Job Discussion Forums

wrigleyville · Joined: 10 Aug 2004 Posts: 1

hi all - first time here. nice to meet all of you - some quick questions i was hoping one or more of you might answer for me. a little background (i promise not to bore you for too long. please stay with me). i'm teaching here in wuhan, china and want to make my way to poland. ideally krakow. not particular though. my contract isn't up until february of 2005 due to the chinese new year holiday (i started mid-year). any possibility of starting rather late in the spring term? say, beginning to mid-feb? maybe even march? (i'd like to go home and say hi to my folks before taking off again, but don't want to wait for the following september to come around either). i have no teaching cert what-so-ever, however will have a year's worth of teaching experience with primary level kids by the time my contract is up next feb - anyone (school, etc.) interested in someone like me? not to mention that before coming to china i was an administrator with a national non-profit back in the states, responsible for quite a lot as far as the inner workings of that organization goes (a non-partisan public advocacy research group - consumer, democracy and environmental issues). i'm not putting on airs(?) - i just want to explain that i have solid work experience before coming over here to china. might that help me with my lack of certification? it's a lot of fun reading about your experiences on the job forum, and i really appreciate any help you all can give me.
regards.
wrigleyville.

XXX · Posted: Wed Aug 18, 2004 8:36 pm Post subject:

It is possible. There are always teachers who can't or won't hack it and leave half way through their contracts. When they do, DOSs have to scramble to fill those slots. I would, if I were you, contact every school you can and tell them you could be ready to head off if needs be. Good luck.

smack! · Joined: 13 Oct 2003 Posts: 5

The market is still good but I get the feeling that employers are more likely to ask for proper creds nowadays. Berlitz is a very solid outfit. Be wary of The American Academy of English (tied to Kaplan in years past), they are in a state of disaray and have problems paying their staff on time if at all....I am still waiting for my last paycheck-have been waiting for 4 months now, and am starting to lose all hope. Mad

Alex Shulgin · Joined: 20 Jul 2003 Posts: 553

It is possible but without proof of expert status (ie a TEFL certificate) you won't be able to get a work permit and that means the halfway decent schools won't touch you. Why not get certified? You can take the CELTA in Poland for about $1000. The increased earning power means you'll earn that much extra in your first year after the CELTA.

booty · Joined: 22 Aug 2004 Posts: 94

Poland is drab, grey and the people are very grumpy. I have been here for one month now and am bored of it. The women are nice though.

Nauczyciel · Posted: Mon Oct 18, 2004 10:16 am Post subject:

You should not have problems finding job in Poland even without any teaching certificate. Those with TEFL certificates are most wanted by universities and prestigious private schools, but being a native speaker with suitable teaching experience should be enough to secure a decent job for an average private school at the least. The question is who you want to teach. If in China you're teaching kids, then you may need to spend some time persuading your future employee that you can work with adults as well, but that's quite unlikely.

Good luck