Job Discussion Forums

[quoi_de_neuf?]

Been browsing this forum for a wee while now and have had some great feedback and picked up some very handy tips.

However, am a bit disappointed with the France forum, as was hoping to share information, ask questions etc as most people are doing for countries like Poland, China, Japan, Korea etc. I know France is not top of the list for EFL teaching, but if there are people using this site who are teaching in France, please make yourselves known! Would like to know how you got work, places you'd recommend / tax issues etc.

Posted this here rather than in the France section, as it's not been touched since 16th March.

From a lonely newbie

[wildchild]

my wife is from France.

We'll be moving there in a year or two.

I'll get back to you then.

[neveah]

I'm interested in learning more about working in France too. The only problem is that the cost of living in France is very high. I'm assuming that most people don't work in France unless they can afford to.

[Deicide]

[quoi_de_neuf?]

wildchild - Thanks for that. See you in 2009!

neveah - Very true that the cost of living in France is very high. However, depending on your circumstances you can get help from the "CAF"... Last year, I got 53% of my rent paid for by the CAF (social benefits) which, as you can imagine, helped enormously! So, if you're really keen on living and working in France, it is possible on a tight budget. And, my American friend also got 53% of her rent paid by the CAF, so it works for EUers and non-EUers alike Have you thought about doing a language assistant programme? Great schemes that pay well for the hours you do and you often get set up with accomodation, too.

Deicide - [quote] "La France est un trou de rat, pleine de crotte de chien et pas beaucoup d'autrechose...."
Nice. Beg to differ on that one, however. City I'm in is very pretty, well-maintained with a great atmosphere, relatively dog-poo free, and get this... I've even met Americans here - who have jobs and everything.

Quoi [/quote]

[Deicide]

[fancynan]

Qoui-de-Neuf - where in France are you living? Do you teach English there?
I am planning to go to France in January to take a TEFL course and plan to remain in Paris to find work. I have to wait that long to have all my finances in order. I, too, read the France forum and have been disappointed by the lack of information. It appears that most responses are from defensive naysayers, although there are some helpful posters. I just keep reading and researching, trying to be as prepared as possible for the move.
Things I am interested in finding out concern shared housing - how to find a place and average cost, salaries, working hours, cell phones, laptop, how much stuff to pack and bring, etc. I research on google.fr so that I can get the local responses rather than using google.com (of course, the responses are all in French).
So, just keep posting - there are some of us out here who share your interest!

[Deicide]

[scot47]

Deicide, what you need is a rich Mummy who can subsidise you as you swan around the world.

If, like me you have to suppport yourself, EFLing in France is not an option.

[quoi_de_neuf?]

Fancynan - Nice to hear from you! I'm in the south of France and have [i]just [/i] got a teaching job. I came over here from the UK (having lived and worked here before) and decided I'd give myself a month to find work or else head elsewhere. So, I lucked out!

Money is very tight, yeah, but I get by. I am very fortunate to have minimal living costs due to falling on my feet with accomodation. I am just starting out trying to get private tutoring to help things and there's also the odd bit of translation work. I have friends in Paris who work in EFL, and I could put you in touch with them nearer the time that you're heading out there if you want?

As for websites - yeah, google.fr is useful. For teaching jobs in Paris, check out the FUSAC website (can't remember exact address, but google it )

I'll post some pther useful website addresses later re: working in EFL in France, too. Equally, if you've found anything particularly useful, do let me know!

Glad to hear there are other fans of France on this forum

All the best,

quoi d'1 oeuf

[loyal_canine]

Hi Fancynan,

Have to completely agree with your viewpoint. Having just recently arrived in Paris to find work I was straight into searching for jobs and accommodation etc and was disappointed by how little positive advice etc I could find online.

As an Aussie on a working holiday visa I also feel like I am flying blind, I can't seem to find much useful advice from anyone on the same visa about how it all works, how to go about getting a social security number etc etc.

However, I've managed to find myself an apartment and a job within 2 weeks, so things are starting to come together and I'll share what I know so far.

For job ads the best place I found by far was www.fusac.fr. The language schools in France seem to very rarely advertise on TEFL websites, but there were heaps of ads on fusac.

I brought my phone from Australia, had it unlocked before I left and got a sim card on arrival, very easily done.

