Job Discussion Forums

Red and white · Joined: 30 Sep 2007 Posts: 63

So I'm heading back to England after eight years in the former USSR. I wouldn't be looking at teaching for myself, but my wife seems to want to come with me (any sensible girl would put on the plane, run home and change the locks, but that's another story ...).

She's Russian-Armenian, degree in linguistics and translation, CELTA-qualified, experienced in teaching English in Moscow. We're looking at a few possibilities, including translation work and possibly teaching Russian (or even Armenian if there's a market for it), but any clues about job prospects would be welcome. My fear is she'll find it tough to get worthwhile teaching work as a foreigner (living in Moscow I wouldn't hire a fellow Brit to teach me Russian, so ...).

We're not too tied to any region of the UK. In the first instance we'd probably head to NE England, where I come from. I also own property in Southend, but we'd look at most places depending on opportunties.

Any thoughts?

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

Difficult. No market in teaching Russian and certainly not in Armenian. School teraching might be a possibility but is hugely stressful. I think in England there is no GTC registration requirement now. She will need a visa - marriage to a UK citizen is not enough. There is an income/savings requirement. You need an annual income of £18,600 or savings of £62,000.

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Spouse_Immigration-UK

Kofola · Joined: 20 Feb 2009 Posts: 159 Location: Slovakia

I suspect your best bet is translating/interpreting. I have no idea if there are any major Russian speaking populations in NE England. But the SE seems to have a fair number. Very specifically, I know of schools in the wider London area that have had to employ interpreters to communicate with Latvian parents, for instance.There may be some jobs working for the councils. Try UK job sites to see who's offering interpreting/translating work. Needs extremely good knowledge of English though. In very multi-ethnic areas enormous sums of money are spent on interpreters in hospitals, schools etc. Plus translating can be done online - although you may have to be self-employed for that and I don't know how that works for non-EU and with the visa etc. There's also the EU - they sometimes require translators for other languages. But there is a lot of competition and EU English is painful.

Also Russian is taught at a number of universities (Edinburgh, Glasgow, Birmingham, Sheffield, SEES, etc). Always worth checking out directly if they are looking for teachers. There has been a move in recent years to increase the number of language assistants in schools. Could be worth googling secondary schools that offer Russian or via here https://schoolsonline.britishcouncil.org/programmes-and-funding/language-assistants. Plus don't forget private schools.

The Armenian may also be a possiblity in London. I think it is taught at SOAS and maybe elsewhere (Oxfod or Cambridge?) Local Armenian and Russian groups in the UK could be a good place to ask.

My ha'penny's worth...

Red and white · Joined: 30 Sep 2007 Posts: 63

Scot47 - yeah, we're sorting out the visa at the moment. Finances shouldn't be a problem, but she'd be much happier if she felt there was something for her to do after leaving home.

Kofola - thanks for the insight. Some interesting thoughts there. As far as I understand, the UK Spouse visa gives the same right to work as a citizen, so self-employment shouldn't be a problem if the income is declared and taxed. The issue is more about whether that income applies when the visa needs to be extended three years down the track - I seem to recall there were some restrictions about which earnings counted towards that 18,600 Scot mentioned. Translation is certainly something we're looking at, other contract or freelance.

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

Interpreting is often done through an agency. Guess who makes the money ? Not the poor stiff doing the interpreting !

Sashadroogie · Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 11:10 am Post subject:

How about getting some Cambridge or IELTS examiner training under her belt? Will be transferable to the UK, and gives good networking opportunities. Plus, training is free in the glorious Motherland...

Dedicated · Joined: 18 May 2007 Posts: 972 Location: UK

She could browse the jobs.ac.uk website regularly and register for updates. There are currently two jobs advertised for Teaching Fellows in Russian at both Leeds and Glasgow universities.

You will probably find more openings in the London area where there has been an influx of Russians and many universities are offering Social Science or Humanities degrees with an attached module in Russian studies/cinema/economics/politics.

She could register with the Association of Teachers of Russian
http://www.mapryal.org/index_en.html