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Paraprofessional Educator

Your classroom career begins here

Paraprofessional educators, or instructional assistants or teacher's aides, are crucial in providing students with specialized and personal teaching to fit their needs. Paraprofessional educators work in a wide variety of education settings, such as classrooms, computer labs, or outdoors in private or public schools. ParaPros assist in instruction, grading assignments, supervision and child development.

• Complete the certificate to gain immediate credentials or complete the associate degree.
• Choose from 100% online or a mix of online and on-campus courses to fit your schedule.
• Dive into topics such as elementary teaching, working with students with disabilities, technology in education, children’s literature, educational psychology, speech communication and more.
• Prepare for the Educator License with Stipulations Endorsed for Paraprofessional licensure exam offered by the State of Illinois.

Earn a paraprofessional degree

The Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degree is designed to help prepare you for immediate entry into this career field. Coursework in the AAS may also prepare you to transfer to a four-year college or university. To learn more, visit our Transfer Information page or speak with your advisor.

• Associate in Applied Science—Paraprofessional Educator

Earn a paraprofessional certificate

If you have already earned some college credit or a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field, you can jumpstart your career in education with the paraprofessional certificate. The certificate will prepare you with the necessary skills to be successful as a teacher's aid. Once completed, your coursework is stackable to a degree program through additional coursework.

• Paraprofessional Educator Certificate

Explore Paraprofessional Educator Careers

Learn more about career outcomes for Harper's Paraprofessional Educator degree/certificate programs. Each career profile offers a complete picture on the local job market, including salaries, open positions, top local employers and more. To learn more, visit our Paraprofessional Educator Careers page.

Resources

• Catalog Course Descriptions
• Student Organizations
• Job Placement Resource Center

Next steps

• Request Information
• Apply

For more information on how to get your paraeducator degree at Harper, please contact Admissions Outreach at 847.925.6700 or fill out our request information form.