This Data Point examines the supplemental school year income earned at jobs outside the school system by public school teachers in the United States. It uses data from the public school teacher survey of the 2017–18 National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS), which is a national sample survey of public and private K–12 schools, principals, and teachers in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. State representative information is also available for public schools, principals, and teachers.

How does income from an outside job vary by a teacher’s main teaching assignment

FIGURE 1. Outside jobs for teachers: Among regular full-time public school teachers, percentage of teachers earning income during the school year from a supplemental job outside the school system, and average amount earned from that supplemental job, by main teaching assignment: 2017–18

NOTE: ESL is English as a Second Language. For questions about content or to view this report and supplemental tables online, go to https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2021007.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS), “Public School Teacher Data File,” 2017–18.

In the 2017–18 school year, 18 percent of public school teachers supplemented their base salary with a job outside the school system¹ (FIGURE 1).

The percentage of teachers with such jobs varied by main teaching assignment. Arts or music teachers had the highest rate of taking on supplemental outside jobs at 31 percent, and early childhood or general elementary teachers had the lowest at 12 percent.

Across all public school teachers with supplemental outside jobs during the 2017–18 school year, the average amount earned in an outside job was $5,800.

The additional amounts earned varied by main teaching assignment. Career or technical education teachers ($9,200) and health education teachers ($7,000) both earned more than the average amount. Teachers in English/ language arts ($5,100) or in early childhood or general elementary education ($4,700) earned less than the average amount in their outside jobs.

FIGURE 2. Type of outside jobs for teachers: Percentage distribution of type of job outside the school system held by regular full-time public school teachers with such jobs during the school year, by main teaching assignment: 2017–18

NOTE: Teachers include only those reported as working fulltime. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. For questions about content or to view this report and supplemental tables online, go to https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2021007.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS), “Public School Teacher Data File,” 2017–18.

Is the main teaching assignment related to the type of job teachers held outside the school system during the school year?

Teachers who reported working during the school year in a second job outside the school system were asked if the jobs were for teaching or tutoring, non-teaching but related to the teaching field, or other. Twenty-five percent reported that their outside job was teaching or tutoring related. Twenty percent reported it was non-teaching but related to the teaching field, and 55 percent indicated it was some other type of job (FIGURE 2).

Looking across main teaching assignments, mathematics teachers had the highest rate of teaching or tutoring as a focus of their second jobs at 35 percent. Health education teachers had the lowest rate of teaching or tutoring in their other jobs at 12 percent.

Endnotes

¹ NTPS asks separately about summer jobs that teachers may hold. It also collects information about base salary and other sources of supplemental income. Other sources include extracurricular or additional activities within the same school system, performance-based bonuses, and other sources in the school system.

To learn more, visit https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/ntps/.
For questions about content or to view this report online, go to https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2021007.

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Data Point presents information on education topics of current interest. It was authored by Jeremy Wilhelm and Laurie Lewis of Westat. Estimates based on samples are subject to sampling variability, and apparent differences may not be statistically significant. All stated differences are statistically significant at the .05 level, with no adjustments for multiple comparisons. In the design, conduct, and data processing of NCES surveys, efforts are made to minimize the effects of nonsampling errors such as item nonresponse, measurement error, data processing error, or other systematic error.