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With the economy in the shape it is, some people are considering pursuing teaching as a “fallback career.” But the reality is that the very same economy means that there are relatively few jobs for teachers this year. Looking at budget cuts and expecting fewer people to leave, many districts, including New York City, are cutting down on hiring.

The city’s Teaching Fellows program, the most prominent route into the classroom for career changers, is planning to accept significantly fewer applicants. I heard from one friend who got an acceptance last week, but far fewer applicants are being accepted than in past years. Two GothamSchools readers reported in the comments section of a post from January that their Teaching Fellows application statuses were finally updated last week: One was rejected, and the other was deferred even longer, until the city’s budget situation becomes clearer.

Still, the Department of Education has extended employment offers to some applicants it considers likely to be particularly successful in shortage areas such as math and English, through a new initiative called TRQ Select. (TRQ is the acronym for the Office of Teacher Recruitment and Quality.) This week, the DOE’s hiring office is using its Twitter feed to profile some of those new teachers in under 140 characters. Here’s an example: “Pia, ESL Teacher- Fordham grad, taught English in Haiti and Panama, served in Peace Corps in Morocco.”