Preparing for Those Upcoming Employment Screenings
So much of what I do at this blog-site is to archive articles offering advice on a host of topics:
- Pre-service training of future music educators
- Interviewing/branding/marketing for a job in education
- Educator ethics, professionalism, the “codes” and guard rails to daily decision-making
- Teacher self-care and wellness and the steps to remediate/avoid stress and burnout
- Fox’s Fireside tips on practicing and growing knowledge, musicianship, and technique
- Related subjects (leadership, musicals, string pedagogy, time management, etc.)
- Retirement transitioning and post-employment “self-reinvention”
Surveying my past blogs, I feel like I had to repeat (repackage) the content until my readers reached that particular stage in their career. Once they experience first-hand that sometimes tumultuous “passage,” they would be ready to reflect on this information. But, I doubt they would closely examine it until then. As an example, for more than a decade as the PMEA Retired Member Coordinator, these past articles I wrote for PMEA News and the PMEA Annual Conference’s session Retirement 101 revisit the voluminous insight of gerontologists exploring the “who, what, when, where, and why” of retirement. Regardless at how often it is presented, you tend not to consume advice on coping with post-employment until you feel you are “ready” to retire. This is the same issue for soon-to-graduate collegiates and those transitioning to a new job; who wants to read about branding, marketing, and interviewing until they are in the middle of seeking first-time (or new) employment?
Please click on the “plethora” of links throughout this article to be redirected to these past writings. My apologies in advance to what may seem like to be a lot of duplication!
I went as far as updating the most comprehensive and “perfect” PowerPoint for collegiates: Bookends – The Life Cycle of a Successful and Happy Music Educator – portions of which I have presented several times to Professor Jessica Vaughan-Marra’s Seton Hill University music student teachers. This slide handout starts with the material from the first three bullets in the first paragraph above and then adds information about teacher health and wellness, time management, and retirement. We offer Bookends… to preservice music educators in their junior, senior, or graduate years and “rookies” to the profession. I encourage you to download this resource, visit the PCMEA website (click here/scroll down) to read past issues of Collegiate Communique, and the paulfox.blog posts. While you’re at it, acquire your own copy of the Ultimate Interview Primer. Click away before these links become inactive.
Soon it will time for graduates to enter the workforce… and boy, do we need you! By most accounts in PA and the surrounding states, we are experiencing a teacher shortage. School districts are seeking quality candidates to apply for their open positions. But, much of what happens in the job screening process seems to be influenced by chance. Collegiates, ask yourself: Are you truly prepared to market your experiences and abilities, share your brand and stories of your interactions with children in educational programs, and relate positive anecdotes of your teaching, problem solving skills, and other professional attributes? I may have been a little Type-A when I first applied for those music teaching positions back in 1978, focused on saturation publicity and persistence, and organized with a large paper portfolio of past experiences, but I was clueless in responding to those tricky interview questions and what administrators actually wanted to see in prospective new members of their staff.
One more piece advice for first-year and recent transfers to music education: Seek out a PMEA mentor and/or a member of the Retired Resource Registry (access from the PMEA Retired Member focus area after you login to your member portal)… both are groups of volunteers willing and able to help “newbies.”
Have a question about selecting music for your ensemble, a dynamic lesson plan, classroom management issue, interviewing, curriculum innovation, or a conducting tip? Stop by the “coffee and conversations” informal lounge at the PMEA Annual Conference on April 10 and “sit-a-spell” with us!
In conclusion, the following is a sequential outline – a “to-do in this order” list – a preservice toolbox of past posts and other resources for you to assemble a marketing plan. Take time to sort through these “nuts and bolts” (all links in this blog), process the information, save anything you want to read further, and then “practice, practice, practice!” This “gift” to PCMEA and music education majors embraces my best wishes for successfully finding the job you always wanted and preparing yourself for the greatest “calling” of your life – an enriching and satisfying lifelong career in music education! Good luck!
Using the Collegiate Toolbox – A Roadmap for Becoming a Music Educator
- Peruse everything in this and past paulfox.blog postings.
- Download the PDF documents to your hard drive. Review a portion of them each week!
- On your computer, create a “ME” file documenting your accomplishments, awards, experiences interacting with children, etc. – a library of the things you may wish to include in your future resume, professional website, and (e-)portfolio. Add to this folder throughout your college years.
- To reflect on your perceived strengths and weaknesses, complete a self-assessment of YOU from a typical professional evaluation form, these ideal effective teacher attributes and more criteria
- Prioritize what you think you need most. Write down your goals! Pobody is nerfect!
- While you are still attending college, work on shoring up any weak content areas or specialty skills (e.g., how is your “piano chops,” knowledge of specific methods, grade level repertoire, etc.?)
- Write a philosophy of school music education (overview) and your mission statement: “Why do you want to teach?”
- Be ready to answer the question (and defend your response), “What is your vision of the role of music education in the schools?”
- Be ready to define your “brand.” What are your professional attributes? What makes you unique? Why would you be a good candidate for a school music position?
- Begin to assemble a list of stories that would “show not tell” your positive attributes.
- Identify the impressions you want to “sell” yourself, and practice strategic storytelling.
- Practice answering interview questions and use a rubric to evaluate your performance. If you can, share all of this with your peers and sponsor mock interview sessions. Record/assess yourself.
- Get started on drafting the marketing tools you will need (e.g., your professional website, resume, portfolio, etc.)
- Review educational acronyms, jargon, and terminology such as this list plus these recent additions: CR-SE (Culturally Relevant & Sustaining Education), DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging), and SEL (Social-Emotional Learning). These terms may come up at your next interview.
- Read cover-to-cover your PA code of conduct (CPPC) and the Model Code of Ethics for Educators.
