Job Discussion Forums

[2canucks]

Hi,
I am interested in coming to Italy (and I have British Citizenship so I can work legally) and I was wondering what the money situation is like. I am Canadian so I would probably have to pay for my own flight over and basically I am wondering if you think I would at least break even by moving to Italy? 2 of us would be coming together so the price of an apartment would be shared between us. Any advice is welcome.

[Teacher in Rome]

A lot depends on where you go in Italy and whether or not you have experience.

If you have a look on the tefl.com website, you can see a variety of jobs posted. Some schools provide accommodation, some don't, but give assistance, etc.

[ilaria]

What are your teaching certifications and experience? Are you qualified for anything beyond entry-level jobs in a language school?

What kind of lifestyle do you want to have here? Do you want to live in a big city with lots of stuff to do (ie opportunities to spend money) or would you be content in a smaller place?

Does the north or the south of Italy appeal to you more? Here in Sicily, you're looking at 800 euros a month or so for an entry-level job. You could make 1,000 or more in the northern mainland cities where rent and the cost of living are more expensive.

Bear in mind that most contracts are for nine or ten months, not a whole year. Most schools close during August and there are few classes in July. So you don't get paid for two months in the summer.

Do you have debts to pay off in Canada? If so, you'd be well advised not to come to Italy. You might break even after paying your flights, if you're quite frugal, but this is not a country like Korea where it's easy to save money on a TEFL salary.

[2canucks]

Thanks for the replies. I have 1 year of teaching experience. We would actually prefer to live in a smaller town. We have no preference for northern or southern Italy. We generally don't go out for dinner or anything like that, so our cost of living is lower than some. we have no debts.
We were thinking about Korea but after a year in China we thought that Italy might make a nice change.

[Jetgirly]

In Torino I made EUR 1000 for my first ninety hours of work per month. Overtime was paid at about EUR 11 per hour and I usually picked up about twenty hours of overtime per month. I was guaranteed the EUR 1000 from January to July and September to November (regardless of how many classes I was scheduled to teach), but the school was closed in August and also for half of December. Because it was a lot of in-company work they provided me with a monthly pass for local transit. You could rent a studio or small one-bedroom apartment for EUR 400 if you had a local working on your behalf, but you'd be looking at more like EUR 550 if you were a foreigner negotiating for yourself. Add another EUR 75 per month or so for electricity and gas. With two people making EUR 1000 a month each, you wouldn't have any problems getting by. HOWEVER, a lot of the work that pays well in Italy is in-company work and involves a lot of split shifts. If you're going with your significant other you might never see one another. A lot of language schools will have you start at 8.00 am and finish at 9.30 pm with erratic breaks in the middle of the day.

[ilaria]

[SueH]

Just a bit of lateral thinking, but with the two of you perhaps one could do the school to guarantee the rent, and the other develop private work? That way you'd also have a bit of flexibility such that you might be able to see each other occasionally (!), meet each other from work and so forth.

[2canucks]

[ilaria]

[MrCAPiTUL]