This is one of the most common questions members of our community ask: Am I qualified to teach online college courses? Obviously, there is no one size fits all answer to this question. So much depends on variables such as what discipline you teach in and the competitiveness within that area, whether you are looking to teach undergraduate or graduate courses, differences in standards across accrediting bodies, etc. Some schools are pickier than others, taking what their accrediting body requires and then upping the ante a little bit. Some schools are perfectly content with the accreditation minimum.
However! Generally speaking, there are a handful of “must haves” and a few “would help to haves” that can help you determine whether or not you are a strong candidate for teaching online college courses. We’ll list those below:
Online Teaching Qualifications: Must Haves
Education required to teach undergraduate courses: The bare minimum qualifications required to teach undergraduate college courses, as set by the largest accrediting body (SACSCOC) is a master’s degree (in anything) plus at least 18 graduate semester credit hours in the discipline you are looking to each in.
So, for example, if you want to teach undergraduate math courses and you have a Master of Divinity, you are qualified (in terms of education, anyway) to teach math courses if you can document on your transcript that you have at least 18 graduate semester hours in the field of mathematics. In short, the master’s degree is the minimum required degree (for most accredited schools – the bachelor’s might be acceptable at unaccredited institutions/programs), but it doesn’t necessarily have to be in the subject you wish to teach. If you have a master’s in anything, you are minimally qualified to teach undergraduate courses online – either in the field your degree is in or any field that have 18 graduate credit hours in (as documented on your transcript).
Schools are welcome to require “above the minimum.” For example, some SACSCOC-accredited schools will only accept applications from those who have a master’s degree in the specific field they are needing taught. In other words, if they are hiring someone to teach undergraduate business courses, they may require an MBA or other business-related master’s degree. Schools are even at liberty to require a doctorate to teach undergraduate courses. Not many do, but they still can.
Education required to teach graduate courses: The minimum requirement for teaching graduate-level courses at a university, as set by the SACSCOC, is a terminal/doctorate degree in the specific field being taught. If you are wanting to teach graduate courses, you probably need a doctorate degree. Not all schools are accredited or accredited by the SACSCOC, and thus not all graduate programs require their faculty to have doctoral degrees, but many follow in its footsteps. The use of the word “terminal” is important, too. While the doctorate is the terminal degree in most industries, it isn’t necessarily the terminal degree in all disciplines. For example, the MFA is the terminal degree in the area of fine arts.
Your education is the “must have” as far as bare minimum requirements. If you have a master’s degree, it is possible for you to break into the world of online instruction. However, it would be easier if you have one or more of the following “would help to haves” on board.
Online Teaching Qualifications: The “Would Help to Haves”
On-ground teaching experience (within higher-ed): While schools are most definitely hiring you for your subject matter expertise, it also helps them know that you are an experienced educator in some capacity – that you know how to translate what you know so that novice learners can grasp it and learn from you. If you have on-ground teaching experience at any college or university – this is a bonus, and you should play it up in your CV and cover letter.
Online teaching experience (within higher-ed): Online teaching experience is golden. If you have ever taught online, even if you were a teaching assistant (TA) or a volunteer online instructor (like at the University of the People), this counts as online teaching experience. You should scream this loud and proud in your CV and cover letter. Schools can relax a bit if they are hiring someone who has done the job before.
On-ground and online teaching experience (within your industry): Within your non-teaching, industry-focused career, you may have held a teaching role. Maybe you’ve trained large groups on new software, led leadership seminars, or taught at the police academy. These experiences, while they may not pack the punch of higher ed teaching experience are still helpful to have and should be highlighted in your application materials – especially if you ever hosted these courses online (either synchronously over Zoom or Teams or asynchronously via an LMS).
Learning management system (LMS) experience: Most schools host their online courses on a learning management system of some form. The most popular LMSs are Blackboard, Canvas, Brightspace/D2L, and Moodle. If you have some familiarity with these systems, as a student, as an instructor, or as someone who has opted into some LMS training in preparation for teaching online, then you will want to make sure to include that in your application documents.
Other technologies: Minimally, you will want to be familiar with Microsoft Office Tools, email, and be savvy with most synchronous video chat platforms, like WebX, MSTeams, and Zoom. Proficiencies in industry-specific technologies, like QuickBooks for accountants and SPSS for statistics instructors, are also helpful/important.
Course development experience: In distance education, it is a very common practice for teaching and course development to be separate. Trained instructional designers and subject matter experts pair up to create a solid, effective online course based on today’s research in online course development best practices. Then, instructors are hired to teach those courses. If you have experiences on both sides of this fence, whether in higher ed or in your industry (although higher ed experience will always shine a bit brighter) then that’s something to emphasize. A school could hire you and you could both help design courses and teach them.
Subject matter expertise/Industry experience: The required degree assumes you have some subject matter expertise. You went to school long enough to earn the degree; you are somewhat of an expert. But subject matter expertise is indeed strengthened by “real world” experience. Having worked in your industry and having earned various other industry-related certifications in your career is something a lot of schools look for. Their students are career-focused, and they do not necessarily want to learn from someone who has been holed up in the Ivory Tower. They want to learn from someone who is doing the job they want to do. If you have a degree in an area, but no corresponding industry experience it may be harder – but not impossible – to break into online higher ed.
Interpersonal skills: Online teaching is a very high-touch, soft-skill dependent job. There are a number of interpersonal skills that are critical to effective online delivery. For a list of those, you can see our blog post titled: 4 Interpersonal Skills for Effective Online Teaching.
Online Teaching Qualifications – The Most Critical Component: Emphasis on Student-Centered Learning
You can have the shiniest CV and cover letter on the face of the earth – one that checks each and every box above. But! If you don’t come across as someone who understands the unique needs of the online learner population (who are primarily working adults), who doesn’t understand the gravity and responsibility inherent in online teaching, who isn’t flexible, and who doesn’t emphasize the importance of collaboration, discussion, and faculty involvement/presence, then you might not get the job. While you want to be clear and confident in your experience and expertise, you also want to focus on the students. You do not want to come across as someone who is over-emphasizing their own credentials while under-emphasizing the students. Schools work very hard and spend a lot of money to recruit and retain their learners. They need to make sure that the faculty they hire will nurture them, and this requires you to tell the schools how you would do that – in your application documents.
You do not have to have taught online before to convey your student-centered teaching philosophy. If you seek out training in today’s best practices in online teaching and online course development, you can document your training in your application materials and demonstrate your learning/understanding in your cover letter, objective statement, and statement of teaching philosophy. I know a lot of people who have studied online teaching and who understand the needs of the online learner a lot more than those who have been teaching online for years! At AdjunctWorld we offer two online certificate courses that emphasize online teaching best practices (OT101) and effective online course development (CD501). You can click those respective links to learn more about those training courses and when they are offered.
If you are interested in learning more about entering into the world of online education and how to present your background in the best light on your application documents (your CV, cover letter, Statement of Teaching Philosophy, interview responses, etc.) then consider joining us for our next cohort of OnRamp: A Practical Guide to Landing an Online Teaching Job.
