Job Discussion Forums

[osen77]

Hi,
Any information on this school? Has anyone worked there?

[maruss]

I worked for them freelance, but back in 2006 and had no real complaints.They gave me some nice integration groups and individuals and paid me a decent hourly rate.If you are already living there and want some hours they can be an ideal source of work.
On a less positive side,their native teachers were paid far less than I was and there semed to be managerial problems within the firm.

[osen77]

Thanks for your reply!

[adamelnerdo]

Hey guys here as a recent experience with these guys. I would say they definitely have in house problems. As well their recruiter lives in Turkey and if you have any contractual problems they will tell you you have to talk to her.

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=116471

[Spasibo]

Strange that their recruiter lives in Turkey, a red flag...well, par for the course with these schools..they are so poorly run. glad you got out losing nothing but some $.

[adamelnerdo]

Yeah absolutely right Spasibo about the red flag. It was completely proven when one of the 2 office managers told me I would have to discuss any contract points I had with the person I signed my contract with it had nothing to do with him.

Another thing you'll notice with these guys is the absurd contract. They have one clause that states if a company that you have been sent to rejects you as a teacher within the first 4 classes they do not have to pay you for it. Another ridiculous clause is without specifications you can be charged for poor performance in classes, not preparing properly among other reasons, which is impossible to grade and also there is no specific amount. They want to put out zero risk and or money but want you to move across the world work for them with mediocre pay and conditions for the esl world. While giving you no help in doing so. I just wanted to be in Moscow for the summer I had a feeling it would be a bit of a disaster and they did not disappoint on that note.

[maruss]

On my first lesson they sent me to the wrong place-luckily I went there early so had time to walk back to the office which was about 10 minutes away- instead of admitting it was their mistake they just got one of the office staff to accompany me to the correct place and I was just in time for the lesson!
I can remember my coordinator also explaining that I wouldn't get paid until I had done four lessons there without any complaints from the students etc-fortunately they liked me!

[Spasibo]

Russia is its own world when it comes to labor standards I guess...in other countries like USA, UK, Canada, Western Europe none of this would be allowed.

Teaching 4 lessons and if they don't like you they don't pay? I've learned that's just the "Russian" way. Many teachers can attest to these practices. Just read their stories here!

[Bryan4c]

Hi - Yes. You need to check the contract very carefull with this russian company. But even if you do that before joining them, they are well known for just ignoring the contract if they don’t feel like it. Think carefully about joining them these days.

*** Useful link for additional info *** This Russian company marketing itself as an English language school tries very hard to bury the real feedback on the internet by pushing stuff down in the google searches ***

https://www.reddit.com/r/tefl_blacklist/comments/739x0j/be_aware_of_denis_school_moscow/

It has a lot of useful information for any potential teaching before they make come to Russia and especially if they are considering joining this outfit!!!

A lot of downsides to consider before joining “DENIS SCHOOL MOSCOW”. Its one big “CON-JOB” - sorry no nicer way to put it. One clue that gives it away is that their DOS is not native English.