Job Discussion Forums

[SF21]

...here in San Francisco. Because I'm taking the course in the US, will it be hard for me to find work afterward in Central Europe, applying from here?

Also, as part of the pre-interview process, is it typical for a European school to require a candidate's photo beforehand?

Thanks.

[spiral78]

The CELTA will be recognized - it's not going to matter that much where you get it.

However, you're not likely to find a job from abroad, if you're aiming at Europe. The standard policy is that you need to be here, in the office, CV in hand, looking professional. This is because there are lots of teachers around (you mention Central Europe: probably you know that Prague , in particular, is something of a training centre mecca, with literally hundreds of newly-qualified teachers hitting the sidewalks on a regular basis) generally throughout the region.

Good schools don't need to take a chance on hiring someone who might not really show up, or who may have misrepresented him/herself when they do. I'm not saying that you fit this, I'm saying it's happened in the past.

I'd be very suspicious of a regular private language school in a large city that hires from abroad. It may very likely mean that the school's got a bad local rep.

The exception is when you've got some special qualifications that a school must have (qualifications and experience with small children, for example) or if you're going to work in some very small town that really has to recruit on line.

The norm is to take a course in the country where you want to start. It's a big advantage in many ways - you can get your feet wet in the country while still having a support system, your practice teaching students will be representative of people you're going to be working with, and you can make contacts that will be useful when you need to sort out work contracts and housing for yourself.

Yes, it is standard practice to include a photo throughout Europe, and I think Asia as well. PC behavior isn't the same. Marital status, age, etc. no secrets here.

[scot47]

The pic of course is so that they can look for "Lily-white" candidates !

[spiral78]

Weeellll, I think that's a little less true in Europe than in Asia.....

I've known quite a few North Americans of African or Asian heritage to do just fine on the job market in Prague, at least - and in some other parts of Europe, but I can't speak generally about that.

I honestly think it's more about sort of 'respectability.' You know how Europeans tend to dress somewhat more formally than North Americans in the workplace. Most language schools don't want to be sending someone with hairstyle or piercings or tattoos that might offend their clients.

It's also a chance to show that you know how to but on business attire and plan to do this for your job.

I honestly don't know how many European DOS's would scrap a CV with a photo of a presentable, well-dressed, professional looking candidate who happens not to be lily-white. I guess maybe some, but I prefer to think it's not so widespread here as in Asia, at least.

[SF21]

thanks scot47... and that's exactly why i asked about the pre-interview pic, because on the Asia forums I get the sense that being a blond hair, blue-eyed/WASPy American is a pre-req. I mean I'm half-white, but don't "look the part," if you will.

spiral, thanks for the advice. I would think it's trivial to look professional pre-interview and interview. But hey, I'm sure there are some folks who never got the memo.

What do you know about Budapest? That is my second choice, outside of the US. Prague is beautiful (was there in April), but as you said, there are "hundreds" of newly-qualified teachers walking around. It sounds like more and more Americans are flocking there, and the competition must be fierce.

I have an Business IT background. Will that make me more marketable to teach, say, Business English?

[spiral78]

Do you mean 'trivial' (meaning, UNimportant) to look professional pre-interview and interview, or 'basic,' 'normal,' 'common,' or something like that?

Because I want to be sure to say that it's quite important, in fact!! From your wording, maybe you don't agree, but dress and appearance ARE important for Europe generally, where, as I mentioned, people still dress more formally than North Americans for work.

So far as business English goes, that is the primary market throughout Europe. The vast majority of newbies go into private language school work where they are sent out to corporations to give lessons to businesspeople. There are usually few school-based classes, and much of your time will be spent travelling around a city to get to your students' offices.

The fact that you've worked in IT will give you an edge over someone who's never worked, or has been in some field unrelated to teaching, but it's unlikely to give you any great advantages in terms of salary or benefits.

Budapest may be less crowded than Prague, in terms of newbie teachers. I don't know what percentage of Americans are 'flocking' to Prague, but it's not a new trend. I believe I read that there were 40,000 North Americans living in Prague 10 years ago, and the numbers may actually have dropped by now. Obviously these weren't all English teachers!!

[SF21]

sorry, bad word selection on my part. I meant it should be a no-brainer to dress professionally. But how professionally should one dress? Aside from a pair of slacks/dockers, will a sport coat and collared shirt suffice. Or is it commonplace to also wear a tie to an interview?

What do you wear in your classroom? Are a polo and pair of dockers pretty standard? As you know, American corporations are more and more moving to "business-casual" or even "casual" (I wear jeans to work everyday, and I work for a Fortune top 100 corp.), but it sounds like Europe hasn't budged. I don't believe in showing up in a t-shirt and Nike's to teach, yet a necktie in the classroom sounds extreme. Although I heard Japan is pretty strict.

[spiral78]

Phew! I've known newbies who expected to go to work with their bellies and piercings hanging out, or who packed only jeans and t-shirts in their luggage. And were shocked when expected to dress for business.

Remember, your European 'classroom' is most likely to be an office in a corporation. That's the key... and on the few occasions where you may be teaching in a schoolroom, your students will likely have come from their work, and will be dressed accordingly.

I would indeed wear a tie to an interview, but you won't likely be expected to wear one on the job daily. I think your description of dockers, sports coat, and collared shirt should be fine. Once you are actually working, you can fine-tune your look to match your students as much as practicable. I wouldn't stock my wardrobe in the States, honestly.

You'll need to consider footwear, too. The travel around cities in Europe kind of cuts out anything but comfortable, but you'll stand out in a negative way if you're wearing obvious sports shoes.

One tip that might be useful: European shoes are cheaper in Europe I know, it seems obvious, but I recently did a price comparison in Canada versus Prague and the costs of decent leather or gore-tex city shoes is about 30% less here. The Candian guys tell me it's import taxes. Don't know about the States, but it's likely similar. You might do better to buy decent, comfortable city shoes when you get wherever you're going.

[SF21]

[quote="spiral78"]I wouldn't stock my wardrobe in the States, honestly.[/quote]

Good to know. I keep asking myself, "take three suitcases...or pack one and give the rest to Goodwill?!"

[spiral78]

I'd pack whatever you have that's decent and will work. I just wouldn't buy anything new, especially until you really know first-hand what you're going to need.
Whatever good winter layers you have should come in handy. Last winter there was, basically, no winter, but the year before we had weeks of minus 20 and 30 and because it's fairly humid, you tend to really feel it. Again, I wouldn't buy anything you haven't already got, though - Prague's suddenly very well stocked with outdoor gear and clothing, and it seems to be often cheaper than what I can buy in N. America.

[SueH]

From the comments on clothing I take it Wayman is a guy, but for women going to southern Europe be careful if you have big feet like me..or are built tall and solidly (and I don't mean fat!). You'll be OK in Holland and Germany (I'd guess OK in Scandinavia), have problems in Italy, France (Spain, I imagine). Not sure about CZ, SL etc - although probably not as bad as China!

A visit to the UK, Holland or Germany should sort you out, but comfortable shoes are probably an exception on the 'packing light' injunctions.

[spiral78]

I'm not too sure about the shoes, but ecco seems to have North-America-style sizes, and they are great, functional shoes...