Earning While You Learn: Balancing Your Journey to the Principalship

When we talk about the pathway to the principalship for aspiring teachers, one reality often gets left out of the conversation: the fact that for many, it requires a delicate balancing act—one that involves working to advance your leadership credentials while continuing to excel in the classroom and support your students.

This “earning while you learn” approach has become the predominant pathway for educational leaders. It’s a challenging one—a path that requires you to plan intentionally, have a strong support system, and truly determine the way you work best—but it also offers plenty of advantages that will ultimately make you a more effective principal. 

We’ve put together the key steps that will be most beneficial for you to consider as you navigate this dual path—because not only is it about maintaining that balancing act, but doing so in a way that protects your wellbeing during the process. 

Step #1: Make time for self-assessment and goal-setting

Before diving into advanced coursework or certification programs, it’s important to take time to assess your leadership readiness. This can either be done formally through tools like Gallup’s CliftonStrengths—where you identify your top five strengths from a group of 34 talent themes—or more informally by simply reflecting on your natural strengths as well as those where there are opportunities for growth. Do you already demonstrate strong leadership in curriculum development, but need to work on your relationship building and team leadership? Understanding where your gaps are will make it easier to formulate a plan to close those gaps. (We have a Principal Readiness Quiz that might help, too!) 

Developing a clear leadership vision is also critical. Knowing your personal leadership philosophy—your core values and the educational challenges you feel most passionate about addressing—will not only guide your development and become an essential part of your leadership identity, but be a guiding light on the hard days. 

Knowing your personal leadership philosophy—your core values and the educational challenges you feel most passionate about addressing—will not only guide your development and become an essential part of your leadership identity, but be a guiding light on the hard days. 

You’ll also want to create a realistic timeline that breaks your “balancing act” into different phases—and much of this depends on how quickly you’re looking to make the transition from teacher to educational leader. Let’s say that in the first two years, you’re looking to complete your initial coursework, while expanding your teacher leader responsibilities. Years two through four might then focus on your degree completion, an internship, and getting your certification, with year five being your first year of the principalship. 

Step #2: Select an education program that works with your life

Most principal positions require a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership or a related field. But how do you know when a particular program is right for you? You’ll want to consider factors beyond just cost and convenience to ensure the way you’re getting your education aligns with how you learn best and the goals you have for your experience. Here are a few pieces to think about:

You’ll want to consider factors beyond just cost and convenience to ensure the way you’re getting your education aligns with how you learn best and the goals you have for your experience. 

• Delivery model: 100% online programs offer the most flexibility for working teachers, while hybrid models provide valuable in-person networking. Cohort-based programs, like the New Leaders’ Aspiring Principals Fellowship, are also great for creating built-in support systems both during and after program completion. 
• Practical application: You’ll want to make sure that your program is not simply “sit and get”—that you'll be able to integrate theory with practice through projects applicable to your current school setting. 
• Certification alignment: You’ll also want to ensure the program meets your state’s specific requirements for administrative licensure. Most states require a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership or a related field, passing scores on state-specific leadership assessments, completion of a supervised administrative internship, and verification of teaching experience. 

Step #3: Find ways to gain leadership experience while teaching

If you’re interested in the principalship, chances are you’ve already been preparing by taking on additional teacher leader responsibilities. If you haven’t gotten there yet, not to worry—you’re right on time. Start building your leadership portfolio now by: 

• Stepping into teacher-leader roles: This could look like being the chair for a particular department, a grade-level team leader, a member of your school’s curriculum committee, or offering to be a mentor for new teachers. 
• Participating in school improvement initiatives: Does your school have a data team, a school climate committee, or ways to lead parent or community engagement efforts? Again, the key here is choosing an initiative that aligns with your leadership vision.
• Leading professional development: Designing and facilitating professional development sessions for your fellow teachers—or leading professional learning communities—is a great way to get leadership experience.

Pro tip: remember to document these experiences carefully. Collect evidence of your impact, get testimonials from colleagues, and reflect on how each experience is shaping your leadership approach. Documentation like this will be incredibly valuable during future interviews. 

Step #4: Get the most out of your administrative internship

Your leadership internship experience represents a critical transition point in your journey. This supervised field experience—typically ranging from 200-400 hours, depending on your state—allows you to further apply your learned leadership knowledge in a real administrative setting. 

Of course, it’s also a part that requires thoughtful planning. Balancing teaching and internship responsibilities is the most challenging aspect of the “earn while you learn” approach. For that reason, it’s good to begin any internship conversations early—ideally a full year before you’d like to be placed.

Balancing teaching and internship responsibilities is the most challenging aspect of the “earn while you learn” approach. For that reason, it’s good to begin any internship conversations early—ideally a full year before you’d like to be placed.

Determine with your principal how your teaching responsibilities will be covered during this time—will you be interning on specific days? Focusing more on your principal internship during the summer months to give yourself as much time in the classroom as possible? Are there less-demanding parts of the school year where you might be able to arrange for a long-term substitute for your classroom? No matter what the situation or your preference, make sure to work together with your principal to make it happen. 

One piece that makes this part of the journey a lot easier is to enroll in an education program where obtaining an internship or principal residency is part of the program itself, and doesn’t require you to do the extra legwork to research schools in your area—programs like the New Leaders’ Aspiring Principals Fellowship. 

Step #5: Know both the pros and cons of “earning while you learn”

The best way to move through your journey from teacher to principal is with both eyes open—fully understanding the pros and cons of pursuing educational leadership while also continuing to be a classroom teacher. ThThe “earn while you learn” approach has several advantages:

• Financial stability: Being able to maintain your teaching salary while pursuing advanced credentials helps manage the financial burden of graduate education—and many districts also offer tuition reimbursement for leadership preparation. 
• Practical application: The ability to immediately apply leadership theories to both classroom practice and your future leadership internship creates opportunities for deep learning. Being able to test concepts from your coursework in your classroom actually offers a very powerful learning loop!
• Maintains your perspective: Staying connected to the classroom while developing as a leader means you don’t lose sight of the many realities of teaching—making you a more empathetic and effective administrator. 

Of course, there are plenty of challenges to be aware of as well, such as: 

• Time management challenges: Graduate coursework typically requires 10-15 hours weekly beyond what you’re already doing in the classroom—and it only increases when leadership responsibilities are added to your plate, whether it’s teacher leadership or tasks from your principal internship. 
• Performance expectations: As a great teacher, you’ll likely hold yourself to high standards in both teaching and leading—pressure that can lead to burnout if it’s not managed. Self-care—true self-care that boosts your resilience and well-being like managing your energy and elimination of non-critical tasks—is going to be consistently necessary.

A journey that’s both rewarding and challenging

The "earn while you learn" approach offers unique advantages that will make you a more effective administrator in the long run. By maintaining your connection to instructional practice while developing leadership skills, you build both the expertise and credibility needed to lead your next school effectively.

The challenges—time pressure, burnout—are real. But with strategic planning, strong support systems, and commitment to self-care, you’ll be able to navigate this path successfully without sacrificing your wellbeing or dampening your passion for education.

Start planning your “earn while you learn” journey today by taking a look at the New Leaders National Aspiring Principals Fellowship. 

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