Career paths for young teachers: where to look for talented teachers

Graduation ceremonies have been held all over the country — parents and yesterday's students evaluate exam results and choose universities. Graduates of pedagogical specialties also take their final exams and are determined on their place of work. Izvestia found out what career opportunities teachers have and whether graduates of pedagogical universities are ready to enter the profession.

Search for new opportunities

Over the past ten years, the number of teachers in Russia has decreased, and the burden on the remaining teachers is growing. According to research data, the average workload has increased from 1.3 to 1.6 rates, and in 68 regions it exceeds 1.5 rates.

At the same time, the average age of the teaching staff is growing: the proportion of teachers over 60 is increasing, and in the coming years schools will need an influx of young professionals.

At the same time, teachers themselves are increasingly looking for opportunities for professional development: they transfer to the best schools, undergo retraining programs, and master new techniques. Among the programs that help attract young talented professionals to regional schools are how. public and private initiatives.

Country-level support

The Zemsky Uchitel program has been implemented at the state level since 2020. Since January 1, 2025, the program has been included in the federal project "Teachers and Mentors" of the national project "Youth and Children". In accordance with the instructions of President Vladimir Putin, its term has been extended until 2030.

As the Ministry of Education told Izvestia, thanks to the program, 6,900 teachers moved to work in rural schools in 2020-2025. At the same time, 45% of them are young professionals under the age of 35.

"The Zemsky Uchitel Federal program has become a social elevator for hundreds of young professionals. Imagine a university graduate who decides to go to work in a small working village or a small town with a population of up to 50 thousand people. The contract is signed for five years. In return, the state pays the teacher a one—time compensation: 1 million rubles in most regions of the country and 2 million rubles if we are talking about the Far East or new regions," Alexey Lubkov, rector of Moscow Pedagogical State University, explained to Izvestia.

As the head of the Moscow State University noted, the program gives young teachers the opportunity to immediately purchase their own housing, close loans or make a major contribution to their future. "The school, in turn, receives burning eyes, fresh ideas and energy, which the province lacked so much," Lubkov said.

For those who choose to enter the profession, the portal "Be a teacher.RF" is a navigator for applicants, where they can choose a pedagogical university, learn about support measures and career prospects. The national project also includes programs for advanced training and retraining of teachers, modernization of teacher education.

Alternative route

Among the non-governmental initiatives, there are notable practical programs that help young people come to school, receive the necessary training and support at the start of their careers. For example, the New Teacher Charitable Foundation has been supporting regular regional schools since 2015, which have fewer resources to attract strong teachers there.

— We have seen that if there are not enough teachers in the school, everyone suffers — both the children and the team. Mandatory hours are redistributed across the team, and many teachers are severely overloaded. No matter how strong a teacher's initial motivation for work is, if you work in this mode for many years, emotional burnout sets in, and this is a very noticeable problem in today's schools," explains Alyona Markovich, co—founder and executive director of the foundation.

According to Markovich, it is a difficult task to attract young talented specialists into the profession. The profession requires a set of values, knowledge, skills, and a willingness to take responsibility, and working conditions at school often lose out to business. Therefore, the foundation has focused on creating comprehensive programs for assisted entry into the profession.

At the first stage, the foundation performs the function of an HR department for schools, which mass schools do not have. Extensive university recruitment campaigns are conducted, candidates are selected in several stages, and employment assistance is provided based on the candidate's profile and the culture of a particular school. Special attention is paid to ensuring that senior students can start working during their studies.

At the second stage, training and support are organized. Intensive training takes place in the summer, and then, during the first academic year, participants combine work and study. The link between practice and theory is provided by experienced mentors who help develop in the subject, methodology, solve difficult situations with children and parents, and integrate into the team. In addition, the program provides financial support — scholarships in addition to a salary, so that a novice teacher can take on a feasible workload in the first, most difficult year.

— We largely take over the management of the experience of a novice specialist at school, so that the new teacher feels successful in the profession, integrates into the team, and wants to stay with the children for a long time, — sums up Markovich.

The experience of the regions

The program was successfully tested in Kostroma in 2024-2025. The first set included 40 senior students from Kostroma State University. 38 of them have successfully completed the program. The pilot result showed that 80% of the participants continue to work at the school after a one-year internship. The partner schools highly appreciated the involvement and quality of the participants' training, with an average score of 8.1 out of 10.

In the Kaluga region, where the "New Teacher" has been working for a long time, the foundation has helped attract more than 200 young professionals — graduates of the best universities in the country, motivated, unconventionally minded, active.

— The Foundation provided organizational, informational, methodological and material support. This significantly accelerated their entry into the profession and contributed to the consolidation of young professionals in schools. — said Alexander Anikeev, Minister of Education and Science of the Kaluga Region. In his opinion, the foundation's experience is extremely valuable for the implementation of educational policy aimed at the formation of a unified educational space.

The foundation is currently raising funds to launch a program to support talented teachers in the Nizhny Novgorod region as part of the "Course of Kindness" project from T-Bank. By the end of July, the bank is doubling its clients' donations to the New Teacher Foundation.

Success stories

Dmitry Koryukhin is the teacher of the Year of the Republic of Dagestan in 2025, winner of the federal competition "Teacher of the Year" in 2025. He graduated from the Geography Department of Moscow State University and had no work experience in school before the program.

— Since my youth, I wanted to teach, but the environment convinced me that pedagogy is just a backup option. The program became the bridge that led me from Moscow to the Voronezh region, and then to the Caucasus. She gave me professional baggage, confidence, and community. It was the program that helped me become who I am today. — says the teacher.

Russian Russian language and literature teacher at School No. 1 in Gus-Khrustalny, winner of the All—Russian contests "Best Teacher of Native Language and Literature — 2023" and "Media Educator of the Year - 2023" Artem Gusev is a member of the Presidential Council for the Implementation of state policy in the field of Russian language support and is a member of the personnel reserve of the Ministry of Education.

— The great value of the program was that the training was truly practice-oriented. I got into a community where the teaching profession has a high value, where people understand why they come to work. My mentors and colleagues showed me what level of specialist I can become," he notes.

Ekaterina Garashchuk joined the profession through a "New teacher" (she is a lawyer by training). Thanks to the program, she became the deputy director and then the director of a school in the Kaluga region.

"The program was a step that helped me decide," she shares. — She provided not just knowledge, but really applicable practical solutions, acquaintance with leading educational projects, experts and a team of like-minded people. As a director, this is a tremendous help for me in attracting and retaining people.

The experience of Kostroma and Kaluga region shows that this approach works. Program participants not only stay in the profession, but also achieve high results — they become winners of the Teacher of the Year competitions, head schools, and create new educational projects. The launch of the program in the Nizhny Novgorod region with the support of the Course of Kindness is the next step in scaling this model.