Job Discussion Forums

[wulfrun]

and others?

business philosophy, teaching, management, money, ...

sure there are lots of local differences, but wondering if one stands out as a good name

i quite like the idea of working for the British Council - since it's not just for money.

[spiral78]

I think an important distinction is that some of the franchises are highly linked to some specific approach - Berlitz is one example of this. If you like the approach to learning/teaching that the franchise uses, fine. If not, the franchise can be a bad fit.

[Teacher in Rome]

I'm not sure you could call the British Council a franchise - isn't it funded by the British Government to represent British culture abroad? As far as I know, working for the BC isn't as easy as working for a chain: you need good qualifications and experience, and the interviews are quite rigorous.

[wulfrun]

thanks, that's a good point.

just went and read the wiki on berlitz and the accidental inspiration for his method, a french teacher who couldn't speak any english, ha ha.

[naturegirl321]

I think it also depends on the location and management of each franchise.

[Manaus]

I worked for a franchise while I was in Brazil and it was a good enough experience.

I now work for a franchise of Berlitz and it's wonderful for a second job (which it is for me). However, unlike regular Berlitz I am considered self-employed so we receive no benefits, there is no job security, our salary is decent, but again, only for a second job. My husband studies at the school and receives a 50% discount. If I worked FOR Berlitz I'd probably have a better salary and I would have benefits and my husband would study for free.
Since I'm a full-time teacher it doesn't really matter that I'm not employed by Berlitz, and I don't need the benefits.

But needless to say, the teachers either don't stay for TOO long or this is also their second job.

[Sonnet]

I work for EF, so I'm biased on this one...

As others have said, though, there's no "easy" answer. You need to look at the individual schools & make your decision that way - saying "All Berlitz jobs are good", or "All EF schools are bad" would be the same as saying "All private university jobs are good" or "All international school jobs are good".

One thing to bear in mind about chain schools - if you stick around in one, the promotion opportunities, benefits & pay rises can come much more easily than if you're a serial school-hopper

[naturegirl321]

That's true, the more time you have in one organisation, the better the chance that you'll be promoted