Job Discussion Forums

[lion72]

I taught in Timisoara a few years ago, and here is the low down--
The place is small, but beautiful. There are many good looking women there, and its not too expensive--YOU WILL NOT GET RICH!!
But hey in this field unless a person is in Asia--we are in it for the experience. The school I worked for is to the best of my knowledge defunct. But perhaps there are other school there.
The students there are very friendly, and the kids are receptive to learning--unlike in Korea where they go to school from 8am--11pm.
So yeah check it out, grab a few privates--if you can, and do it.

Good luck!

Lion72

[Mike_2003]

Hi,

What sort of price can you get for private lessons if you are a qualified native speaker?

Mike

[lion72]

Hey Mike
Merhaba!! Nilsinitz!!
U are in Turkey right? Anyways.
Yeah, when I was there I charged just under $10/hr. I know it sounds like pennies, but as I mentioned I was there to have a good time. I don't know how much privates go for now--or in Bucharest.
If you decide to go let me recommend a few places: THe IRish Pub, The Jazz Club on the Bega river, and Club 30 in Piatza Opera. its near the big church.
Local brews are Timisoarana, not bad and dirt cheap. ALso, I recommend (if you drink) Silva Bruna--its a brown ale.
THe staple drink in Romania (ala Sake in Japan, Soju in Korea, Raki in Turkey) is Schweika--stay away from it--godawful!!!
Well hey anymore questions feel free to post it.
Also, when I was there the salary I made was about $400-500US a month (inc. my privates--which were 2 great kids 11yr old girl and 13 yr.old boy) did privates 8hrs a week. No problem either, like a person might have in Korea. I have taught there, need any words about that place just ask.
Hey do u know about any jobs in the Czech Rep., or POland? If u do let me know.

Later
Lion72

[Mike_2003]

Hi Lion,

Iyiym, sagol.

I wasn't planning to go to Timisoara, but another town outside Bucharest, but I guess the principles are more or les the same. I think $10 a hour is fairly good money for Romania, right? I've been a few times and it was cheap enough there. How did you get privates there? Just word-of-mouth of through the local rags?

I'm afraid I have no idea about jobs in Poland or the Czech Rep. Sorry...

Take it easy,
Mike.

[scot47]

US$ 400 a month is quite a high income in Romania. Most locals are on a much lower salary than this.

Timisoara is interesting because it is one of the towns with a large Hungarian element.

In my experience your life could be better in one of the provincial towns. Stay away from the capital !

[naturegirl321]

Lion,
I am also interested in how you got the private students. I might be going to Timisoara in September 2004. The organisation that I applied with has postions there.

I PMed you, did you get it?

[scot47]

I would be surprised if you can get ten dollars US an hour in Romania. Certainly on the other side of the Danube in Bulgaria this would be exceptional.

Beware of building castles in the air. You may be surprised at how tough it is to live in Romania on a local salary.

Why not go with VSO (East European Partnership) or Peace Corps ?

[naturegirl321]

VSO doesn't go there anymore.

I asked the peacecorps and they say you can't pick where you want to go.

[Adroit207]

I agree with Scott34. the idea of private lessons is prettly much non-existent in Romania. One, people don't have the money to pay, and the school system provides relatively good lessons. Stundents are usualy found throught conections, rich connections.
I might be wrong.

[CairoMig]

State school teachers basically supplement their salaries with private lessons. By setting exams which students are bound to do badly in unless they have private lessons with their class teacher, they create the need for parents to pay for lessons.

This means that the native speaker teacher who gives general English lessons isn't in great demand as people tend to have lessons for very specific needs. One area where native speakers have an edge is in IELTS preparation (very popular, as it's used for immigration and study purposes for Canada, Australia, NZ, etc. TOEFL is also popular. However don't expect to charge much.

[Mike_2003]

Hi,

I went to Timisoara last week and it is a pleasant town. The old town especially had a nice feel. Unfortunately everything was closed for the New Year, including the Banat Museum, which I was keen to visit. It was also interesting to see a few of the places where the revolution broke out, particularly relevant at that time of year as video footage was being shown on many of the TV channels. The only gripe I have about Timisoara is the lack of eating establishments. We walked around for about an hour until we found somewhere cheap and enticing!

If anyone is in the area, Alba Iulia is definitely worth a visit. In the centre of the town is the 'fortress' - almost complete city walls containing many historic buildings, included a cathedral, a gothic church, and the Union Hall with its museum. It was easy to wander around there for a few hours, and we almost had the place to ourselves. Check out its excellent website: http://www.apulum.ro/en/prezentare.htm

Lastly, castle fans might like to check out the castle in Hunedoara. The town itself is an industrial dump, but the castle was fantastic. Of course, it was closed too but I'm sure the inside was as impressive as the outside.

Best wishes,
Mike

[KCP]

I lived in Timisoara for a year. To me, it was the best city in Romania. It has a beauty, but you have to find it.

If anyone is planning on going, check out the archives in my blog at http://karro.blogspot.com It describes my year working at an NGO in the centre of the city, with plenty of pictures.

The best restaurant is Casa cu Fiori, on Alba Iulia street. Friends, on the corner of Piata Unirii, is the best place for exotic teas.

I worked with some local teachers in the city through my institute. Unless you are coming to Romania with a placement agency (where *you* have to pay *them*), your chances to teach are next to zero. Romanians speak English extremely well and there are plenty of qualified Romanian English teachers.

Everything others have said about the school system is 100% correct, although I'd just like to add that discipline is also a problem there. Romanians seem to have adopted the American way of treating students: they are right and the teacher is wrong. A close teacher friend of mine was yelled at by parents for asking why a student dyed her hair. The lack of technology will be a surprise to most. Teachers have to sign a log book kept in the staff room after every class, as proof that it was completed.

What others have said about salaries are correct: teachers make 80-100 euros a month, barely enough to live. University professors may make up to 200 euros, but most supplement their salaries with bribes or private lessons.