Job Discussion Forums

[daisy214]

Hi all,

Newbie here! I am a recent college grad, and I am interested in teaching ESL in Central/Eastern Europe (particularly Poland or the Czech Republic).

There is a school in my area which offers the SIT TESOL certification, but it is a bit on the expensive side and does not offer job placement assistance. Therefore, I'm wondering whether the better option would be to get the TESOL cert here, or to get it in Europe. If I were to obtain the certificate in Poland/CZ, would anyone be able to recommend any good/reputable programs?

I understand it's easier to find a job once you've actually arrived, but I'm a bit confused about the paperwork. If I were to find a job while in Poland/CZ, would I need to return to the States to sort out my visa? How does this work?

Thanks for any advice you can give me!

[spiral78]

SIT Tesol is a reputable cert which will be recognised by employers in the region.

Job placement is usually a misnomer - unless a certification school will hire you to work inside their own organisation, 'job placement' is really just hooking you up with reputable employers. You are still responsible for producing a CV/resume, sending it around, going through the interview and possibly demo lesson process, and negotiating a contract.

It is better in some ways to get certified in-country. Your practice teaching students will really represent those you'll be working with when you start. It's a good way to get your feet wet in the country/culture while you still have a support system, as good cert programs provide airport pickup, arrange for your accomodation during the course, and usually offer some local orientation as well. Your fellow trainees can form your first social contacts. Training centres in-country obviously have better contacts in the region for reputable employers as well.

So far as legal paperwork, you have 90 days from arrival to get paperwork filed. This means speed is vital: ideally, take a course in August, hit the pavements in week 4 of the course and arrange interviews, and then you've got 60 days to convince an employer to give you a contract and file the paperwork. So far as I am aware, you shouldn't have to leave the country if you're successful, though this may be different in Poland.

(if you're not already aware of the Schengen zone rule of 90 days in, followed by 90 days out, you may want to google this).

I have many contacts and friends in Prague who are now saying that it's very difficult for an American teacher to find an employer willing to jump through the hoops - apparently there are lots of British candidates in the city who don't need visas, and the job market is just very tight. However, this is not firsthand knowledge, and technically it is still legal for a school to hire a non-EU teacher - just more difficult.
I can't speak for Poland, but you could obviously post on the Poland forum for more info.