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Mrs Guardiola
Joined: 22 Oct 2010
Posts: 3
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 Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:16 pm Post subject: The current job market. |
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Dear all,
Just wondering if anyone was having the same difficulty as me in finding overseas employment for the 10/11 academic year. I've been using the MOD EDIT 'Instapply' system as well as firing off personal emails with CV, degree and CELTA attached, both on-spec and in response to specific advertisements.
I am by no means a rookie teacher; I got my CELTA in 99 and have about six years of EFL experience all in- business, general, kids and adults, IELTS and Cambridge,overseas and UK, you name it. Yet I've heard so little back- in most cases not even a 'no thanks'- that I'm beginning to feel a little paranoid. I distinctly remember NOT having this kind of difficulty several years ago so I'm wondering if the market is really so saturated with teachers all of a sudden, or I'm applying at the wrong time of year-or I'm just jinxed?! 
Any feedback and opinions are much appreciated.
Mrs G |
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tttompatz
Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
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| Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:35 pm Post subject: |
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It is a combination of things:
a) the market for ESL teachers in many mature markets like the EU, Korea and Japan is indeed saturated with economic refugees from the west (massive numbers of recent US grads with loans to pay and no jobs at home).
For other markets, it is just bad timing.
You are mid term for most in Asia for example. There was a small hiring binge through early October to fill mid-term vacancies but the large majority of jobs will be on offer in Jan-March to fill new (academic) year [positions starting in March-May (depending on the country).
There are always jobs in China but as an experienced teacher you again may want to wait till the new year for the better positions and (higher) offerings.
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 1:16 am Post subject: |
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| Where are you applying? (country) |
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Guy Courchesne
Joined: 10 Mar 2003
Posts: 9650
Location: Mexico City
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| Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 1:23 am Post subject: |
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| The Mexican market is still pretty good for jobs...neither a glut of teachers nor a glut of teaching positions. Your timing is off however with the school year having started in late August. January will see a small bump in hiring if you're unwilling to wait until next August. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home
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| Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 3:24 am Post subject: |
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Might be many things
Age
Looks
Time working at each employer
Mistakes on your CV
Wrong names on your cover letter. |
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Mrs Guardiola
Joined: 22 Oct 2010
Posts: 3
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| Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 5:36 am Post subject: |
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| naturegirl321 wrote: |
Might be many things
Age
Looks. |
Sorry.....care to elaborate?  |
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tttompatz
Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
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| Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 6:03 am Post subject: |
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| Mrs Guardiola wrote: |
| naturegirl321 wrote: |
Might be many things
Age
Looks. |
Sorry.....care to elaborate? |
If you are looking at places like Korea or Japan then the demand is for young (under 30), white and a decided preference for female.
Most places in Asia discriminate against non-white teachers and even more so when it comes to having an Asian appearance.
Double the problem in a language institute where they have to meet the expectations of the paying customers (moms) rather than the needs of the students (quality teachers).
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dackinator
Joined: 17 Sep 2010
Posts: 105
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| Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 7:11 pm Post subject: Re: The current job market. |
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| Mrs Guardiola wrote: |
Dear all,
Just wondering if anyone was having the same difficulty as me in finding overseas employment for the 10/11 academic year. I've been using the MOD EDIT 'Instapply' system as well as firing off personal emails with CV, degree and CELTA attached, both on-spec and in response to specific advertisements.
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Heres a trick I use when applying for jobs on the website that rhymes with beffle dot com
Dont use the "instapply" function.
It is hideously ugly. The employer recieves an email which is unclear, full of unimportant info, and difficult to skim. It makes it hard for you to communicate your experience, and hard for the employer.
Instead look at the contact name listed, find the school's website, and then email your CV direct to the recruiter.
It'll help you in two ways:
a. You'll stand out from the dozens applying through the website instapply system.
b. You can display your skills and experience in a better way than the website system would.
Although I agree with someone above, it depends a lot on where you are applying for. I applied for 15 jobs in spain this summer, not one of them even acknowledged my application.
Last edited by dackinator on Mon Oct 25, 2010 7:39 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Mrs Guardiola
Joined: 22 Oct 2010
Posts: 3
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| Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 7:20 pm Post subject: Re: The current job market. |
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[quote="dackinator"]
| Mrs Guardiola wrote: |
Heres a trick I use when applying for jobs on MOD EDIT
Dont use the "instapply" function.
It is hideously ugly. The employer recieves an email which is unclear, full of unimportant info, and difficult to skim. It makes it hard for you to communicate your experience, and hard for the employer.
Instead look at the contact name listed, find the school's website, and then email your CV direct to the recruiter.
