Job Discussion Forums

[NMB]

How drastically does the Turkish Lira devaluate? The school that I am considering (English Time) says the hourly pay is adjusted each September against the dollar. Is this sufficient? In the meantime, I have watched it decline within the past couple of weeks! Is this standard? Should this be a deterring factor in my decision to pursue this offer? Are there schools that pay in hard currency, have a decent reputation, and welcome novice teachers?

[richard ame]

In a word they will screw you and your salary will shrink every month as the cost of the items you buy will continue to rise and your salary stays put ,yes we all have to put up with this because everyone does and at the interview we do not insist on dollars or a cost of living rise mid year,some years are worse than others so it 's up to you to hammer out the best deal you can and I mean HAMMER. If they want you badly enough they WİLLagree on something that suits you otherwise go somewhere else and remember the contract is atoilet paper unless it's in a language YOUunderstand.

[scot47]

The Lira goes down against the Dollar and the Euro EVERY DAY. I mean EVERY DAY. On my frequent visits I always change my hard currency on a daily basis and try to ensure at the end of my visit I have zero TL left in my pocket.

Negotiate a salary based in a hard currency.

[richard ame]

It is desireable to be paid in any other currency other than the local stuff,however even my place does not and it's a private university in Izmir the first of it's kind,despite my insistence on the dollar I was refused but I was informed or at least led to believe there would be an increase during the academic yearbut guess what ? Squat thats what!! At the start of the academic year I was given a small rise of 250 mil but this has already being eaten up by rent rises and other daily increases in heating and utilities ,not to mention the social cost of living . Those who do get paid in foreign currency and who are also living rent free have a better chance of saving decent money I managed that for 7 years and was able to buy my first house in 5 years after 20 odd years in the U.K I could never achieve that . I t seems to me that what used to be pretty good packages are now thin on the ground and it is really up to you to get the best deal you can not easy in the present climate .I know there are better deals out there in other cities but the thought of living in Ankara does not cut me very much cheer ,and as for Istanbul no amount of money could intice me to work let alone actually live there .

[scot47]

On my visits it seems that Turkey is a place to visit and spend money in, notto work in. Why not teach in the ME where you can get three thousand US dollars with free accommodation. Then go and spend your money in the shaky economy of the Turkish Republic.

[richard ame]

True,the Arab States offer quite an appealing package a tax free salary and a roof over your head plus all the whisle and bells you can think of ,however,it is not a place I have any desire to go to even just for the money,there may come a time somewhere in the future where a load of hard currency may come in useful to consolidate my position in Turkey but at the moment my wife and I are still in love with this country . I don't think she would thank me for dragging her to a place where women have such a low status in society,perhaps some places are better than others ,anybody got any comments on that one???

[scot47]

Well for me the choice is clear. Either misery on a low salary or compromise, work in the ME and a salary that allowsme to live in comfort and support a family. For me Turkey and so many other places are not feasible !!

[NMB]

The Middle East is probably not feasible, considering that I am female and a beginning teacher. Would it help to immediately convert the lira into hard currency each payday? I have spoken to several teachers in Istanbul, and not one of them has complained about the devaluation. But, I am wondering if it would be worth the risk...

During war time, would the lira devaluate even more drastically? Thanks for all insight.

[J.B. Clamence]

Both of the schools I worked for in Istanbul had a poicy of raising salaries every six months. I got the impression that that was pretty standard. However, a lot of teachers complained that they should be paid in hard currency, but why? The students at my schools paid their course fees in Lira, not dollars, so why should teachers expect schools to pay them in dollars? I think that's a bit unreasonable, unless of course the students at your school pay in dollars -- in that case I would say that the teachers should get dollars as well, but I've never heard of a school where this is the case. If you go to Turkey and work in Turkey, you have to accept Turkish money. If that's unacceptable, then why go to Turkey? It's not the schools' fault that their economy has problems.

