But if you wait just a few months a different job-hiring season (for long-term jobs) is just around the corner. A little known fact is that spring is when many industries do their annual hiring. Not only is spring the start of the new calendar year, but for many industries that’s when their fiscal year winds down (typically ending some time in June). Companies in these industries must have their budgets and staff recommendations in place before the start of the new fiscal year. This bodes well for you, if you happen to be looking for a job in the spring, or more likely, if you are about to graduate with a brand spanking new college degree.

So what are some of the jobs being offer in spring? Of course the job pool changes every year, depending on the economy, but regardless the following four industries have been steadily fueling the job market for at least the last five years (some even longer).

Education

In all levels of education, from pre-school through college, schools start hiring their teachers in the spring for the following school year (even in year-round schools). The funds to support these new hires come out of the new fiscal year budget, so a teacher pretty much has job security for at least the first school year.

And even though you need a teaching degree to teach elementary and middle school, degreed people in specific areas of study (i.e., math, music, journalism, business, computer science, etc.) are allowed to teach at higher levels such as high school, college, and community education (depending on the school’s and state’s instructor requirements). So even if you DON’T have an education degree there are many other opportunities for you to teach your specific skill.

The downside of teaching, however, is that given the unstable economy many colleges and school districts hire their teachers on a year-to-year contract. So even though you may have a job this year, there’s no guarantee there’ll be money in the budget to keep you employed next year.

Summer Internships

Whether you’re a new graduate yet to find a permanent job or you’re still a student in school, summer is a great time to earn some extra cash through internships. Just about every summer internship starts its staffing process in the spring. For example, the application deadline for the first round of summer internships offered by the placement agency SummerInterships.com is March 11. However, there are additional hiring rounds throughout the spring semester as internships roll in.

The plus side of internships is that often they lead to permanent jobs that you wouldn’t have known about had you not interned in the first place. At the very least an internship gives you real life job experience in an industry in which you one day hope to launch a career. (As a rule, however, steer clear of unpaid internships, if possible. Practical experience is one thing, but you still have to eat and pay rent.)

Alternative Energy

One of the newer (and greener) jobs to come on the scene in the last few years is a solar power engineer and installer. This person does everything from mounting solar panels on residential homes and businesses to designing entire solar energy systems in communities. Even though the sun is the energy source, solar power systems are utilized all over the country (not just in warm climates), and thus solar installers are needed everywhere.

Typically people start thinking about converting to solar energy when the sun reappears after a cold and expensive winter. And as such solar power companies start looking for installers just about the time everyone comes back from spring break. Even though alternative energy companies hire year-round, March seems to be the big hiring season for solar power engineers and installers, as shown on job the placement website Jobsinsolarpower.com. Plus, alternative energy companies hire a wide range of expertise; from installation assistants (trainees) to degreed environmental engineers.

Parks and Theme Parks

Ever dream of running the Teacups ride at Disneyland or helping with tours at Zion National Park? Both are possible on a full or part time basis, and both offer legitimate (and dare I say, fun) careers. Parks and theme parks do big business in summer, so they aggressively staff up in the spring. This gives parks and theme parks time to train new staff, especially if duties involve learning songs and dances, memorizing tour speeches, or learning how to operate technical equipment. Everything from part time summer work to full time career management positions are available. For example, Disneyland Resort offers summer employment programs for students and college students, or full time career opportunities in both business and entertainment.

So if you’re looking for a new job, or just getting your summer employment plans in order, spring is one of the best times of the year to be looking for work. And for you college students getting ready to graduate after spring semester, you might want to use your spring break as an opportunity to get a jump on the job market. Nothing is sweeter than knowing you have a great job waiting for you right after you collect your diploma and throw that grad cap in the air.

Currently, the school is one of eight Missouri universities that are offering graduate credit opportunities for its students. Meanwhile, the college is one of only two partnering institutions in the state to allow the course to be taught completely online.

“These classes are for the practicing educator who needs a convenient and cost-effective way to get professional development,” Barb Carder, assistant director of extended studies for distance learning at UCM told the news source. “Current graduate students would need to check with their advisor to determine if the course will count toward a degree program.”

The courses are developed to integrate a variety of technologies, including video, audio and interactive tools, college officials told the news source. Furthermore, classes meet all local and national accreditation standards, and cover a wide range of areas, including instructional strategies, instructional technology, math, reading, language arts and science.

According to a 2008 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, elementary teachers earned an average of $52,240 that year.

"It takes something special to teach online," program advisor Dennis O'Connor told the newspaper. "If you're not a strong instructor, it's easy to document. There's certainly a lot of folks out there that don't do it right."

The course allows teachers to earn master's degree credits through individual classes that focus on designing lessons for virtual courses. New state regulations now require educators to have at least 30 hours of professional development experience to teach online classes for K-12 students.

Educating teachers on web-based instructional techniques has become more common as virtual classes grow in popularity in schools across the country. Online degree programs, such as the one offered by UW-Stout, allow working professionals to obtain a degree in between their other daily obligations.