What Should I Do to Start My Education Consulting Business?

Education consulting can be a meaningful and vibrant field for those who may not necessarily desire to work inside a classroom working with students, but still want to be involved in the world of education. Education consultants can work in a variety of settings and in different capacities, from helping match gifted students with their ideal university, working with textbook publishers or with various school programs.

As with most startup businesses, the procedure for setting up the company involves two major components: registering the business and generating a client pool. This is, of course, after the necessary education, training and certification has been completed and obtained. Each of the two components entails several smaller steps to complete and factors to consider. 

Registering the Education Consulting Business

• Often, the only licensing an educational consultant or consulting company will have to worry about is obtaining a business license through your state. This will also involve some type of fee that can be upwards of $100 in some cases. To be sure that all your licensing requirements are met and that your business structure is sound legally, you may consider consulting a business and/or tax attorney.


• Open a bank account under your company's name. Completing this step will make it much more straightforward and easy to file your company's taxes properly and send/receive invoices.

Building a Client Pool

• Market your company well. Learn the specific needs of your potential client field and know how exactly your services can benefit them. 


• Do some research and figure out if there are similar businesses that you will be competing with and get to know their services and client fees. This way, you can tailor your own services and fee rate to be competitive.


• Contact area school administrators and attend industry conferences. This will help you gain valuable contacts both in your community and in the education field as a whole. Keep in regular contact and nurture the relationships.