Job Discussion Forums

[elliot_spencer]

Hey guys,

Anyone know what the market will be like in Istanbul 2010? Will there be many jobs going? I've been looking on the net and can't find a lot!

[fishmb]

Hi. My girlfriend and I moved here a few months ago and found jobs relatively easily. Not knowing anything about you, your references, or your qualifications I couldn't say how much luck you'll have.

I've heard that the market might slow up a little bit because fewer students will be required to pass English language exams to get their university degree, but I don't have any concrete facts on this.

Right now it seems pretty hot to me. We came over here to get our CELTA and originally planned to start looking for jobs afterward, but a Turkish friend of mine, who was also taking the CELTA, said the language school that she works at had an immediate need for a native speaker, so I got the job without even really looking.

My qualifications, less than a year of English language tutoring in the US, working on my CELTA, BA in English language and literature, as well as some other English language related jobs/responsibilities, and some teaching, but not English language teaching.

My girlfriend, upon completing her CELTA (with a pass A), got offered a job at an English First branch in Taksim. She has a BA in politics and had less than a year of English tutoring. I think it helps that we took our CELTA here in Istanbul because that meant we were working with people whose mother-tongue was Turkish.

[atoklas]

I would say the job market is pretty dismal -- first and for most for Turks, which trickles down to the foreigner-teacher sector.

The university market HAS been affected by a new law requiring fewer students to take English-prep. University jobs, which were already not *so* easy to get, are now even harder to come by. This means you have to be MORE qualified and MORE experienced, and experience within Turkey and the ability to speak at least basic Turkish counts for a lot.

The dershane (language school) market has also been affected. Students at dershane's are often middle aged business people working for multi-nationals, and they simply don't have the disposable income to take English anymore. and less companies are paying their way. As a result, dershane's have cut their wages in recent months, and teachers are getting less classes than before. Most people I know who work at dershanes are making just enough to get by (barely).

Also, private and public schools almost always require a teaching crediential in your subject area. Plus, they only accept teachers within certain parameters (history, geography, and PE teachers are not welcome . There are a few private schools that hire foreigners without the required documentation, but then they don't provide you with a work visa...

There's always private lessons and translation. I have a few friends who supplement their income with private lessons, although you have to be willing to travel all over the place and sometimes deal with crazy people. And if your Turkish is good enough, the one sector of the economy that often benefits from an economic downturn is the legal sector, so there is legal translation work to be had.

Which brings me to my last point--work visas. There are numerous posts about the ever illusive work visa on this forum. Fewer and fewer teachers these days are getting them, and without one, you risk being deported or fined.

[eclectic]

deported or fined? yikes, what about deported AND fined?

[coffeespoonman]

Well, if they deport you, you're not likely to pay the fine, are you?

It's generally like this, "Get out of Turkey. If you want to come back someday, you'll have to pay us some money."