25 High Paying Jobs for Retired Teachers in 2024

Top Jobs for Retired Teachers

Here are some of the less stressful jobs for retired teachers that also pay well.

1. eBook Author

• Pay varies

If you are looking for jobs where you work alone, it can’t get any better than this!

Retired teachers can put their skills to use and do something creative by becoming an author. Maybe you’ll write the next great American novel? Or perhaps you want to share your knowledge with a how-to guide?

Whatever the case, you can self-publish books, including fiction and non-fiction novels, on Amazon with Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP).

Anyone can publish a book on there. You get between 35% and 70% commission on your book sales.

2. Mentor

• Average pay: $13 an hour
• Pay range: $8 to $24 an hour

Use those people skills you learned as a teacher to work as a mentor. As a mentor, you inspire others with your knowledge, insight, and ideas in a specific field.

You could become a mentor at a school, university, sports team, church, or at a company within your field of specialty. Find work as a mentor at The Mentor Network.

3. Career coach

• Average pay: $27 an hour
• Pay range: $11 to $108 an hour

As a career coach, you help people to meet their career goals. This is a pretty rewarding job for retired teachers. You help people to find a new job or to advance their current career.

Here’s where you can find career coach jobs:

• Indeed
• LinkedIn
• SimplyHired

Make sure you read this post from Indeed to learn more about how to become a career coach.

4. Editor

• Average pay: $25 an hour
• Pay range: $6 to $45 an hour

Use your grammar skills by working as an editor. Editors are paid to check written work, like novels, blog posts, and articles for typos, grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, and structural elements.

You can work from home with many jobs and it pays well too. It is one of the best at home jobs that pay $25 or more hour.

Editors work in a variety of industries to ensure that any written materials are free from error and read well. As an editor, you could work on anything from books to blog posts to articles.

• Indeed
• LinkedIn
• ZipRecruiter

5. Adjunct Professor

• Average pay: $32 an hour
• Pay range: $5 to $74 an hour

If you’re a retired teacher, but still want to teach students, then being an adjunct professor could be a good option for you. As an adjunct professor, you can teach students part-time. There are many universities, like the Southern New Hampshire University, that offer adjunct faculty positions.

You could check to see if there are any universities near you that hire adjunct faculty.

Here are a couple of places to find work:

• HigherEdJobs
• Indeed

6. Test scorer

• Average pay: $14 an hour
• Pay range: $11 to $16 an hour

A good job for teachers who’ve retired is test scorer. As a test scorer, you’re paid to score assessment tests, exams, and other tests from a remote location or office. There are plenty of remote test scoring jobs out there, so you get the option to work from home.

Here’s where you can find work as a test scorer:

• Write Score
• ETS
• Pearson

7. Sell courses online

• Pay varies

Use your knowledge of a particular topic to create a course and sell it online. You could make $1,000s a month from this.

Here’s where you can sell your courses:

• Udemy
• Teachable
• Skillshare

8. Freelance writer

• Average pay: $23 an hour
• Pay range: $12 to $58 an hour

Freelance writers are paid to write things like blog posts, articles, press releases, products descriptions, and more. As a freelance writer, you can work home and set your own hours. Most freelance writing positions pay per word.

Pay per word can range from as little as $0.01 per word to as much as $0.10 per word or even more than that. This can be a good job after retirement.

Here are some writing websites that pay:

• Textbroker
• Verblio
• BKA Content

You can also find private clients on websites like UpWork and PeoplePerHour.

9. Personal trainer

• Average pay: $23 an hour
• Pay range: $9 to $46 an hour

Personal trainers get paid to help people get fit and healthy. If you want a career that is different from teaching but still involves helping people, then this could be the career for you.

Learn about how to become a personal trainer here.

Here’s where you can find personal trainer jobs:

• Indeed
• ZipRecruiter
• Glassdoor

10. Real Estate Agent

• Average pay: $40 an hour
• Pay range: $6 to $72 an hour

One of the highest paying jobs for retirees is being a real estate agent. This is definitely a change of pace for teachers, but it can be a great way to earn after you stop teaching.

Real estate agents help people to buy, sell, or rent a property. You can help clients through every step of the way from searching for properties to closing the deal.

Take a look at this guide on how to become a real estate agent to learn more about this job.

11. Paralegal

• Average pay: $25 an hour
• Pay range: $15 to $40 an hour

Paralegals help lawyers to prepare for hearings, trials, and corporate meetings. This career is a change of pace for teachers, but it allows you to use the organizational skills you learned as a teacher.

Learn how to become a paralegal here.

12. Educational consultant

• Average pay: $27 an hour
• Pay range: $6 to $54 an hour

Educational consultants help educational institutions and schools, and sometimes parents and students.

This is a varied role where you may do tasks like:

• Advise K-12 school districts on how to integrate technology into the classroom.
• Design and manage higher education and professional development programs for teachers at universities and colleges.
• Advise schools on their methods of teaching and curriculum
• Recommend texts for educational institutions.

This is a great role for retired teachers who still want to be involved in the field of education.

Learn how to become an educational consultant here.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Indeed
• SimplyHired
• Top School Jobs

13. Corporate trainer

• Average pay: $26 an hour
• Pay range: $10 to $44 an hour

As a corporate trainer, you train others in a corporate work environment. You may also help employees and managers with their professional development. Since you’re used to teaching anyway, being a corporate trainer could be a good job for you.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Indeed
• ZipRecruiter
• LinkedIn

Learn how to become a corporate trainer here.

