Job Discussion Forums

[geobly158]

Hi there,

Just wondering if anyone is currently living in Moscow teaching at any of these schools and can enlighten me on current conditions????

Thanks!

[nickgrace1]

I work for LL. It varies depending on which school you work at because most are a franchise. They will give you training and many other things plus sort out tax and visa, but again depending on school it could be a fine experiance or it could be hell. The pay varies from the standard contract where it is in reality low to other franchises where it is not so bad.

Do not go near EF. I am told you will work from 10am to 10pm and pay is even lower than LL. I know an ex-EF employee who said it was just exploitation.
Hope this helps.

[geobly158]

Thanks for the feedback. Can I ask how long you've been in Russia? Whether conditions aren't ideal therefore you're considering packing it in etc?

[nickgrace1]

I have been in Russia since 2014. Never worked for EF and never would. To be honest I would really check the contract. Travel can be a real pain. But I enjoy working here.

[Reykjabik]

As said above, it could change a lot depending on your school. But I'd also say depending on each one.

I'm in BKC and every single week I hate it more and more. It frustrates me because I actually like life in Moscow, but knowing that I kind of "need" this school till I find something else or know more Russian is despairing.

I say depeding on the person because I've met people who have a happy 24 ac. h. schedule and work Mo-Th from 3 to 9 pm, no split-shifts, no metro journeys, no anything. For what they told me, you can get those hours from your second year on. I'm still on my first, and I've spent the first 6 months travelling 3 hours daily on the metro (the number of hours and the end of the month is monstruous). Now I (finally!) got schools near my place, but the schedule is incredibly shattered. You can easily start working at 8 am (plus, you're supposed to be in the school 20 min. before every lesson) and finish at 22. Which destroys your day completely.

The timetabling staff randomly assigns you to new groups, not taking into account if you're under or over hours. Whenever you have a free slot they'll find a way to fill it with other activities, and they expect you to be checking your mail every hour basically. I have been told (even by ADOSs) that the best thing you can do is buy chocolate boxes for the timetabling team. And I've seen it myself, how people show up with chocolates. Otherwise, you're a total stranger to them and they will give you the worst possible schedule. Some ADOSs can also make your life impossible, and most (really, most) of the workshops and Saturday seminars are totally useless. Attendance is compulsory for 24 and 30 h contract teachers, and they don't really solve what they intended to.

An example. I had some problems with some 12 yo kids (one of them brought a pocket knife and in a playful way, threatened his mate), so I decided to take one of the seminars about discipline for YL and teens. It was basically a gathering of possible problems, and matching exercise with papers. No real conflicts, no real solutions, no past experiences, nothing.

If you have any other specific questions I'll be glad to help. I still love Moscow, but the working conditions in BKC stink. Not to say that the pay under the table money too.

[Spasibo]

BKC that bad? I thought it was one of the better chain schools. I didn't realize you had to to commute to several locations per day, I thought it was just one school.

Honestly I don't know why teachers put up with this. Essentially you are at work from 8 to 10pm, thats a good 14 hours. You'd earn more at a starbucks or mcdonalds back home.

And then with the harsh winters. if this were Spain or Italy it would be ok but not Russia.

Well, don't crack or perhaps best for your sanity to just head home.