind on the material because of my mental health.”source ↗
“However I'm hesitant and frustrated because accounting seems to be the only good major, the other majors I want to pursue are either not in demand or the job market is shit.”source ↗
“Hello guys! I’m a 20F who has made some pretty bad career decisions so far.”source ↗
“Last month, I dropped out of my RT program because I realized I just wasn’t interested in it.”source ↗
“After struggling with this for years, I think I finally want to pursue something that actually fits me.”source ↗
“Am I making a mistake by majoring in Education? I have heard lots of bad things and it is quite frightening to me.”source ↗
“I am getting very concerned about the state of it. I also am concerned about the declining birth rates and worrying about the state of my career, and if I will even have a normal sized classroom for 35 years.”source ↗
“I Lwk hate it. My kids are disrespectful towards me, the teacher, and each other.”source ↗
“Everything that is told to them goes out the other ear.”source ↗
“idk, I think I need to rethink my life choices since this sucks.”source ↗
“I'm slowly starting to realise that teaching might not be for me.”source ↗
“I've spent so much time, energy and money to do this and all my life I thought I'd be a teacher. But I don't like it at all.”source ↗
“It's affecting my mental health to the point where I'm completely neglecting myself and can't do my job right.”source ↗
“And I don't even know what to do, because I've worked so hard to get to where I am today and I can't just throw it all away. I feel stuck.”source ↗
“I'm at the tail end of my MAT and almost halfway through my student teaching semester. I also happen to be pregnant & due in late April, so I've decided (with my fiancé) to not apply for any teaching jobs for next fall so that I can stay home and care for our little one.”source ↗
“However, I am also so bogged down with work that I am starting to dread my first year of teaching, baby or not.”source ↗
“Is there anyone out there who switched gears/careers after having a baby and walked away from teaching?”source ↗
“However, now that’s it’s time to to actually apply my degree, I feel like I made a huge mistake. A part of me regrets majoring in education because now I feel like I need to be a teacher.”source ↗
“I really need to start working on a career as soon as I can, so I can support my family, but what if I hate teaching?”source ↗
“I keep comparing myself to the other teachers and thinking, “Would I be cut out for this like they are? Should I pursue this career, or will I struggle too much?””source ↗
“Like, did you heavily question if you made the right career choice but eventually feel confident?”source ↗
“I am SO tempted to take the next steps toward becoming a teacher, I THINK I’d be able to overcome self-doubt, I just keep second guessing.”source ↗
“I had my first born in the middle of my second year. I’ve stayed home a dread going back simply due to the abuse of teachers and shit show I’증 witnessed by admin.”source ↗
“I feel like i'm not meant to be a techer”source ↗
“I don't feel confident to pursue teaching.”source ↗
“My classmates have a lot of experience and i can't seem to find a job where they accept me with my little experience.”source ↗
“I'm highly introverted and somehow socially anxious so this path sometimes feels really heavy to follow.”source ↗
“I still have my videos and believe I completed part of the TPAs, but I am not sure how to finish the remaining requirements.”source ↗
“I left teaching unsure of what direction to take next.”source ↗
“I honestly do not know how to get out of the situation I am in now.”source ↗
“I know I have a Master’s degree, but right now I feel overwhelmed and unsure how to use it.”source ↗
“Is teaching still a realistic option for me, or do I need to move on from it?”source ↗
“I, F22, recently graduated with a degree in Fashion Design & Merchandising, and I’m feeling extremely conflicted about what I should do with my career.”source ↗
“The problem is that the fashion job search has been really discouraging.”source ↗
“I’m struggling because these are two completely different lives, and I don’t know which one I actually want.”source ↗
“I’m feeling very lost right now and would really appreciate some honest perspectives.”source ↗
“However, I keep on hearing people on Reddit say don't go into teaching. The problem is, I don't see where else I can go.”source ↗
“Something that has been playing on my mind is the idea that taking this job would "lock me in" to the teaching profession and make it harder to get a job doing something else if I realise it's not for me.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 7Am I too unstable mentally to be a teacher?
- 4Imposter syndrome when changing jobs after working solo
- 4Why doesn't my family understand my career choice?
- 2How to choose a career when you have no passion
- 13Should I quit my demanding job for a simpler, lower-paying one?
- 11Why do I keep second-guessing my certification exam answers?