Career Paths in Early Childhood Education

Careers in this category have greatest degree of involvement with children. These include a wide range of professional areas including health, education, psychology, recreation or social service. Regardless of the particular content emphasis of an individual’s training, that content will be applied in working directly with young children.

Careers in this category also vary according to the amount of professional training and the degree of responsibility the individual exercises in planning services for young children. These include individuals who work directly with young children as teacher’s aides, assistant teachers, assistant group leaders, housekeepers, family day care workers, and other positions that often do not require extensive professional preparation. Higher levels of professional preparation and responsibility for children’s services are required for careers such as pediatric nurses; nursery school, child care, or head start teachers; school nurses; and primary grade teachers. Considerably more specialized professional training is required for pediatricians, dietitians, speech therapists, and physical therapists and school psychologists.

Individuals in these careers have contact with the families of young children and frequently use support services of trained specialists or other professionals. A strong liking for young children that leads to interacting easily and competently with young children is an absolute prerequisite for these careers. In the box to the right are examples of positions that you might consider.

This category includes individuals whose daily work is focused on delivering services to families, although contact with young children in these families may be frequent as well. These services can affect the quality of life for all members of the family unit including young children. Professionals in these careers are committed to working through parents to help children, and much of their efforts focus on helping adults realize their potential.

Most careers in this category require a moderately high degree of professional training. Individuals who are employed to deliver services to families must be capable of working directly with families as well as working with agencies and organizations that provide services. Some of the careers are social workers, family therapists, educational specialists in a prenatal clinic, and parent educators or parent coordinators.

Individuals can often increase the amount of contact they have with families of young children by specializing. Thus, a social worker could primarily work on adoptions, a public health nurse may work with child abuse cases, or a case worker may work through a community mental health center counseling grandparents who are raising grandchildren. In the box to the right are examples of positions that you might consider.

Leadership and organizational duties are the primary responsibility of men and women who work in careers of this kind. While a teacher may reach 20 children, a leader might reach 20 teachers who in turn will reach 400 children and their families. In the box to the right are examples of positions that you might consider.

These careers include individuals who are experts in various content areas related to programs and services for children and families. These men and women provide support services and disseminate their information and skills to other professionals who work with children, families, agencies, services, and program that more directly affect young children. These individuals are not likely to be found in frequent or sustained contact directly with children or families, and they do not usually supervise other or administer programs.

Careers in this cluster include a wide range of professional interests. The most common jobs are university-based researchers, trainers, librarians, teacher resources center staff, and agency and referral specialists. Individuals who choose these careers have received extensive training.

People seeking these kinds of careers exemplify a strong orientation towards skills and knowledge in particular content areas. Many individuals who successfully pursue these careers have worked directly with young children at one time or another. Such experience often aids them in providing realistic and practical help to those they serve. In the box to the right are examples of positions that you might consider.

The key to careers of this kind is the phrase "general public." Individuals who work in these careers serve the general public, not just individual children, families, or professionals. In serving the general public, such people provide goods and services that are particularly helpful to children, families and professionals. Most individuals in these careers have strong knowledge and skills in the particular career area in which they work. They may acquire skills and knowledge relevant to young children and their families through their work experiences. Like professionals in careers described above, these individuals have the option of directing some of their efforts to areas that will affect children and families. In the box to the right are examples of positions that you might consider.