Budgeting

Ask Jean Thursday: Doing The Math On A Teacher’s Salary

Posted by Jean

QUESTION: “I’m a single, pre-kindergarten teacher that loves her job but I have trouble making ends meet, especially during the summer months.  I get paid twice a month—roughly $1,200 each paycheck. My take home pay per year is about $24,000. What can I do during the school year so I can live comfortably during the summer and not worry about my finances?”

-Jennifer, New York

ANSWER: Summers off, lots of vacation time, a nice benefits package…being a teacher definitely has its perks. In fact, according to MetLife’s annual Survey of the American Teacher, 62% of teachers surveyed said they were very satisfied with their careers.

The downside to teaching?  Once the summer rolls around the paychecks stop appearing in your mailbox, making budgeting—at least for a few months—a bit of a headache.

According to Danny Kofke, author of “How to Survive (and Perhaps Even Thrive) on a Teacher’s Salary,” “paying yourself” is the key to staying afloat during the summer months.

In your particular example, in order to pay yourself, you’ll to divide your take home pay, $24,000, by 12.  You’ll get $2,000, and this is the amount you’ll want to “pay yourself” every month. The goal is to pay yourself this amount even when you’re not getting a paycheck from your school system.

How can you do this?  Set aside a little bit of money each time you’re paid.  Put it in a separate savings account so you’re not tempted to touch it. In your case, you should aim to put away $300 per paycheck to ensure you’ll get paid the $2,000 during the months you’re not working. “Every time you get paid, you should put $300 of your check into your savings account and, voila, you will never have to scrimp once the dog days of August roll around,” says Kofke.

If you don’t think you can swing setting aside $300 per month, you might have to consider doing something else during your summer vacation to support yourself.  Here are some of the best ways for teachers to earn some extra cash during both the summer and throughout the school year.

• Teach outside the classroom. According to Kofke, one of the easiest ways to earn extra money is by tutoring. “I tutored one of my students a few years ago and charged $50 an hour for my services. By the time summer rolled around, I had over $1,000 saved by just tutoring one hour a week,” he says.

• Do a little moonlighting. Kofke also suggests looking into working at your school after hours.  “A lot of schools offer an after-school recreation program for their students. Working one of these programs can generate enough extra money for you to put away for the summer months,” says Kofke.

• Get certified. Another way for teachers to bulk up their bank account is by becoming nationally certified.  It can be a challenging and lengthy process, but according to Kofke, it’s well worth the effort.  “You will not only professionally benefit from this experience, but financially as well. Once you obtain this certification, you are eligible to receive an additional 20% of the median teacher’s salary every year for up to ten years,” says Kofke.  But before you look into becoming certified check with your county about the monetary awards for completing the process–they vary from state to state.