Job Discussion Forums

[ryanlogic]

Plan to graduate with two bachelors degrees from the US this summer.
BA sociology
BA international relations

Plan to obtain CELTA ASAP after graduation.

I want to land higher paying positions in the Gulf, but it seems that I need to get several years of experience before I can qualify for anything worth living there.

I am Caucasian American with citizenship
I'm married, my wife is African American with citizenship.
We don't have children.

Wife doesn't have a degree but obviously she would be coming along wherever I go. she could probably help make ends meet by working or tutoring but obviously we need to get to wherever we are going first. I need to find a place where bringing her along is feasible.

Don't mind living in small cities, or rural areas. We are very simple people who appreciate what we have.

We are Muslim and would very much enjoy living in Turkey as opposed to other options like S.korea or China. Over the years I've met a lot of Turkish people and always found them to be pleasant.

Im not looking for a lot of money right off the bat, just a decent gig to gain experience and enough money to fly somewhere else and get set up after teaching for a few years in Turkey. But I don't want to starve or get stuck without a way to leave.

Obviously bringing a wife is the only thing that makes my situation a little different.. If I was single it wouldn't be so hard to figure out.

Is Turkey a good option for us?

Any and all suggestions are welcome, thanks!

[ryanlogic]

Maybe the Turkey forum isn't as busy as some of the others, or maybe everyone is busy from celebrating the holiday...

Anyways still looking for insight regarding Turkey.

Any and all advice is appreciated.

Ryan

[elliot_spencer]

Depends where you want to work, in which city. Istanbul pays the most - IB schools pay around 4000 with housing but a CELTA probably won't cut it!

It'd be hard to save any money if you have to support your wife.

I suggest you forget about other cities as wages will be lower than Istanbul.

If you had an MA you could apply to unis. Turkey is not like Asia and they've woken up to the face that having a TEFL doesn't make u a teacher so it's hard to get work permits etc.

if you were British you could try British Side, best paying language school by far,

Good luck

[ryanlogic]

Unless I take classes part time and continue driving the campus bus full time, or decide to pursue graduate studies in sociology as a teaching assistant... I don't see a bachelors degree in my immediate future. I need to spend a few years paying off the current debt before I can rightfully consider incurring additional debt for a masters degree.

I'm really just trying to find something stable with which my wife and I can survive modestly. I need something to bring me through the first couple of years until I gain enough experience to move onto more legitimate and sought after positions.

I'm not even done with my bachelors degrees and I'm still trying to figure out how I can take a CELTA course ASAP afterwards. Hopefully that means I have time to figure it out. I like to plan and speculate well ahead.

Turkey would most definitely be a unique experience if I could make it work.
Other people have me looking at places like morocco. Too bad Egypt has eroded so much, as that would have been another top choice. I'm still very much in the brainstorming stage.

[wander&teach]

As always things change quickly in the Middle East. Only recently Turkey appeared to be, and was, a very good place to earn a decent wage for a beginner and get your foot in the door but in only the last couple of weeks things have taken a dramatic turn for the worse. The government has been thrown into deep turmoil due to the huge corruption investigation that broke recently implicating everyone from the street cop to the Prime Minister. The Turkish Lira is plummeting on the world market (a record 2.12tl to $1U.S today) and the Turkish stock market has suffered huge loses in a very short time along with an artificial building boom due to easy credit that is creating a huge and un-needed housing supply. News and current events are very fluid, the general public is becoming bitterly divided on the issues at hand and overall it is not looking positive at the moment.

[CVN-76]

Being as you're Muslim, you'd have a bit of an easier time. We infidel men tend to have a reputation to live down to, as we are, after all, infidels. I'd avoid private outfits, as teachers and (especially) students at these places tend to have inordinate amounts of power if they are connected to money. Your job will be more in jeopardy and you'll have to watch your back a lot more as you attempt to please fickle colleagues and students. You'll also be under pressure to pass your money-connected students. Failing those who are 'connected' can get you fired in a hurry. Go with government employers. Your job will be more secure. When you are ready to go to the Middle East, look to the UAE and Oman. Avoid Saudi Arabia.

Good luck.

[Kim Macintosh]

Sounds like you'll be more comfortable outside the swirl of Istanbul. Jobs are a more contentious matter as well, especially with your qualifications. You can make the city work, but why fight things?

Smaller cities, even Ankara or Izmir, would be more receptive and manageable. In these, and other smaller places, you'd be WELCOMED greatly by the people who will value greatly what you have to offer.

Even without a CELTA you should do well enough to support your GF, live comfortably, and safe enough to travel. The CELTA will help your competence, however, not that the locals would know. I know a woman in Ankara, who moved there to follow hubby, with no training, and through in-laws has a full dance card of kids to teach. Doesn't really have a clue to WHAT she's doing, but it's good day care at a minimum, with fun and games that the kids pick-up a bit from, and everybodies happy.

Having your GF pick up her own CELTA will put in very good position indeed.

[PC Parrot]

If I remember correctly from the threads on the Middle East, the OP's wife doesn't have a high-school certificate, so I'm not sure she would get onto a TEFL course.

[eihpos]

I think if she shows enough interest in teaching and some basic understanding of grammar, she would be let on a course no problem. Most training courses won't turn away money.

[jsta8372]

I taught TOFEL for Istanbul Lisan Merkezi, they have 4 or 5 branches, if you don't mind a few difficulties (like not getting paid on time, last minute calls to work, late visa appointment, not getting paid the promised amount etc etc) they do pay for your rent which is a hard extra to find in Turkey, I got 2700 lira not including my utilities deduction. Most English Institutes all run the same, and pay less than that, I would recommend working at a private school or University. I would stay away from English Institutes, I found they have no respect for foreigners, the pay for Turkey is decent but living in Istanbul is expensive. Antalya or Izmir you would have a more coastal vibe, and it is much prettier, but would still be semi difficult to find a job. But if you are a native speaker jobs are not SO difficult to come by. They do require some sort of TEFL certificate (but I heard you can take courses online). With everything that is going on now politically I would stay away. If you want to make money, live in the Middle East and don't mind living in a Muslim country I would just suck it up and got to Saudi. If you are a woman, and thinking to go their alone, I wouldn't from my experience and I am saying that after living in other middle eastern countries.

[CVN-76]

I would avoid Saudi completely and go to Oman or Dubai. But then again, women may have more luck in Saudi than guys, as classes are single-sex in Saudi. I would much rather teach a classroom of all girls, but that is a no-no for me there. So I'd be stuck with a roomful of 21-year-old bodies having 11 - year-old brains. Oman, however, has co-ed classrooms, albeit segregated within rooms. Additionally, in Saudi you will have to wear an abaya and be (somewhat) watched by the religious police.