Job Discussion Forums

The_Hanged_Man · Joined: 10 Oct 2004 Posts: 224 Location: Tbilisi, Georgia

Awesome reply Chan. Thanks for taking the time. I am pretty sure I will be attending the UNI fair as it is both the earliest and cheapest fair. So you think it is very important to contact schools prior to the fair? Also, I realize this is a tough question to answer, but how difficult is it to actually land a job? You said there are tons of applicants but at the same time there are lots of positions available as well. As a person with 2 years of teaching experience and some overseas TEFL experience looking for a math postion, do you think I would be competitive? I don't really have my heart set on any particular school, but I would prefer something in SE Asia. Thanks again!

Chan · Joined: 26 Jul 2004 Posts: 22

You meet the minimum qualifications, so you should be able to get a job. I don�t think anyone will disregard your TEFL experience, but most will only really look at your experiences in K-12 schools. The key is to be flexible. Be open to most (or all) continents, especially since this will be you be your first time teaching in an international school. Join Joy Jobs and/or The International Educator and contact the schools that interest you. Also, when a school announces a vacancy for which you are qualified, you should apply and tell them you will be going to the UNI fair. You must remember that you will have some stiff competition from those new to international school teaching and from veterans who have taught in these types of schools for years. So you don�t want to go to the fair �cold� especially since most of them don�t. Some schools will never contact you. They either are busy, uninterested or will contact you at the fair. Others will set up an interview time to interview you at the fair. This is wonderful because it saves you the time of having to stand in line for this school during the fair. Then if you haven�t heard from other schools in which you are interested, you can spend time waiting in line to try to get an interview. Remember, some of these lines are long and by waiting, you may miss the opportunity to interview with other schools.

When you get to the fair, you will have two folders with your name on it. The first day, you may have some yellow slips from recruiters who saw your file and would like to set up an interview with you. Some people have none and some people have 30; it really just depends. Even though they have given you a slip, you must still get in line and try to set up an interview. Some people have made the mistake of waiting to talk to these schools until later during the sign-up period (round robin) only to discover that the recruiter/principal has no more openings for interviews. If they�re really interested they may try to squeeze you in, but I wouldn�t count on it.

Also, it�s important to know about the schools in which you are interested. Some schools are very selective and although they can hire someone with two years of experience, they rarely do. Some basically say this on their website and you would be wasting your time to stand in their line. It also depends on how you present yourself and the qualifications you possess. One big plus is someone who is certified in more than one area. There are many schools that have positions for math/science, English/social studies or to a lesser extent English/ESL. These are just examples. One school this year was desperately looking for a French/ESL teacher.

When you sign up with UNI, you will receive a packet of information with lists of schools that usually attend. Each school is responsible for filling out information and it will tell you things such as:

Percentage of teaching couples
Percentage of the various nationalities of students
Salary
Currency in which the salary will be paid
Taxes (if any)
Minimum experience required
Housing
Benefits package (housing, shipping and/or relocation allowance, airfare, tuition, health insurance, transportation, salary bonuses, etc.)
Amount of money you can save

There are more than these, but this should give you an idea. Try to focus on schools that interest you but also on schools that will hire people with little or no experience. I�m not saying you can�t get a job in one of the more prestigious schools, but consider a few schools that may be more likely to hire you to ensure you can get a job.

There are certainly jobs for math teachers, but unlike in the States, there is a high need in the other subjects as well. Over the past couple of years, I have seen many openings for English teachers. I have especially noticed a lot of positions for history/social studies. At the UNI fair this year and in general, there seemed to be more of that than anything else.

Sorry for the length of this post! I probably could have answered your question in a couple of sentences, but instead decided to say way more than you probably wanted.

Sheep-Goats · Joined: 16 Apr 2004 Posts: 527

James_T_Kirk · Joined: 20 Sep 2003 Posts: 357 Location: Ten Forward

Nomad Dan · Joined: 17 Feb 2003 Posts: 145 Location: Myanmar

Hello. I am really thinking that international schools are the way to go for me from now on...The pay is as good or better than universities in most countries.

When I talk to fellow teachers here in Texas about leaving to go to Burma, they just can't believe that I managed to pull something like that off....They think that it is great, BUT they could never do it for whatever reason. Usually a spouse or several curtain climbers under their care.

However, there are many qualified single teachers in the US perfectly willing to live the life of quiet desperation...

In Texas there is a large demand for certain teachers...Mainly Spanish speakers and also special education and math, science. I have left Texas Public School several times to teach overseas, and this time I feel fairly certain that "I ain't never goin' back"

Cheers,

Burma Dan

The_Hanged_Man · Joined: 10 Oct 2004 Posts: 224 Location: Tbilisi, Georgia

Thanks again Chan. I am definitely looking forward to attending the fair and taking the next step to going back overseas again.

NomadDan is defintely right about Texas needing certain types of teachers. Some of my colleauges in the math department at my high school were hired the day they submitted their application. The key to getting a teaching job in the states is flexibility. I know lots of people in my home town of Grand Rapids, Michigan who spent loads of time and money to become degreed and certified, and have been scrounging for substitute teacher work trying to make a living for several years without being able to find a permanent position. In fact, recently Detroit had to let go many teachers due to budgetary constraints despite there being a 'shortage' of teachers.

Now, if these people were willing to expand their job search outside the state a lot of them would be able to find jobs easily, but due to a variety of reasons (wife, kids, being afraid to leave home) they don't even try. Perish the thought of actually leaving the good ol' US of A. Even looking at the teachers who are willing to think about International Schools, the majority of people only consider Europe or popular tourist destinations. I think if you are willing to go off the beaten track there will be a position waiting for you as long as you are remotely qualified. At least since I haven't even found an international school job yet that's what I hope!