Job Discussion Forums

jserio · Joined: 15 Jul 2010 Posts: 61

Hey all. I spent four years teaching in Georgia - the last two of them at a private school run by the Turks - so I understand their working conditions and expectations. I really enjoyed it. I came back to the US for a year to take care of my parents but I have the itch to teach abroad again and I'm toying with Turkey. My first choice would be Georgia but Turkey is a close second.

I've seen various posts here on teaching at K-12 schools. I'd prefer to teach at a high school (public or private) and NOT an English "center." How plentiful are the jobs there? I'd prefer to stay in Istanbul but don't mind expanding my search if jobs in nearby cities are more prevalent.

Also, I don't hold any TEFL certification, although I have come close to taking the CELTA a few times. Given my past experience, how successful do you think I'll be without a TEFL certification? Another option is to get my CELTA there in May and then look for a job.

Lastly, I have a friend that lived and taught in Turkey in the 00s. She mentioned that they tend to prefer people under 40 for teaching jobs. How true is this? I'm 43 but look like I'm in my late 20s.

Lev · Joined: 24 Jul 2013 Posts: 23

There are jobs around, but I guess it would depend on what kind of salary you were after. As far as qualifications, having none (is that right?) could be an issue. I believe that schools would legally require a first degree in a related field (though there are often ways around this for the right candidate), and to be able to compete for the better jobs a CELTA or better DELTA/ Masters may be needed.

I'm not aware of age discrimination being a big issue.