undergradly.
Major · Education

Licensure-track training for the 7-12 social studies classroom

Social Studies Teacher Education prepares you to teach history, civics, economics, and geography to middle and high schoolers, ending in supervised student teaching that feeds directly into a state teaching license. About 1,336 degrees are awarded each year across 263 colleges, with bachelor’s completers reporting $51,376 in median five-year earnings.

Schools offering
263
Annual completions
1,336
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$50k

About this major

Social Studies Teacher Education prepares you to teach general social studies — history, civics, economics, and geography — to students at the secondary level, with the curriculum designed around state teaching licensure. The program splits between content coursework in the four social science disciplines and education courses covering adolescent development, classroom management, curriculum design, and methods specific to teaching social studies. A supervised student-teaching placement, typically a full semester in a real middle or high school classroom under a mentor teacher, is the capstone and the gate to your initial license.

The major fits students who already know they want to teach and have a genuine interest in the public-affairs subjects social studies covers. Comfort speaking in front of a room helps, as does the patience to grade stacks of essays and exit tickets every week. The work rewards teachers who can turn dense primary sources, current events, and economic concepts into something a fourteen-year-old will actually engage with — pedagogical translation is the central skill.

On the destinations side, 1,336 degrees are awarded annually across 263 colleges, with bachelor’s completers reporting $51,376 in median five-year earnings. The standard career path leads to secondary school teaching ($64,580 BLS median, -1.6% projected growth) or middle school teaching ($62,970 median, -2% growth). Both list a bachelor’s as the typical entry credential, which means the degree itself — paired with the state license it qualifies you for — is the working credential rather than a stepping stone.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education $65k -1.6% Bachelor's degree
Middle school teachers, except special and career/technical education $63k -2.0% Bachelor's degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$50k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$34k

Bachelor's

$51k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you have already spent time around classrooms as a tutor, camp counselor, or coach and found you liked the rhythm, if you genuinely care about how civics and history land with teenagers rather than just enjoying the subjects yourself, if you can hold attention in a room for a full class period, if the $64,580 BLS median for secondary teachers feels like a workable salary in the part of the country where you plan to live, and if the structure of a school year — fixed schedule, summers off, defined progression on a union pay scale — appeals to you.

Think twice if your interest is in the academic study of history or politics rather than teaching it, since that path leads through a graduate program in the discipline rather than an education major. Reconsider also if you can’t see yourself doing classroom management with thirty teenagers at 7:45 AM, since student teaching makes that reality concrete fast. The -1.6% projected growth in secondary teaching combined with the smaller per-school footprint of social studies positions also means you should weigh whether a broader credential — middle school education (2,213 completions) or multi-level teacher education (3,430) — would give you more places to land your first job.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Social Studies Teacher Education

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
State University of New York at Cortland Cortland, NY 0 41 41
St. Joseph's University-New York Brooklyn, NY 0 37 37
Eastern Michigan University Ypsilanti, MI 0 37 37
Ball State University Muncie, IN 0 31 31
SUNY College at Geneseo Geneseo, NY 0 31 31
SUNY Oneonta Oneonta, NY 0 30 30
State University of New York at Oswego Oswego, NY 0 29 29
Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH 0 28 28
Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN 0 25 25
State University of New York at New Paltz New Paltz, NY 0 23 23
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Physical Education Teaching and Coaching

4,787 completions/yr

Teacher Education, Multiple Levels

3,430 completions/yr

Music Teacher Education

3,229 completions/yr

Junior High/Intermediate/Middle School Education and Teaching

2,213 completions/yr

English/Language Arts Teacher Education

1,846 completions/yr

Mathematics Teacher Education

1,090 completions/yr

Art Teacher Education

1,062 completions/yr

Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas, Other

912 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do Social Studies Teacher Education majors actually study day-to-day?
Coursework splits between content and pedagogy. You take history, political science, economics, and geography to build subject knowledge, then layer in educational psychology, classroom management, curriculum design, and methods courses specific to teaching social studies at the secondary level. The capstone is one or two semesters of supervised student teaching in a real middle or high school classroom — typically a full school day, every day, under a mentor teacher.
Do I need a state teaching license, and how does that work?
Yes — to teach in a US public school you need a state-issued teaching license, and requirements vary by state. The standard package is a bachelor’s from a state-approved education program, passing scores on the Praxis or a state equivalent, a content-area exam in social studies, a background check, and sometimes an additional pedagogy assessment like the edTPA. Programs designed for licensure are built around these requirements, so graduating from one means you walk out license-eligible in that state. Moving to another state usually means a reciprocity application rather than starting over.
Is a bachelor’s enough, or do I need a master’s to teach?
A bachelor’s is enough to start teaching. The BLS lists a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry credential for both secondary teachers ($64,580 median) and middle school teachers ($62,970 median). Many districts pay on a union salary schedule that bumps you up a step once you complete a master’s, so teachers often pursue one part-time after a few years on the job. Some states also require teachers to earn a master’s within a set window after initial licensure — Connecticut and New York are well-known examples.
How is the job market for social studies teachers specifically?
Softer than for STEM or special education. The BLS projects -1.6% growth for secondary teachers and -2% for middle school teachers, and within that, social studies is one of the more crowded subject areas — most schools need only one or two social studies teachers compared with several math, English, or science slots. Loan-forgiveness incentives like TEACH grants and federal teacher loan forgiveness skew toward STEM and special education for the same reason. Rural and high-needs districts are easier entry points than affluent suburbs.
What can I do with this degree besides classroom teaching?
The training opens adjacent paths even if classroom teaching doesn’t stick. Museum education, civics nonprofits, instructional design, edtech curriculum roles, educational policy, and test-prep companies all hire former teachers and education majors. Graduate work in history, political science, public policy, or social studies education is also a common follow-on — the related Teacher Education, Multiple Levels (3,430 completions) and middle school education (2,213 completions) majors offer broader licensure that travels to other content areas.
Where are the strongest Social Studies Teacher Education programs?
Public regional universities dominate the list, especially in New York. SUNY Cortland graduates the largest cohort at 41 per year, followed by St. Joseph’s University-New York (37) and Eastern Michigan University (37). Ball State, SUNY Geneseo, SUNY Oneonta, SUNY Oswego, Kent State, Purdue, and SUNY New Paltz round out the top ten. Geography matters less than for some majors because licensure is state-specific — you’re generally best off in a program approved in the state where you plan to teach.