I found it harder getting an apartment than a job, but finally lucked out. I searched craigslist.com daily and emailed anyone in my budget, but found I got further by posting an ad on the same site saying I was looking for share accommodation and letting people with the right apartments come to me. Often I was approached by people who hadn't even listed them yet.
(Beware the scam posters though, I did get a few 'too good to be true' type emails, often you can tell straight away by the overly nice pictures they send with the email. The moment you ask to look at the place that's probably the last you'll hear of them)

www.colocation.fr also looks to be a good site if you speak French.

Most apartments have wireless or ADSL internet included in the bills, so I highly recommend bringing a computer, especially given the going rate at internet cafes in Paris seems to be around 4euro an hour. I'm very glad I brought mine.

And yeah, you'll get plenty of unwanted feedback from anyone you tell you're going to France (friends and strangers alike) about how much they hate it, it's full of dogsh*t, the people are rude etc etc. We all know the stereotypes and I'd love to know what kind of perfect legoland these people are comparing France to so I can make sure I never, ever go to such a characterless place.

I am sure with your great attitude you'll do well and really enjoy working and living in France!

If anyone else has helpful hints and tips for newbies in France (esp anyone on the Aussie working holiday visa) including paperwork, teaching networks, how to go about meeting people etc I'd love to hear them!

[Luder]

Sometimes France (or at least Paris) does indeed seem like a gray rathole full of dog turds and hostile people. Other times you wonder why anyone would want to live anywhere else.

When I first came to Paris I worked for private language schools. I don't really see how anyone doing that gets by, what with the cost of living here. Much better, it seems to me, is to work as a "vacataire" in one of the many universities or engineering schools. The pay can be as much as three times that of your normal language school and it's generally a delight to work with the students.

There is a catch, of course. To get this vacataire work, you have to have a so-called "main employer" you teach at least 300 hours a year for, or, if you're not a teacher, you have to have a job where you work at least 990 hours a year (that doesn't leave you much time for teaching). I was lucky, because I do seven hours a day on Saturday for my "main employer" and am thus free to do more lucrative and more enjoyable work the rest of the week.

You can also get vacataire work, without having a main employer, if you are a graduate student who is 28 or younger. But you're limited to 200 hours a year. Note too that these jobs, though they are everywhere, are rarely, if ever, widely advertised; universities have fewer and fewer full-time positions and rely more and more on "vacataires." You just have to scour websites and write. Eventually, your letter will get passed on to the right people.

I have an M. A., but only one of the universities I teach at has ever asked to see it. A Bachelor's degree should be enough.

There are downsides to the work, of course. For one, there's nothing to be had in summer (but you have your main employer). For another, you are paid late. At some public universities, it can be in one lump sum at the end of the year. Others pay quarterly. The semi-public engineering schools usually pay one month late. Nor do you have a contract of any sort, so nothing to show to a prospective landlord, who will want to see that you have a certain income before giving you the privilege of renting his overpriced broom closet. Not to mention that it can all be kind of exhausting, what with occasional papers to grade, classes to prepare for, and the time you spend getting around to all those different universities where you probably teach.

So, however you decide to make your living teaching in France, it's probably going to be tough. But it also has its rewards.

[fancynan]

Thanks for all the good, inspiring info. Loyal_Canine, while you were looking for an apartment, where did you stay? Did you stay in a hostel or hotel? Since I will be living at the school outside of Paris, I hope to be able to set something up within the four weeks of the course. But, a hotel seems to be a pretty expensive way to go if I don't have a place right away. I will have funds to see me through any lag time, but certainly want to be as economical as possible. Any suggestions?
Nan

[Deicide]

[quoi_de_neuf?]

Thanks for your opinions... Nice to have a healthy debate! For those ESLers in France, keep posting! Keen to share experiences

I've managed to up my hours at the place I've just started working at . Also realised that making contacts is VITAL to finding ESL work out here. A cousin of a friend of a friend's partner (!) told me that a language school was looking for a new teacher but that they hadn't (and probably wouldn't) get round to advertising. So, I dropped off my CV, got a phone call the next day and an interview the following week Guess you just have to tell as many people as possible that you're looking for work (as well as sending candidatures spontan�es etc)

Vive la France!

Quoi d'1 oeuf