Preschool Teacher vs High School Teacher: Which Field Is Better?

Dimension	Preschool Teacher	High School Teacher
Median pay	$37,120	$64,580
Projected growth (2024–34)	4.1%	-1.6%
Annual openings	65,500	66,200
2024 employment	555,100	1,094,500
2034 projected employment	578,100	1,076,700
Self-employed share	0.6%	0%
Typical entry education	Associate's degree	Bachelor's degree
Related work experience	None	None
On-the-job training	None	None

Dimension

Preschool Teacher

High School Teacher

Median pay

$37,120

$64,580

Projected growth (2024–34)

4.1%

-1.6%

Annual openings

65,500

66,200

2024 employment

555,100

1,094,500

2034 projected employment

578,100

1,076,700

Self-employed share

0.6%

Typical entry education

Associate's degree

Bachelor's degree

Related work experience

None

On-the-job training

None

Preschool Teacher: main tradeoff

Demand and openings are substantial, but pay is low relative to other education careers, making compensation and retention the defining tradeoffs.

High School Teacher: main tradeoff

Headline employment growth can look weak while replacement openings and real-world shortages remain large; turnover and working conditions are essential to the story.

Which should you choose?

High School Teacher has the higher national median pay in the BLS data. Preschool Teacher has the higher projected 2024–2034 growth rate. The larger decision is whether you prefer the training path, work style, and occupation-specific tradeoffs of Preschool Teacher or High School Teacher.