Job Discussion Forums

[Catullus]

I'm thinking of heading over to Prague this July (around the 15th) and I want to know if it would be even possible to live there for two months teaching english, then split? Do they lease apartment son a short-term basis? is there a fair amount of mid-summer work? Anything else I should know?

As should be obvious, I really know nothing about the CR or the english-teaching situation there.

[ITTP]

[spiral78]

Catullus, you'll need to be aware that the summer camp jobs are very often taken by teachers who worked a regular Sept-June contract and need to pick up hours to get them through the summer. They have the contacts and local reps, and they'll obviously get the first jobs. There will be some left, but there's not a huge demand for summer teachers.

Come on over - you may well get lucky, but make sure you don't absolutely HAVE to have enough work to get you through the two months.

If you do find work, be aware that you'll probably still not break even, calculating travel expenses and cost of living.

[ITTP]

Alternatively Catullus, you could always plan to be teaching from Sept/Oct through to December and then break your contract (with notice provided), and head off at the Christmas holiday season.
A lot of teachers anyway don't come back after Christmas.
If you just have a few months available then you could easily arrange to begin teaching from early October and through to the last week before Xmas.

In July and August though it is very slow and the summer camp work would be the only realistic opportunity open to you, or substitute teaching.
The offers which we receive for summer camp work for our clients typically average 5-6,000 CZK per week plus free food and accommodation.
These places do tend to get snapped up by teachers already located in Prague but you might get lucky and find that a summer camp has been let down by their teacher and needs a quick replacement.
Either way, you'd need to begin planning around NOW.

Hope it helps!

Neville

ITTP Prague
Jungmannova 32
Prague 1

[parrothead]

Catullus,

In my opinion it is barely possible, not probable, that you would be able to find sufficient work in the Czech Republic for the time period you mentioned. It often takes several months just to make enough contacts to piece together a decent work schedule. After that, it could be a bit of a disservice to your students to leave so quickly. You didn't really state in your post how much you want to work or how much money you have saved up. If you don't have sufficient savings, I say don't go. For such a short stay, it is highly unlikely that you'd be able to make enough money for accommodation, food, and transportation.

Just my two cents.



By the way, why are you interested in the Czech Republic?

[Catullus2]

in light of these posts I've decided to postpone my trip to the CR by a couple of months and instead go in Mid-September, when the work is a bit more plentiful.

By the way, how much would a semi-decent apartment in Prague cost?

[spiral78]

A 'decent' flat can run from 8,000 monthly up to 12 -14,000. Many teachers flat-share, as this is a big percentage of a monthly fulltime teaching salary.

Mid September may be a bit late to job-search. End August and the first week or two in Sept. are when most employers will fill their rosters.

If you don't have sufficient savings, I say don't go. For such a short stay, it is highly unlikely that you'd be able to make enough money for accommodation, food, and transportation.

I second parrothead - in a short-term stint, you are going to incur costs.

Another thing you haven't mentioned is your qualifications. Prague's something of a teacher training mecca, and 90% approx. of the newbie teachers on the street have a CELTA or equivalent. If you're going to be competitive, you'll need something comparable, obviously.

[ITTP]

This is a good site for flat-sharing Catullus:
http://www.spolubydlici.cz

LOTS of work beginning MID September.
Late August schools are still pretty much still on their holidays.

If you want to teach from September then there is lots of work available.
This is my 14th year here and every year is the same:
Schools get back into action early September and classes begin September and then also in October.

Plan to arrive by September 1st and you will be fine.

Have a lovely weekend!

Neville

ITTP Prague
Jungmannova 32
Prague 1

[Catullus2]

I am, however, not able to arrive by September 1 - I can get there September 20 at the earliest.

By the way, I don't even see a forum here for Hungary. Is Budapest a bit more flexible?

[ITTP]