Anyway, what I would do on payday was take my salary, put about a couple weeks worth of spending money in my pocket and change the rest into dollars. I would take a couple week's worth of dollars and hide it in my room. The rest I would put into a Dollar account at a Turkish bank (make sure it's a stable one, like KocBank). Every so often, I would wire whatever was in the account to my account back in the states. This costs a bit on both sides of the ocean, so I wouldn't do it too often.

However, one pay-raise a year seems pretty rough. I guess it all depends on the economic situation. The last six or so months I was there, there really wasn't that much inflation, and I think for about 2 months it didn't go down at all.

[Heather]

I agree with J.B. that the best way to save money in Turkey is to budget out what you need in Lira and then convert the rest to hard currency and put it in a foreign currency savings account at a SOLID bank(several banks in Turkey have gone under). I also had a Turk. Lira savings account and I found a way to send money home from my Lira account without the wire transfer fees. I got an ATM card for my Turkish bank account and mailed the card to my mother in the States. I'd email her and tell her how much to take out and all I'd pay was the 2.00 fee at the ATM machine in the states. The bank wouldn't allow me to connect the ATM card to my dollar savings account so that was my reserve for emergencies/vacations/etc. If I needed to get money out of my account in Turkey I'd use the passbooks I was given when I opened the account.

[NMB]

It sounds like people are able to save at least a bit of money working in Turkey. What is an average amount to save? It may be more simple to estimate the average cost of living. How much is needed per month to live frugally in Istanbul? The only extras that I MUST have are a gym membership and Internet service. From these estimates, I can calculate the savings potential based on my anticipated salary.

Thanks in advance for all responses.

[Heather]

Unfortunately, "frugal" varies from person to person. A person who doesn't drink or party will be able to save more than those who do. How much rent and utilities you pay will make a big difference and will be different at each school. Another question to ask the school,if they provide housing, is whether the apartment has a telephone line in it for internet access. Many apartments don't have land telephone lines as cell phones are everywhere. I lived in Ankara and decided that between the telephone charges, hook up fees, internet fees, etc. that it was cheaper going to internet cafes. I can't say for Istanbul, but the price of gym membership was about 40 mTL a month or more depending on which program you signed up for. And the price WILL go up while you're there with the inflation. The best way to make the decision would be to ask for the email address of another teacher at the school who has similar interests and see if they can be more specific. Good Luck.

[richard ame]

Having just returned from a trip back to the U.K Iwas amazed at the price of stuff generally not only overseas,but in places like Istanbul,ok that is not really Turkey but the disturbing thing is very few items are priced in T.L its mostly dollars or euro especially in the holiday resorts when you are paid in T.L it really goes nowhere even over here ,I think they should pay all foreign employees in one of the three main curriencies that is used in this country especially as this country has made a strong claim for E.U membership and the euro is fast becoming the second form of currency here.

[scot47]

But Turks do not get paid in Euros or Dollars ! And they pay their fees to the schools in Lira ! Why should you expect to get your dosh in hard currency ?

Living with a constantly devaluing currency is one of the prices you pay for staying in Turkey. If you want a hard currency go to Japan or one of the Gulf Countries.

[istanbullheaded]

Hello, all. I'm teaching in Istanbul in a private high school. This is a response to the previous posts in this old chain. I get paid in lira but when I'm paid I exchange my lira into dollars and put it in my dollar account. I like the one poster's idea about the ATM card. If you don't want to trouble your parents or don't have this avenue, though, you can get an Internet account at a bank like Akbank, which I like for its services (though I don't know about its solvency, or any bank's solvency). The bank charges nothing but my bank in the USA charges $20, which is cheaper than any wire transfer I've seen. Even though the lira is apparently doing well, from 1.6/1.7 million to the dollar when I got here to 1.41 million to the dollar now, my foreign colleagues and I've heard even some Turkish ones exchange lira into dollars. You never know when a crash can happen again is the general idea.