Penciling advanced study into a jam-packed teaching schedule is often easier and cheaper in online master's in educational leadership programs. According to the ASCD, educational leadership is a senior-level specialization where PK-16 educators control school department or building operations to exceed pupil achievement goals. Virtual classrooms offer flexible 24/7 access to educational leadership master's online degrees to help post-grads make the grade in administrative roles. Most school boards now mandate that leaders have one to three years of post-baccalaureate courses and state certification. The National Center for Education Statistics reports that 52 percent of America's 3.3 million public school teachers have finished master's curricula. Since the number of education master's awarded dropped from 167,500 in 2005 to 146,600 in 2015 though, enrolling in graduate school can give a leg's up for promotion competition.
The Grad School Hub staff utilized the College Navigator database to design the following lesson on cheap online master's in educational leadership offerings. Our search terms seeking advanced education degrees available solely by distance learning returned 247 results. We filtered through these online colleges to eliminate any on educational administration instead of leadership. Academic quality is foremost in our book, so each prospective program had to meet regional or national accreditation standards. Besides price, preference was given to graduate schools with discipline-specific approval from the Council on Accreditation for Educator Preparation and rankings from respected magazines like the U.S. News & World Report. Lastly, we ordered the universities from highest to lowest mean in-state master's tuition and kept the 10 most affordable under $5,000.
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Most Affordable Master's in Educational Leadership Online 2021
Why Consider Online Educational Leadership Master's Study Over On-Campus?
Educational leadership master's online programs typically employ the same PhD-level, tenure-track faculty to teach the same quality courses with more convenient classrooms. Online grad schools allow educators to keep working full-time while advancing leadership acumen during nights, weekends, and perhaps summer residencies. The U.S. News & World Report found consensus that school districts respect face-to-face and online master's instruction equally. Rural and suburban teachers can choose from online colleges nationwide without lengthy commutes. Accessing content via the Internet cuts extraneous costs like room and board and sharpens important educational tech skills. Accredited online programs may still qualify high-need educators for the $4,000 TEACH Grant. Master's in educational leadership online platforms also archive all lectures and discussions for easy referral later.
Which Careers Benefit Most from Educational Leadership Master's Online Degrees?
Going 30+ credits beyond the baccalaureate for a master's in educational leadership online opens most upper-level schooling professions, except college professor or dean. Educational leadership jobs exist in various disciplines from reading and special education to athletics administration. Master's training makes grads eligible for administrative endorsements that vary greatly by state. For example, the New York State Department of Education confers the School Building Leader (SBL) distinction for master's-level professionals with 3+ years of teaching experience. The Texas Education Agency developed the Advancing Educational Leadership (AEL) credential for passing seven principal competencies. Let's review five example jobs where master's in educational leadership online degrees are esteemed:
Teacher Team Leader- Certified veteran teachers with master's degrees are ideally suited for mentoring fellow educators as elementary or secondary team leaders. This role's duties include developing instructional initiatives, sharing lesson resources, coaching pedagogical strategies, evaluating teachers for feedback, planning professional development days, maintaining supply inventories, and serving as liaisons to administration.
School Principal- The Center for Education Reform reports that a principal shortage is affecting America's 129,189 schools serving 54.87 million K-12 pupils. Master's education prepares principals for supervising all building personnel, developing curricular programs, setting the financial structure, facilitating school efficiency, retaining quality teachers, keeping classrooms supplied, making grounds remediations, and disciplining students.
Childcare Center Coordinator- Marrying early childhood (Birth-Grade 3) experience with an online master's in educational leadership would qualify grads for leading staff as childcare center coordinators. Daily responsibilities will include creating preschool policies, setting safety standards, guiding curriculum development, preparing budgets, passing facility inspections, communicating with families, adhering to HHS regulations, and training teachers.
Student Affairs Director- The U.S. Department of Education recognizes 7,236 Title IV colleges, many of which need student affairs directors to organize engaging residential and recreational activities. Educational leadership master's grads could be perfect for promoting student retention, overseeing academic advising, planning orientations, coordinating honor society chapters, allocating club budgets, and posing recommendations to deans.
Training and Development Manager- One of the outside-the-box careers taking master's in educational leadership online grads into the corporate sector is training and development manager. Within HR departments, these leaders oversee employee workshops, establish professional development goals, select training manuals, design curriculum, hire instructors, allocate education budgets, and evaluate workers' learning.
How Much Do Online Master's in Educational Leadership Graduates Earn?
Although Monster Worldwide Inc. ranked education as the fifth worst-paying master's degree, earnings potential in leadership jobs can skyrocket above the average master's income of $69,732 on SmartAsset. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the 242,970 PreK-12 school administrators bank median pay of $92,510. College administrators bring home a higher average wage of $105,770 each year. Childcare center directors in the 90th earnings percentile make over $84,340. Corporations pay training and development managers handsomely with mean annual profits of $105,830. Salary.com recognizes curriculum managers, school superintendents, and Chief Academic Officers for median six-figure compensation of $102,644, $154,457, and $172,675 respectively. Athletics directors also lead students' sports programs for pay ranges of $63,805 to $185,801.
What is the Job Forecast for Master's in Educational Leadership Online Programs?
In August 2017, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that total PK-16 enrollment hit 77.2 million for 9.9 percent growth over the last two decades. As pupil retention rises, educational leadership master's online graduates are vital to pilot successful curricular programs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects overall job growth of 9 percent for 876,800 openings across education disciplines by 2026. Demand for daycare directors will spike faster-than-average by 11 percent. Hiring of college administrators will pick up by 10 percent for 18,000 jobs. Training and development management positions are predicting favorable 10 percent increases. Ten-year growth of 7 and 8 percent is forecasted for teacher leaders and school principals respectively too. Brighten your outlook further by adding a master's in educational leadership online program to your teaching résumé.
Sources:
ASCNational Center for Education StatisticsCollege NavigatorCouncil on Accreditation for Educator Preparation
