Job Discussion Forums

[ddarko34]

hey all,

was too lazy to dig around through threads, so decided to post it. i'll make it short and sweet. i'm considering flying out to Prague to teach but wanted info on the gen'l conditions, job market, AVG salary v. desired, etc. so i'll try to bullet hole my main questions. feel free to add or ask anything else.

1. TEFL or CELTA or Trinity? which is more marketable? and which is more beneficial teaching and job hunting wise? i heard both are good, but CELTA consistently shows to be held in higher regard.

2. job hunting - season opens in Sept? what are working conditions like (eg: hours, pay, competition, qualifications req'd, etc.). are they schools or private english language ones?

3. life in prague - rent? (hear it's alot relative to salary) does teaching give u enough disposable income to party (not too much), travel, eat, etc? good areas to live in? (i don't really care about living IN prague, just near enough to be accessible to the city by bus./train)

4. what are the major red flags to watch out for? (sketchy employees, discirmination, pickpockets, etc.)

5. how much money should i bring to CR to cover the settling in process?

hmm post's a bit vague and i think i'm forgetting stuff, but i'm sure i'll remember later. any advice suggestions? anything i should be concerned about b4 leaving? thanks all

oh if it helps, US college grad with BA in libarts. some teaching experience (not school, but private tutoring/some TA) and no cert. thanks!

[gregoryfromcali]

1. CELTA

2. September is good.

3. I would recommend that you come to Prague before deciding to teach there.

I think it is fun for a weekend but beyond that I don't understand what the attraction is. I can imagine in 1990 is must have been the place to be but that was a long time ago.

I am not here to slam the Czech Republic but as someone who originally came to Central Europe, a couple of years ago, with the consideration of working in Prague I realized that it was the last place I would ever want to live.

Unless you like locals being rude to foreigners, prostitutes walking around all night, and tons of drunk tourists crowding the streets I would recommend that you try to check out some of the other cities in the area. As well as cities in neighboring countries before you settle on Prague.

[ddarko34]

well, korea's pretty much the same way, so i figure i could handle prague. and i don't mind living a distance aways from the hub. probably be a good way to get more money and see a more traditional side of the region, but i think every1's gotta get away to the city every so often. a method of de stressing i suppose. i don't think i'd live in CR longer than a year anyways. just want to live in europe and want to find a place where's its cheap and relatively easy to find an ESL teaching job. from what i hear, W. Europe's outta the question. otherwise, i'd hit up spain in a heartbeat.

so how was ur exp in central europe? difficult to adjust? fav place? what would u choose instead of prague? greece? turkey maybe?

[gregoryfromcali]

I settled in Cracow, Poland.

I love it here. It's as beautiful as Prague, but cheap and without the hordes of tourists blocking the streets.

Another cool thing is that in Poland our classes are lined up in blocks. So at around 1 or 2 you prepare your lessons then you start around 3 or 4 then teach until 8 or 9 and you're done.

In China this would be a dream schedule.

I also hear that the money is better in Poland than in CZ, for example native speakers get paid more than doctors here.

I think if you're a Pole you could save a lot but most FTs are used to a "certain" lifestyle therefore we usually spend our money.

I have a feeling that we're the two sides of the same coin.

I am going back to China this summer and then I plan on spending a year in Taiwan.

I would like to live in Asia, but in the end I have to admit that it is about the money. After two years of EFL (with probably only one more year to go) I want to try save some money in before I go back to the states.

But it is going to be hard to leave Poland there are a lot of holidays in this country and most of your students are university students so classes are usually a good time. (Of course, not always.)

Give Poland a try.

[scot47]

Prague is so full of tourists that they could be considered a form of pollution.

I also dislike this dual pricing business where locals pay one price and foreigners pay more.

[gregoryfromcali]

[ddarko34]

prague's that bad eh? i thought it wouldn't be for some reason.

FTs in poland get paid more than doctors??? uh, i'm assuming doctors are really rich in poland like they are in the US??

i think i could do poland. were u able to save up money to travel around the continent? or was it more of a pocket change type deal? i'm hesitant on teaching in Europe b/c the income's not great. so i hear.

what kind of quals do they look for in ur area?

thanks again for your help. the info you're giving me is really helpful.

[spiral78]

Prague's got five or six training centres for TEFL/TESL teachers. Even though they don't all stay in the city, large numbers do. And tourists?!! Billions...it's such a cheap, quick flight from most of Europe to visit. However, the city is incredibly beautiful and there's a lot to do.

Doctors in Central/Eastern Europe are NOT paid like doctors in the West. Medicine is generally state-sponsored, and not well paid as a profession. And yeah, you might make more money than many locals, but remember that the locals have housing deals that you can't match as an outsider. In Prague, natives may pay less than half or a third of what you must pay for housing.

You won't likely be able to save up enough money anywhere in Central Europe to 'travel around the continent.' The Euro is far stronger than zlotys or koruna. When you take your Polish or Czech wages into the Western European countries, value drops drastically. You can realistically expect to be able to travel around the region you are in, and possibly add a week or two somewhere in a tourist area, like Greece.

As for quals, you need a basic certification, a BA or equivalent degree, and a professional and reliable work ethic. Experience and additional qualifications are a plus.

[gregoryfromcali]

[sussy]

[spiral78]

No, it's not a law. It's just that as a foreigner, you will be paying full rent, while Czech rightfully have either ownership or gov't subsidies in many cases. It's the same in North America, right? If you're living in granny's old apartment, you pay less, of course! It's just that expats living in a foreign city don't have the advantage of family connections.

[gregoryfromcali]

[spiral78]

Sorry - I'm trying to be clear!
Czechs don't pay lower rent because of their citizenship!
What I was trying to say is that the majority of Czechs living in Prague have been there for a long time and have family ties to housing. A Czech from some different city in the Czech Republic who moves to Prague will also pay higher rent, just like the expats.
Hope that was clearer.....

[sussy]

[gregoryfromcali]