Body mods and becoming a teacher?

So I've wanted to be a teacher my whole life. And over the years I've always been told teachers can't have visible tattoos and stuff, which I guess is understandable because you're supposed to appear professional, right?

I'm in my first year at uni and have my ears stretched to 0G and planning to get a couple more piercings in my ears, and I have a sidecut/one side of my head shaved. I'm just worried I won't be able to get a teaching job when the time comes since I don't really look professional or formal, even when trying to be. Would this sort of appearance put schools off from hiring me?

Though I've tried to keep these things reversible, like my hair'll grow back and 0G apparently can shrink if I let it. But then there's something else I'm worried about: I have scars on one of my arms that I'm on the fence with covering with a tattoo, so would a tattoo that big affect my chances? I'd probably have to stick to only long sleeves regardless of the tattoo anyway, so? I don't know. Or have schools become more relaxed with teachers expressing themselves in these sorts of styles? Bc I remember only one female teacher in my school who had small stretched ears and short hair with a shaved sidecut, but she taught DT so would say, an English teacher, be less likely to get a job looking like this?

Sorry if this is a stupid question and for rambling. Just kinda worried that body mods would affect my chances of becoming a teacher before I've even got that far :frown:

Reply 1

gjd800

My mate is a teacher and has a full body suit, so I guess that tattoos aren't necessarily a dealbreaker. Unsure about other mods, like.

Reply 2

piupiupiupiu

Original post by velvethopes

My manager at work (gov job) has tattoos and piercings all over the shop. Personally, I'd make sure you don't get anything that can't be covered in an interview. Once you've landed the job, you can gradually get to be more like 'yourself' at work, after gauging just how smart the environment is.

Reply 3

velvethopes

Original post by gjd800

My mate is a teacher and has a full body suit, so I guess that tattoos aren't necessarily a dealbreaker. Unsure about other mods, like.

Oh okay, that's really reassuring, thank you! :smile:

Original post by piupiupiupiu

Ahh okay, that makes sense. Probably silly of me to be worrying about interviews at this point, but... :redface:

Thank you for the advice though, it's really helped!!

(edited 5 years ago)

Reply 4

username1799249

Original post by velvethopes

Ahh okay, that makes sense. Probably silly of me to be worrying about interviews at this point, but... :redface:

Thank you for the advice though, it's really helped!!

It is worth considering. In my school, teachers with nose piercings don't wear them at school and all tattoos are covered up. I am not sure anyone would be hired in my school if they had an alternative hairstyle or stretched ear piercings. That would also go for many jobs although I appreciate that many don't care one way or the other. But if you are thinking of getting more work done it is worth considering the future. I note that many women regret tattoos in certain places when they have kids.

Reply 5

SarcAndSpark

I'm currently doing my PGCE, and I have a number of ear piercings which are visible when I put my hair up (which I do quite a bit as a science teacher!). No-one has commented or appears bothered by them. I'm not sure if gauges would be viewed in the same way, but I think in general anything on your ears is fine in most schools. It's also worth considering if the gauges could represent a health + safety risk e.g. if you were working in early years and a child grabbed them, for example. I avoid certain jewellery for safety reasons.

I think a lot of schools are still uncomfortable with facial piercings and visible tattoos. I know a lot of people on the course have tattoos, but they all cover them up on placement. Some schools will accept these, but especially on interview I would want to be able to cover them up. In most schools, you will cover all of your body except your hands, neck and face most of the time.

Personally, I'd also go to interview with a relatively "mainstream" haircut, but some schools are more comfortable with unusual hairstyles these days.

I think you do also have to think about how the children will react to you. If you're teaching teenagers and telling them to take out their facial piercings when you have loads, they may respect you a bit less.

Sorry, I know this isn't exactly what you want to hear, but I hope it's helpful!

Reply 6

Pigster

It'll probably depend on where you work. Some schools might have a beef with it, but I openly show one of my tats in the classroom and no one has said anything.

Reply 7

username4262886

When will these retarded rules be abandoned?? wtf...

Reply 8

SarcAndSpark

Original post by Krisis

When will these retarded rules be abandoned?? wtf...

I think, ultimately, if you're asking children to wear a uniform, it does make sense to have certain standards for staff.

In some cases, I'd also say some body mods do represent a safety issue (I'm obviously thinking of piercings here, more than tattoos).

Some schools will be fine with things, some won't- ultimately, you have to find a school that is the right fit for you.

Reply 9

username4262886

Original post by SarcAndSpark

Don't get me started on uniforms but a tattoo isn't something you wear, you can't take it off.

Fair enough about piercings and such mods although, again, I see no serious reason to prohibit any of that.

What kind of safety issues are we talking about here?

Reply 10

SarcAndSpark

Original post by Krisis

You can also choose not to get a tattoo on your face or your hands though- and if you choose to do so, you're obviously aware that you're cutting off a lot of professional avenues, not just teaching. I'm not saying this is OK- I'm just saying it's the way things are at the moment.

With piercings, it depends on what you're teaching- so e.g. if you're teaching DT, anything that might get caught on machinery is an issue. If you're teaching PE and likely to e.g. get hit by a ball, you might want to avoid any mods where that would be an issue. As a science teacher, I avoid rings, dangling jewellery etc as there are certain things I don't want to get tangled up with, or accidentally conduct heat or electricity away from. Equally, I wouldn't accept a student wearing this kind of jewellery in my classroom.

I do think it's down to the individual teacher to judge the risk. I also don't teach in heels because personally I want to be able to move across the classroom quickly- but I don't judge those that do.

If I was working with a younger age group, I'd consider that small children can get upset and may lash out and could catch e.g. a nose ring or say a nipple ring under my shirt, so I'd avoid these.

Again, you might judge all these issues as minor- I'm talking as someone who had a lot of piercings (e.g. surface piercings under my collar bones etc) during uni and took them out permanently during my last job as I was working with large animals and felt they could have the potential to cause me an injury. This isn't something I was told to do btw, as my employer didn't know the piercings were there- it was just a choice I made.

Some people might think I'm overly cautious, and make their own judgements.

Reply 11

ParadoxSocks

I had my lip piercing and my septum while teaching and both I hid. I also have my ears at 16mm but my hair always covered that. My tattoo on my forearm was never mentioned and of all the schools I've worked in, it's been a case of look smart and there's a bit of wiggle room re. tattoos.

I did keep my hair fairly neutral and kept any bright colours for the holidays.

Reply 12

wonderland.16

As a few of the others have said, it would vary largely by school I would imagine. I have a tattoo the size of my hand on my upper arm of an awareness ribbon, completely harmless, but on this placement I questioned the situation with tattoos and they said just to cover it. They didn't know what it was. It also said in the guidance we were given by the school, which is given to any new staff/student teachers, that all tattoos had to be covered and other than ear-lobe earrings no piercings could be in during school. If it came to it, I would cover my tattoo with makeup/a large plaster if I wanted to wear a short sleeve. Generally it doesn't affect me, but a wrist/forearm tattoo could be different. Hope this helps!