It'll help you in two ways:
a. You'll stand out from the dozens applying through the website instapply system.
b. You can display your skills and experience in a better way than the website system would.
Although I agree with someone above, it depends a lot on where you are applying for. I applied for 15 jobs in spain this summer, not one of them even acknowledged my application. |
Thanks for this; good to know and confirms my suspicions. Might have to spend tomorrow trawling through all my recent InstApply jobs and resending them direct to the source.  |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Tue Oct 26, 2010 1:35 am Post subject: |
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| tttompatz wrote: |
| If you are looking at places like Korea or Japan then the demand is for young (under 30), white and a decided preference for female. |
I would disagree on the female idea here. Most teachers in Japan are male. In elementary school and kindergarten, though, most are female, so it depends on where one applies.
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| Most places in Asia discriminate against non-white teachers and even more so when it comes to having an Asian appearance. |
Again, I don't think this is always the case. If anything, they would discriminate against Asian faces, even if the person was a native English speaker. Stupid, I know, but some employers (and students) believe that English cannot come out of an Asian teacher's face no matter what the nationality.
There are plenty of blacks and other ethnic groups teaching here.
I'm only guessing what naturegirl meant by "looks", and I'll just add that she might mean what is already talked about, but it could also mean that an unpleasant or stern look on one's resume photo could easily turn off an employer. One's weight can also be determined by a photo, so that could influence some (ignorant) employers. Facial piercings, tattoos, blemishes, hair style/color, amount of makeup, beards (not in the OP's case, though!), all may play a role, too, in the meaning of "looks". |
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kotoko
Joined: 22 Jun 2010
Posts: 109
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| Posted: Tue Oct 26, 2010 6:22 am Post subject: |
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| Glenski wrote: |
I would disagree on the female idea here. Most teachers in Japan are male. In elementary school and kindergarten, though, most are female, so it depends on where one applies.
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It might be because most of the people wanting to work/live/be in Japan are male. In my Japanese class at university, I was the only girl. There were about 30 in my graduating class. Even in other years, girls were outnumbered by boys. The Japanese life is great but it has a lot more to offer and is more appealing to guys than to girls I think.
People working in unis here are more than likely going to be people who are here for good, who have married and made a commitment to staying here. There are a lot more guys in that category than girls. People who are working in eikaiwas or in elem school type jobs (including ALTs etc) are more than likely going to be people who come for a few years then go on to something else. In that category there are equal numbers of males and females I think. |
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naturegirl321
Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home
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| Posted: Wed Oct 27, 2010 3:48 am Post subject: |
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| Mrs Guardiola wrote: |
| naturegirl321 wrote: |
Might be many things
Age
Looks. |
Sorry.....care to elaborate? |
Certainly, whether we like it or not, blond haired, blue eyed people get more jobs. Some prefer women, such as kindergarten jobs, other prefer men, business English.
If you're black, brown, Indian, or Asian, you WILL have more dificcult getting jobs in SOME countries. And you might get stupid questions, like ones I commonly get are "how did you learn English" "How idd your parents learn English" Why is your last name X?"
I kid you not.
If you're fat, you will also have problems. A friend of mine is not getting renewed, her boss is concerned baout her "health" ie, she's too fat.
If you have a party pciture on oyour CV, and believe me, people do place unappropriate photos on their CV, expect to get less interviews.
As for age, very young people and very old poeple have issues finding jobs.
That's just the way it is. I don't like it. I've lost jobs due to looks, but there's nothing I can do about it. |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003
Posts: 1838
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| Posted: Sat Oct 30, 2010 1:06 pm Post subject: |
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Russia is quite buoyant for TEFL at the moment, I believe, although the same tips apply as suggested by Naturegirl. Although there is a fair amount of variance in Russian employers attitudes.
In general, my approach is to send the cv (US: resume) without photos or tell-tale personal details. Let them get interested and talking to you. Then they are more likely to give you the benefit of doubt about no-nos. For example, I gained one job in spite of my employer being doubtful about my age and a medical condition (both of which proved irrelevant when I arrived and started teaching). |
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markcmc
Joined: 18 Jan 2010
Posts: 262
Location: Taiwan
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| Posted: Sat Oct 30, 2010 11:02 pm Post subject: |
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| Most jobs go to people applying on the spot. It's always harder to find work from abroad. |
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coledavis
Joined: 21 Jun 2003
Posts: 1838
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| Posted: Sat Oct 30, 2010 11:24 pm Post subject: |
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| Altbough this is true, it can be done from a distance. I have done with all three of my overseas positions. |
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