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Should I accept this offer or not?

 
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shiningstar21



Joined: 22 Aug 2012
Posts: 13

PostPosted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 1:15 pm    Post subject: Should I accept this offer or not? Reply with quote

I've been offered a job with Dilko English in Istanbul.

I start 1st October.
Housing/transport/bills all provided for.
I think they said they pay for residence permit once I've been in Turkey for 3 months.
I'm teaching mostly adults, some kids and have 1-3 days off, depending on demand.
I teach 100 classes per month, with each class being 40 minutes each, and times are usually evening work. They have all lesson plans which I just need to follow.
Salary is not good through, 1, 500 Lira per month.

Is this a good offer/school? It's the best one I've had so far, espically since I have very litte teaching experience. I do have an 130 hour TEFL, and a degree.

Should I accept?
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Qaaolchoura



Joined: 10 Oct 2008
Posts: 539
Location: 21 miles from the Syrian border

PostPosted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 4:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yes, the pay is on the low side, and they don't bother with the work permit (though of course that's rare for private language schools in Istanbul). The hours are better than the job I currently have, an the per-hour pay about the same. But if housing is fully paid for, your only money worries are food and possibly utilities, and you can easily live on that in Istanbul (housing is your biggest expense), though of course it brings up the question of shared housing. I assume they're putting you with another teacher, and you might want to ask yourself if you can handle it.

If you can handle shared accommodation, and they fully pay for it, you might as well take it. I know with a year's experience (before deciding that I didn't want to live in Stambul) I spoke last year to two places which had similar terms (higher pay but longer hours and possibly lower housing allowance), and I imagine you'll get about the same throughout Turkey. If they don't pay fully for housing, then 1500 lira is rather low, even for the hours worked.

The big issues probably are:

1. Find out more fully about accommodation. Fully paid for? What's it like? Again, it's probably shared with another teacher, and can you live with that?

2. Where in Istanbul will you be working? I know one guy who got a job offer out in Beylikd�z�. He almost told the place where to shove it, until the place promised to transfer him to a better branch as soon as the option opened up. If you're a laid-back kind of person, you want to work on the Asian side (Kadik�y is nicest, but anywhere east of the Bosphorus will do). If you're the heavy-drinking, hard-partying kind of person, you probably want to live and work within 45 minutes' bus ride of Taksim on the
European side. Bakirk�y is an insanely easy place to get a job, and if your offer's for there, you might want to look around. If you're on the European side and more than 45 minutes from Taksim, it's probably not worth it.

3. Watch the hours. How many split shifts will you be working, and how far in advance will you get your schedule?

Personally, I wouldn't take it, but then a. I have experience, b. if I'm gonna be working erratic hours anyways, I'd rather work more of them, and c. I don't want to work in Stambul where wages are lower, prices are higher, and work permits are rare. (The plus side is admittedly that the people you meet in Stambul are way more interesting than anywhere else in Turkey. Outside of Istanbul Turks you meet don't seem to leave their little bubble, and expats are usually rare and a bit neurotic and/or dull.)

Regards,
~Q
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dudeteacher



Joined: 27 Feb 2010
Posts: 173

PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 8:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you have less than two years of experience and no Celta, this offer is not that bad.

You should save well with no rent to pay.
Of course the flip side is living with others and having no idea what kind of person it is. Sometimes this works out well, other times not.

People with limited experience and no Celta can't always write their own ticket .If Dilko has a rep for paying on time, I would take it to get my feet wet. You can always source out privates.

Dude
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Qaaolchoura



Joined: 10 Oct 2008
Posts: 539
Location: 21 miles from the Syrian border

PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 12:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If the TEFL course is in person and has at least six hours of observed teaching practice, it shouldn't much matter (if it was online and/or lacked a teaching component then yeah, that's an issue). Yeah there are some people out there who think that only British quals (CELTA and Trinity) are valid, mostly because they're either snobby Brits or non-native English speakers who haven't heard of non-British courses, but I continue to roll my eyes at the occasional people on Dave's who suggest that those of us who did a perfectly respectable non-British TESOL course (like SIT) should take the CELTA.

