Job Discussion Forums

[Timuli]

Dzien Dobry to everybody:)

Can anybody tell me what does it take to teach ESL at Polish universities? I'm currently teaching at Japanese universities, but am toying with the thought of returning to Poland one day. What are the salaries and conditions like?

Thanks in advance.

[Brooks]

well, at public universities the pay is less than at private ones. Some university teachers work at least two jobs. But then, lots of Poles work two jobs.

I knew a guy in Lodz that managed to make the equivalent of $18,000 one year but he must have had at least two jobs plus privates. He may have had a free apartment, or at least it was subsidized.
But he knew Polish well, and had contacts. That is how he managed to boost his earnings.

When I was in Warsaw I was getting 70 zl. per class hour. What sucked were all the vacations. I only got paid when I taught. My university always paid me late too.

Now what is good about the zloty is that it is strong. I think it is about 3.1 or so to the dollar.

[Timuli]

Thanks for the reply so far Brooks. Though do you know what the requirements are to get a university job in Poland? How does one land a uni job there? I haven't found anything on internet job listings yet. Language and visa are no problems for me. So would like to know what they require officially (and unofficially)

[Brooks]

well maybe a MA would be enough. I knew a guy who only had a BA that got a job but that was about 6 years ago.
But back then I had a MA and it helped me get the job, and I had a year of experience at a Russian university.

Being from the UK or Ireland would make it easier.

The job I got was on the ESL Cafe.

Maybe you would have to get a job in Poland and then make contacts to try to get a university job.

[dragulescu]

brooks, us irish have been in the eu for some time now..........

[Brooks]

which means it is easier for you to get a job in Poland than for an American like me.
That is what I meant. I meant to type UK but typed EU. My bad.

[Timuli]

Thanks guys and keep it coming! This is good info.

An MA would be enough? Can the MA be in anything just to get your foot into the door? My situation is I was polish born so hence have citizenship and still speak the lingo(grew up in South Africa though). Dont ask me to write in Polish though!. I have a BA, LL.B and LL.M, and am currently teaching at Japanese uni's. In Japan as long as you have a MA in anything you can teach as a part timer for starters (Contacts help of course:) )

How is the actual teaching? How eager and motivated are the students? How do you get along with the other faculty members and admin staff? They usually proficient or leave a lot to be desired?

[Brooks]

since you are Polish I think you`d need a MA.
A MA in linguistics or English I think.
Teaching Poles is better than teaching Japanese, that is for sure.
Poland is in the EU so they have the motivation since they can work in other EU countries.
I taught for the CAE exam. So it was the four skills plus grammar.
I also taught a course on American culture.
In Japan, it is just oral skills so it can get monotonous.

In Lodz, the university students did the best on the Cambridge proficiency exam, better than anywhere else in Europe.

Foreign and Polish teachers didn`t interact much but then the Polish teachers tended to have at least two jobs so they didn`t hang around the school.
One Polish teacher I worked with told his students that American English was only slang. I tended to ignore him.
But another one was friendly and I ended up teaching his daughter.

[biffinbridge]

I taught at Poznan Uni for several years.The native speakers needed a CELTA and the locals needed an M.A.The pay was around 2000zl/month plus free accommodation in a hall,which was fun socially.I only taught 20 hours a week and had loads of time to do privates.I was also a freelance writer and made about 6000 zl/month in total.I'm in Poznan right now on holiday.You need to make at least 4000zl a month here to have any sort of life.Things like electrical goods seem to cost more than in the UK and that's really saying something.I went to a bar last night and a vodka and apple juice was 12zl,about four U.S. dollars.The cheapest hotel I can find here is 160 zl a night,(about 60 dollars).Going back to the uni thing;we did a lot of residential courses in the countryside,which were really fun.We were also the Cambridge testing centre,which was a nice little earner come exam time.We also got paid 12 months of the year. The students were the best I've taught in 10 years of teaching.Good luck and go for it.

[patrykt]

Timuli,

If you are truely interested in spending some time in Poland, a university is the way to go. I currently work at the public and a private university in Poznan and love it. The students and university life do it for me. If money is an issue, Poland may not be for you. However, you can easily earn enough to support yourself and have some fun. As far as what you need to get in; a university degree and a contact. You seem to be more than qualified and although a contact will help, I don't think that it's essential. Send me an email and I will get you the contact info for my departments. I know that the office Poznan University has the contact info for other English departments in Poland so you could start from there.

Good luck,

Patryk
[email protected]

[dragulescu]