- Practice ethical decision-making (with your peers) by reviewing these mock scenarios, first deciding what level of misconduct (if any) is reached in each case study, and then more discussion on the incident’s effect on the students, parents, staff, and community, and what proactive steps may be taken to remediate the situation.
- Join and become active in appropriate music education professional organizations (renew your memberships and add new ones): ACDA, AOSA, ASTA, NAfME, NBA, PMEA, etc. to name a few.
- Attend a conference of your professional association(s) and network with other colleagues. For PA colleagues, register for the PMEA Annual Conference (April 9-12) at the Kalahari Resort (Poconos).
Feel free to leave comments about this blog. (See the link just below the title.) How did you use these tools? What was particularly beneficial? What suggestions would you have for future music teacher applicants?
To PCMEA chapter officers/members, music education majors, and college instructors: I am available to present Bookends or other online or in-person workshops for college students. Send me an email.
© 2025 Paul K. Fox
Discounted NAfME + PMEA first-year membership: only $90. (If you are a recent college graduate in your first year of teaching, or if you are the spouse of a current or retired NAfME member, contact NAfME at 800-336-3768 or email 
Bring to any employment screening your resume, business card, and an e-portfolio referencing a professional website which archives everything in #1 and #2 above.
Clean-up and curate your social media sites, treating your Facebook pages as another “personal branding resource.” Experts recommend that “your profile information should reflect integrity and responsibility… You should expand or add content that projects a professional image, shows a friendly, positive personality, demonstrates that you are well-rounded with wide range of interests, and models… great communication skills.” 
what your image (and “personal brand”) say about you on all the social media platforms?
Instead, your profile information should reflect integrity and responsibility, so you should expand or add content that:
Streamline your selfies.
If you need more than ten suggestions or a lot more detailed instructions based on the specific social media platforms, check out 
In the category of “things I wishes someone would have told me before I was hired to be a school music educator,” the inspirational book, My Many Hats: Juggling the Diverse Demands of a Music Teacher by Richard Weymuth, is a recommended “first stop” and easy “quick-read.” Published by Heritage Music Press (2005), the 130-page paperback serves as an excellent summary of the attributes (or “hats”) of a “master music teacher.” Based on the photos in his work (great “props”), I would have loved to have seen Weymuth’s conference presentations in person as he donned each hat symbolizing the necessary skill-set for a successful educator.
Next, I would like to direct pre-service and new music teachers to Case Studies in Music Education by Frank Abrahams and Paul D. Head. This would be an invaluable aid to “facilitate dialogue, problem posing, and problem solving” from college students (in methods classes?) and “rookie” teachers to veteran educators.
His chapters are organized into six tips:
The first thing I want you to do (and you don’t even have to be a member of NAfME yet, although you should be!) is to take at least a half-hour, scroll down, and read through numerous NAfME “Music in a Minuet” blog-posts, bookmarking any you want to return to at a later date. Go to 
now would be the perfect time to explore supplemental resources and get a “head-start” on additional pre-service training for next fall. These tips are especially valuable to anyone entering his/her senior or final year as a music education major, finely honing in and marketing your skills as a professional in order to be prepared for finding and succeeding at your first job.
Mix and mingle to improve your networking opportunities
Understanding specific educational jargon and the latest approaches, applications, and technologies in the profession (e.g. Backwards Design, The Common Core, Whole Child Initiatives, Multiple Intelligences, Depth of Knowledge and Higher Order of Thinking Skills, Formative, Summative, Diagnostic, and Authentic Assessment, etc. – Do you know the meaning of these terms?)
You need to ask yourself the question, “What are my greatest weaknesses in music education?” Or, to put it another way, “What school assignments would I feel the least confident to teach? After earning your state’s all-essential credential, your certificate will likely be general and only say “music Pre-K to Grade 12.” Administrators will expect you can “do it all” – introducing jazz improvisation at the middle school, accompany on the piano or guitar all of the songs in the grades 1-6 music textbook series, directing the marching band at the high school or the musical at the middle school, starting an elementary string program, etc.
Since music teachers are all “fiduciaries” (do you know the meaning of the word?) and legally responsible for our “charges,” wouldn’t it be a good idea to review our state’s regulations and code of conduct, and hear about the challenges and pitfalls of ethical decision-making before we jump in and get “over our heads,” so-to-speak?
ask your cooperating teacher (or his/her supervisor’s) permission. Some school districts have “do not photo” rosters. (However, in my district, only a few elementary students were “on the list” and most defaulted to a “permissible” status unless the parent opted out. The principal’s secretary had a record of all exceptions.) It is also suggested that you focus your camera mostly on YOU and not the students, from the back of the classroom or rehearsal facility (possibly from afar), so that the student faces are not clearly discernible. To respect their privacy, in the recorded excerpts, do not use any segment announcing the names of your students.
musical or athletic events, coaching or working with children in a coaching capacity, as a leader and role model.”
If you can afford it, purchasing a simple domain name like your first and last name (something easy to remember) would be a great idea. Prospective employers will not have to write down a bunch of numbers, know your birthday, learn your nickname, etc. to find your e-portfolio. If you have an unique middle name or surname, you might luck out and be able to snag (and register) the perfect domain name. This was not possible for me! Do you know how many Paul Fox’s (even Paul K. Fox) are “out there” already taken?
To create your web site’s identity, WordPress will remove the dots and add their company’s moniker “.wordpress.com” at the end of your email name. That is how 
Showing your versatility, try to assemble a collection of still photos, audio examples, and videos that ideally represent all specialties in music education: choral, dance, general music, concert band and string instrumental, marching band, jazz, theater, etc., and demonstrate your proficiency in multiple settings at all grade levels.
paulfox.blog 