The purpose of any TESOL course is twofold: to give you an intro to teaching methodology, and to give immigration officials another piece of paper. In Turkey most employers know that the CELTA isn't the be-all-and-end-all and will grill you, and then if they like you and they get work permits, they'll get that piece of paper notarized and translated and hand it over to Y�K.

I remember when Dilko was posting ads for Yalova I searched this forum for info, and they generally seemed to have a positive reputation, though I think there were only two posters who'd worked there. But the good news is that they're definitely not notorious the way some employers in Turkey are.

Regards,
~Q
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shiningstar21



Joined: 22 Aug 2012
Posts: 13

PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 12:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

They were rushing me into signing the contract that day, so I declined.

Kinda regret it now though! Very Happy
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ossie39



Joined: 18 Jan 2009
Posts: 105

PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 9:31 pm    Post subject: Should I accept the offer Reply with quote

Accept that offer now! Very Happy Telephone them with a good reason as to why you had second thoughts. Be convincing. For a newbie that isnt a bad offer and you wil get experience and will have a little spending money too. Uness you eat at the Hilton every night, but eat at home, your groceries could be 400 TL monthly. Thoe private too, go for it! Laughing
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dudeteacher



Joined: 27 Feb 2010
Posts: 173

PostPosted: Mon Aug 27, 2012 5:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Qaaolchoura wrote:
If the TEFL course is in person and has at least six hours of observed teaching practice, it shouldn't much matter (if it was online and/or lacked a teaching component then yeah, that's an issue). Yeah there are some people out there who think that only British quals (CELTA and Trinity) are valid, mostly because they're either snobby Brits or non-native English speakers who haven't heard of non-British courses, but I continue to roll my eyes at the occasional people on Dave's who suggest that those of us who did a perfectly respectable non-British TESOL course (like SIT) should take the CELTA.

The purpose of any TESOL course is twofold: to give you an intro to teaching methodology, and to give immigration officials another piece of paper. In Turkey most employers know that the CELTA isn't the be-all-and-end-all and will grill you, and then if they like you and they get work permits, they'll get that piece of paper notarized and translated and hand it over to Y�K.

I remember when Dilko was posting ads for Yalova I searched this forum for info, and they generally seemed to have a positive reputation, though I think there were only two posters who'd worked there. But the good news is that they're definitely not notorious the way some employers in Turkey are.

Regards,
~Q


It's a pity some teachers don't realize this. The big comeback by so many incompetent/inexperienced teachers I've encountered is "I have my CELTA." Rolling Eyes

Dude
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sixthchild



Joined: 18 Apr 2012
Posts: 298
Location: East of Eden

PostPosted: Mon Aug 27, 2012 9:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I feel that this job offer is realistic, you can gain valuable experience from it, you won't go hungry if you are sensible. The only downside I see is the fact that if you lose your job you lose your living quarters!
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parnett



Joined: 29 Jun 2012
Posts: 179
Location: China

PostPosted: Mon Aug 27, 2012 10:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would assume you are female and in your early 20's and will go from there.
You should have no problem surviving on that salary unless you are a party animal. You didn't mention which part of Istanbul the school was located in. If you live and work in Taksim, Bakirkoy or Kadikoy there will be many temptations out there, and you may spend everything you make rather quickly.
The one thing I would check out is where and with whom you will be living. Every time I was put in an apartment with "roommates" it was an unmitigated disaster. Many teachers in Istanbul are there for one reason- to drink. Do you smoke and if not, could you live with a bunch of smokers? For some reason, it always seemed to me that the vast majority of ESL teachers living in Istanbul were smokers (especially British teachers).
When you are teaching a lot of hours, and your living situation isn't ideal (and many aren't in Istanbul), the stress builds and builds. Get the email addresses from some of the teachers before you accept any job. If the school won't give them to you, then they are probably hiding something.
Good luck!
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