• MWA BOARD AGENDAS
  • LCAP
  • IMPACT REPORT

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

FAQs

Where can I view open roles?

You can find our open positions, including faculty, staff, and leadership roles, on our MWA Career Page.

Making Waves Academy offers a competitive compensation and benefits package this is nearly unparalleled in the San Francisco Bay Area. Highlights include:
  • Competitive compensation: salaries that are above market
  • Employees’ children are eligible to attend our school after 12 months of employment
  • Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision benefits—with 100% of most premiums covered for employees and their spouse OR employees and their children
  • Professional development opportunities & tuition assistance program
  • Strong retirement plans: CalSTRS & 403(b)
  • Supportive work environment: strong leadership that provides the necessary support and resources, a positive school culture and a sense of community, collaborative opportunities with peers, and effective mentoring programs, particularly for new teachers.
 
For more details, visit our benefits and compensation page.

We use different review processes to ensure thoroughness, efficiency, and fairness for all candidates.

  1. Faculty Roles (Teaching Positions)
    • Process: We use a structured, scheduled timeline with predetermined milestones. This ensures a consistent and fair process for every teaching candidate.
    • Timeline: Applications are reviewed promptly upon receipt and candidates can expect to hear from our recruiting team within a week.
  1. Non-Faculty Roles (Staff Positions)
    • Process: Applications are reviewed as they are received (rolling basis).
    • Timeline: You should expect to hear from our recruiting team about next steps within 1–2 weeks or less.

At Making Waves Academy, we pride ourselves on a thorough recruitment process designed to find exceptional talent perfectly suited to support our school community.

As an applicant, you can anticipate an inclusive process that includes stages such as an initial screening, hiring manager interview, hiring task, panel interview, and reference checks.

Faculty Hiring Timelines – The teacher hiring process typically takes 4-5 weeks. Details about current faculty hiring timelines and application deadlines can be found on our Teach at Making Waves Academy page.

Non-Faculty Hiring Timelines – Our team reviews non-faculty applications on a rolling basis as applications are received. Typically, our multi-step process takes a few weeks; however, this is subject to change based on the number of applicants for a given role, mutual availability, and timely completion of tasks.

Yes! You are welcome and encouraged to apply for any and all positions that align closely with your experience and skillset. Please note, if you apply for multiple non-faculty positions, you will be asked to undergo the hiring process for each position. For faculty positions, there is only one hiring process regardless of how many positions you apply to.

In addition to reviewing the job description for the role you’re applying to, we encourage all candidates to explore our website to learn more about our mission, vision, and values. We also recommend checking out our Impact Report to learn more about current and recent happenings at our school.

At Making Waves Academy, we look for faculty and staff who are passionate about educational equity and deeply committed to our mission and core values.

In addition, all employees must meet these mandatory requirements set by the state of California:

  • Background Clearance 
  • Valid authorization to work in the U.S.
  • Current TB test or Risk Assessment 

Requirements for Teachers and Instructional Leaders 

  • Bachelor’s Degree
  • California Single or Multi-Subject Teaching Credential in an applicable content area OR current/eligible enrollment in a CTC-approved educator preparation program
  • English Learner Authorization Certificate (CLAD/BCLAD)
  • California Commission on Teacher Credentialing Certificate of Clearance (COC)
  • Teaching experience is ideal, but related work experience will also be considered

Making Waves Academy requires that all teachers hold a valid California teaching credential for the subject area they will be teaching as well as an English Learner (EL) Authorization Certificate. Prospective teachers who do not currently meet these requirements must be currently enrolled in a CTC-approved credentialing program upon employment.

To learn more about specific credentialing questions and situations, please review our Credentialing Frequently Asked Questions.