Job Discussion Forums

[charlie456]

Hi
I'm a Kiwi thinking of coming to Poland.

I am female, 35. Looking for something different to do - am a journalist, but looking at something different for a time and a base to see more of Europe. So, I would be a "career breaker" that failed to do the perpetual supposed "New Zealand rite of passage" which is go and flat in London and work in a pub! (Or whatever they do there.)
So, I've only been on a few holidays to Europe - four in the past three years for about 2 weeks each time - and I'd like to come over for a longer period. (Yes, I saw typical tourist traps and also included trips to Stockholm - in winter!)

So, with Poland...are most of the "expats" or whatever you call them eg. people from places like Britain and the US who are teachers mostly blokes who are coming for Polish ladies?

Sounds a bit rough and some of the historic posts have some of you as heavy drinkers hanging out like people that are in uni or something - or perpetual students. Haha, what's the real deal?

Surely there must be people that are ladies there from English speaking countries who are not men there to "chase tail" etc.
Sounds like something out of a Contiki tour bus/backpacker hostel in Earls Court, which I am sure I would be full of Kiwis and Aussies anyway.
I'd go too, except I am a few years too late for a working holiday visa....and even if I was still 28 or 30, I don't really think that is my cup of tea - (Contiki tours and Earls Court and working in a pub).

Cheers!

[Master Shake]

No idea what you're on about in that last paragraph...

But, yes, the native speakers teaching here are overwhelmingly male. Some are here to drink beer and chase tail, many are here because they've already done that and now are settled down with a Polish wife/girlfriend who won't leave Poland.

The bottom line is that native speaker females tend not to linger too long in PL, if they come here at all. Why come here when you could go to Spain, Italy, Portugal, etc.?

[sparks]

Shake is right about the ratio. I know a very few women from the States who have married Polish men and now live here, one lady who is working on something at the university. A couple who are looking for their roots or whatever. Besides the marrieds I doubt many of them will stay for more than a year or two.

[ecocks]

Hi Kiwi -

A lot of the "blokes" here seem to think the women are incredible. Myself and a couple of others (all guys) simply find them only slightly above average. Like anyplace we feel there are attractive women but nothing particularly incredible.

It is very doable to come here and have a pleasant lifestyle as long as you are honest about your goals and objectives. There are folks (single and married expats) who have a beer or two, even a simple cup of coffee and chat calmly about politics, gossip and language amidst old, red-brick buildings with plaques about their history back in the 1500's. Some people look for a nest, others chase a pot of gold (or "tail") and some simply enjoy wandering around in museums rather than pubs. You'll find that you can do most any of these things, at least to one degree or another, here in Poland.

My goals are similar to yours in that I desired a base for travel, friends, some students to occupy my time and provide some income to keep the wolves from the door. You won't get rich, but a job with one of the schools will give you a base to work from for a year while you determine how long you'll stay, what you'll do next, etc.

This last weekend I had three student lessons on Saturday and the highlight of Sunday was having some friends over for breakfast at the kitchen table with scrambled eggs, meat pies, coffee and mimosas. No one had to leave in a cab, the neighbors didn't call the cops and we talked a lot about all sorts of stuff. The afternoon event was a leisurely stroll around the Old Town area for an hour and a half. If I have to leave due to residence permit issues, I will miss Poland terribly.

Speaking for myself, I had no particular desire to be in places like Spain or Italy to live long-term but, as mentioned, different people have different goals and objectives. Mine are being met.

I haven't run into any Aussies, Canadians or Kiwi's in Poland like I have in the Czech Republic, Azerbaijan and Ukraine. Expat women are scarce on the ground but I know a half dozen American women who live here.

A place is what you make of it. Be sure you know what you want. It's 12 and damp here right now, a tad cooler during the night. The beaches are not packed with sunbathers but there are some wonderful stretches if you just want to walk and look out to sea. The place I sat and had coffee and cr�me brulee' last night was quiet with a couple of dozen people having their dinners and relaxing.

[charlie456]

Thanks Ecocks and the others for the very helpful replies! Most appreciated.

In all honesty I've been mining these forums for information on Poland and was a little worried by reading some of the (mostly historical) posts here on the expat males being into females and drinking. Sounded a bit scary - and almost sounded like somewhere to avoid - even if I am not a Polish lady, I'm still "of the female persuasion"!
I was taking the p**s so to speak with my original post - but I was being sort of serious, but thanks for giving me a good reply.

You're right, we can choose our friends, our habits and our surroundings, so I won't let any oddball old posts colour my views. I might check Poland out soon and decide if it's somewhere I would like to spend more time in.
I am also delving very much into reading the requirements of what is necessary to go into TEFL. I currently have a BA.

[ecocks]

If you have the resources to engineer a change to TEFL.

Get a TEFL or a CELTA.

There are some popular spots but you have to watch the limits on visas, stays and such. If you want to be in Europe I would get my TEFL cert someplace like Hong Kong or Singapore.

Launch your search.

After starting your training and getting a feel for it, target some countries of interest (whatever floats your boat) and get some CV's out stating you are completing your training and wish to be considered for a position in the coming year. At the worst you will get a feeling for how different countries pay, the sort of jobs out there and how you are received.

Come on.

After hopefully getting some nibbles, maybe even an offer, come do your first year. Be sure you have a few thousand in financial resources to fund the transition and that you can commit to the country you select.

Do your first year and then you are in a position to make a much better decision on work due to the experience teaching, the interaction with other TEFL teacher expats and a better understanding of being out of your comfort zone for a long time.

Best of Luck!

[Master Shake]

[scottie1113]

ecocks gave some pretty good advice. Although he and I disagree about this point-we talked about it this afternoon-I feel strongly that if you decide to try your hand in the teaching game here in Poland, Get a CELTA and not "just" a TEFL certificate.

Although the course content may be virtually identical, many schools here will only hire teachers who have a CELTA. Make it easier for yourself and just take a four week CELTA course somewhere before you come to Poland, because as a non EU citizen, you'll only have 90 days to stay here before you have to leave.

I came here six years ago-not for a woman-with far fewer resources than ecocks recommends and although it worked out well for me, I wouldn't suggest it to anyone else.

Whatever you decide to do, I wish you the best. If you have any more questions-and you must have about a million-ask here or pm me.

[ecocks]

Forgot to insert Master Shake's post here. This was in response to his comment on student quality in Poland, not Scottie's general response.

I sort of agree but.....

Honestly, I only rate the students as average based on the three countries I have been in now.

Top motivation [for language studies] was Azerbaijani students who were all working on either getting out to a western university or were very clear that continued employment was contingent on developing their English skills.

Ukraine varied widely but when I was able to be picky about my students I was getting ones who were also well-motivated. The corporate classes were a bit more mixed at first but as I began doing more one-on-ones and higher level focus on report-writing and presentations the quality went up considerably.

Here the students are VERY pleasant, generally polite and sufficiently engaged. What I haven't seen yet is that burning desire to learn. That said, it is clear they have neither the incentive to get out of the country for their education nor do their career development in the systematic manner that you see in an organization with a rigorous career-tracking system like most companies in the oil industry.

It should be noted that I haven't done any corporate work here yet, just listened to some of the tales of a couple of folks who have been in the fire.

I am sure Poland is a long way from the worst and agree wholeheartedly that it is a solid starting point.

[charlie456]

Hey there,
Thanks everyone for the friendly and helpful replies, if I decide to come to Poland, I'll update the thread!