14. Researcher

• Average pay: $28 an hour
• Pay range: $17 to $47 an hour

Researchers gather and examine information from a variety of sources, and they assemble this research and present it to their employers.

You can research everything from the stock market to consumer behavior.

Since many former teachers are experienced with conducting research, this can be a good job option post-retirement.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Indeed
• ResearchGate
• Glassdoor

15. Blogger

• Average pay: $18 an hour
• Pay range: $9 to $38 an hour

Bloggers write articles and post them online. You can choose a topic and create a blog around it. You will also need to get traffic to your site.

When your blog starts to get traffic, you can start earning money from it, which you can do through:

• Ads on your site with Google AdSense
• Sponsored posts
• Affiliate links
• Selling products

You will need to get a domain name and hosting, which you can get from sites like Bluehost, HostGator, and GoDaddy, and then you can publish your blog posts through WordPress.org.

16. Tutor

• Average pay: $22 an hour
• Pay range: $8 to $50 an hour

If you have retired, but still want to do some teaching, then working as a tutor could be a good option for you. Tutors get to work from home and set their own hours, making this a flexible job for retirees.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Skooli
• TutorMe
• Aim-for-A Tutoring
• com
• com
• Smarthinking
• Manhattan Prep

17. Curriculum developer

• Average pay: $39 an hour
• Pay range: $8 to $74 an hour

As a curriculum developer, you oversee school curriculums and ensure adherence to state and local standards. If you still want to be involved in the field of education after you have retired, then this could be a good job for you.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Indeed
• ZipRecruiter
• SimplyHired

18. School guidance counsellor

• Average pay: $29 an hour
• Pay range: $24 to $35 an hour

Guidance counsellors work in schools and other educational institutions where they provide academic, personal, and career advice to students.

They examine or assess any potential or skills a student may have and discuss this with students.

For retired teachers who’re looking to continue their work with students, being a school guidance counselor is a good option.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Indeed
• Top School Jobs
• LinkedIn

19. Sports coach

• Average pay: $17 an hour
• Pay range: $9 to $39 an hour

Another option for retired teachers is being a sports coach. A coach instructs people on the skills of a particular sport, like soccer or basketball for example. They can coach amateurs or professionals.

If you are looking to continue teaching in some way and enjoy sports, then this could be a great career opportunity for you.

There are so many different sports groups out there, so you can find something in the field that you enjoy.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Indeed
• LinkedIn
• HigherEdJobs

20. Museum guide

• Average pay: $15 an hour
• Pay range: $7 to $25 an hour

As a museum guide, it’s your job to help visitors to experience the museum through guided tours, special events, and workshops.

You will need to have detailed knowledge of a museum’s exhibits, and design tours based on things like theme, artist, or another category. You may also occasionally lecture educators and other historians on particular pieces or collections. And, you may also perform research duties.

Here’s where you can find work:

• Indeed
• ZipRecruiter
• Glassdoor

21. School administrator

• Average pay: $20 an hour
• Pay range: $10 to $31 an hour

School administrators are responsible for tasks like maintaining academic records, assisting students and faculty, supervising staff, and managing budgets. They work at every level of education. For retired teachers, this can be a good job choice.

Here’s where you can find school administrator jobs:

• Indeed
• Top School Jobs
• ZipRecruiter

22. Sell lesson plans

• Pay varies

As a teacher you can also get paid to sell your lesson plans. This isn’t an hourly paid job like the others, but it’s still a good way for retired teachers to make money.

23. Park ranger

• Average pay: $19 an hour
• Pay range: $9 to $29 an hour

Being a park ranger is another career to consider. Sure, it’s not much like teaching, but if you’re looking for a change of pace and a job that gets you in the great outdoors, then it’s certainly a good option.

As a park ranger, you’re responsible for protecting our state and national parks, including the wildlife within them and the people who visit them.

There are seasonal jobs available, as well as year-round jobs on offer, which means you can do this job at certain times of the year if you want or as a fulltime role. It’s a fun job where you get to socialize and enjoy nature.

You can find work as a park ranger here.

24. Postal worker

• Average pay: $19 an hour
• Pay range: $8 to $34 an hour

You may also want to consider being a postal worker. This is a good job for retirees, because this role often allows you to work early in the morning, and then you have the rest of the day to spend as you choose. In this role, you’re paid to deliver mail to homes and businesses.

You can find postal worker jobs on the USPS website.

25. Online ESL teacher

• Average pay: $19 an hour
• Pay range: $8 to $24 an hour

Online ESL teachers get paid to teach English as a second language (ESL). In this role, you’re paid to teach people in a variety of countries how to speak English, and this can be done online. So if you’re looking for a work from home job for retired teachers, then being an online ESL teacher is a great choice.

Here’s where you can find ESL teacher jobs:

• Indeed
• ZipRecruiter
• Cambly
• VIPkid

Closing Thoughts

If you recently retired from teaching, give these jobs a try! There’s something to suit everyone from jobs that involve teaching to totally new career paths!

Are you a retired teacher? What job do you think you’ll try post-retirement?