Job Discussion Forums

[MSnyder540]

Hi all,

I finally attained my CELTA certificate after 120 hours of training and six months of soul-searching (i.e. figuring out what the hell I was going to do with the next several years of my life). Naturally, I assumed that job hunting would be the easy part. Unfortunately, with so many shady recruiters and bogus contracts out there, some of my CELTA colleagues and I (all based in the US) are struggling to navigate the murky waters of finding employment in countries 10,000 miles away, all without local contacts or prior networking.

My question is, how do I go about getting my name and resume out there for employers to see? To give you an example of what I'm talking about, I made a list of "second tier" international schools and language schools in Amman, an appropriate starting point for a fresh BA+CELTA teacher (i.e. places like Bell, AMIDEAST, and ALC). Unfortunately, many of these schools do NOT list job openings on their websites nor any information along the lines of "career opportunities." The AMIDEAST international job vacancies page hasn't been updated in a year. What's the best way to proceed here? Based on my experiences in the US, sending a generic email asking about employment opportunities is a sure-fire way to never hear from that organization again. But I'm concerned that if I send my resume and certificates without first making contact with a live person, they will be ignored or otherwise blocked as spam. Posting my resume on a job board just seems like asking for trouble from less-than-reputable recruiters, and this is made all the more confusing by the fact that the hiring season is never clear.

The truth is, I just want a fair shake, just like everybody else. What's a newly certified teacher to do? Optional: What steps did you guys take to land your first teaching job in the ME, particularly those without local contacts? As always, thanks in advance.

[veiledsentiments]

Well.. AMIDEAST would be a good start for you. Why not pick up the phone and call them? There may be nothing in Jordan right now, but there might be in Morocco or Yemen or Oman... etc. Their head office is in DC. I used to work just across the street from them.

I think that you will find that there are more opportunities in places like Egypt and Morocco than in somewhere like Jordan... just as a matter of population.

One reality check for you... often these first jobs won't pay much and probably have no benefits. Some only do local hire. So be sure that you are able to fund yourself for a few months until you get established. An ATM card to an account back home is crucial

VS

[Tom Le Seelleur]

Look at Daves ESL Cafe Jobs page
Also register with TEFL.com and get weekly updates
TES (UK)
guardianunlimited
peace corps
Jet or GEOS in Japan might be worth a try
International House
Berlitz
Bell
Nord Anglia in the UAE
Try any of these and see what you find
Tom

[Dominic-Pax]

Not to sound mean -- Just apply to jobs you see online like everyone else. BA+CELTA with little experience is a dime a dozen.

You will get hired somewhere, but you have to know what you are looking. Where do you want to live? Do you want to teach kids, adults, both? Is money more important than experience and vice versa?