Job Discussion Forums

[chris29]

Hi-

I have some questions about the best way to go about obtaining my first teaching position. I have outlined my situation below followed by some questions. Any input will be highly appreciated.

I am currently planning to take a CELTA course beginning in August or July 2012. (I have currently moved back home until then to have a full year to save up.) When I leave I will have dual citizenship with Ireland and have an Irish passport. I am an American with a bachelors degree in public communications. I will have no teaching experience outside of what is offered during the CELTA course.

After reading through the posts, I'm still confused about which European country is the best place for one with no experience to gain a position(s).

Does anybody have any advice between Spain, Italy, or The Czech Republic in which a newbie is most likely to make it?
Does anyone know if an American will have significant difficulties trying to rent a flat in any of these countries?
How do ESL teachers survive during the summer months?
Also, is there any country in Europe anymore(including eastern) that is still hiring for entry-level TESL?
Any input will be appreciated.

[tttompatz]

Can you work in Europe = yes.

Begs the question, with an American passport and an American degree, why would you want to?

By all accounts (I have no direct experience in Europe) the job situation is meager at best (piecing work together to make enough to get by on) and savings close to zilch.

Why not look at East or South East Asia?

Assuming you have a clean background check:

i) You can do as well in Thailand as you would in Europe (with much nicer winters).
ii) You could do better in China (pay, housing, airfare) than in Europe.
ii) You would do better in Taiwan (salaries in the 55k TWD range with a lower cost of living) and you can certainly save a bucket full of cash in Korea (typical newbies save on the order of US$10-12k per year).

.

[smithrn1983]

Yes, you can work in Europe, and all three of those countries will still hire entry-level ESL teachers. I'd be wary of Spain at the moment due to their economic situation. With 20% unemployment, I doubt learning English will be very high on many people's list of priorities.

When you compare wages to cost of living, the CR is probably the best place to go. You won't be able to save much, but you should be able to live comfortably when you're there. I did for two years, and even managed to save a bit, too. During the summer months you have two choices. Either save up during the school year and live off of it for two months, or go teach a summer camp in the UK or Ireland.

As for renting a flat, it shouldn't be a problem if you take someone along who is fluent in the language when you look at the place.

[spiral78]

I agree with smithrn, and I'd further suggest that you consider taking the CELTA or an equivalent course in the country where you decide to start teaching. Taking a course in-country offers quite a few advantages; they are a nice bridge into country/culture.

A training centre will normally arrange for your housing during the course, and handle logistics like airport pickup and local orientation. Your fellow trainees can form your first social networks in the country, and your practice teaching students will be really representative of those you'll work with when you start. Training centres can also give you very valuable information regarding reputable local employers.

As jobs are not normally found from abroad in Europe anyway, this is also a fairly efficient way to position yourself for the face-to-face job search required.

The job markets are fairly competitive in all three countries, though there is work around. With your dual passports, you are legally well-set to gain whatever entry-level employment is around, though as has been pointed out, don't expect to save much or to be able to pay off debts back home. This part of the world is great for quality of life, but not for pay!!

[Mrs Smith]

Now, bearing in mind that I was in CZ back in 2006 this may or may not still be the case but...

I did my teacher training (Trinity as opposed to CELTA but same same) in Prague and stayed on there afterwards to find work there and I would definitely recommend that route.

The reason I went to Prague was that it was significantly cheaper than doing it in the UK (I'm British). Plus, the school I trained with sorted out an apartment which was nice as it meant that a few of us from the course were able to live together (i.e. sit up late writing our essays together). Also, it meant that the 'unknown language' we studied (that's something you have to do on the course) was actually relevant and useful. I could speak pretty reasonable basic Czech by the end of the month. It also meant that when I when I started looking for teaching jobs in Prague after the course had finished, I had a complete list of contacts for ALL the schools in Prague provided by the school I had trained with. Plus, I already knew the city.

Something else about my course was that the majority of the people on it were American. I also met A LOT of American EFL teachers out and about in Prague, in the bars etc. I know that the ones on my course had no problem finding work there.

I had no teaching experience other than what I had done on the 1 month course and I had absolutely no trouble finding lots and lots of work. Not full time for 1 school, more like a variety of classes with different schools - personally I prefer the freedom of doing it that way.

Furthermore, Prague is just great!

Hope that helps a bit.
x

[Mrs Smith]

Thought these might be helpful. They are the Trinity and CELTA course provider search pages.


http://www.trinitycollege.co.uk/site/?id=212

http://cambridgeesol-centres.org/centres/teaching/index.do

[chris29]

Thank you very much for the advice!!