If you're deciding whether to take the plunge and teach abroad, you've probably got lots of questions. To help you out, we've put together a list of the most frequently asked questions about overseas teaching, and about how we can help you land your dream job.
FAQs:
Why should I work in an international school?
The reasons to teach internationally are too many to list and can vary depending on where you end up working but the main reasons people choose to work overseas include having a cultural experience, better work-life balance, being able to save money, opportunities for career development, the ability to learn a new language and simply being somewhere with nicer weather… Really the question is “Why shouldn’t you work in an international school?”.
How do I get an international job?
Talk to Teachanywhere! We are experts in knowing what international schools look for and our lovely consultants will guide and support you through the entire process. We partner with the best international schools all over the world and have been doing so for years - we’ll make sure you end up somewhere you’ll be safe, happy and fulfilled.
What qualifications do I need?
This can vary greatly depending on job, school and country but the bare minimum you need is to be a fully qualified teacher (PGCE, BEd or equivalent) - if you don’t meet this requirement you may want to look into TEFL teaching, but that’s not something Teachanywhere currently helps with. If you are an NQT you should be aware that your options will be very limited until you have at least 2 years post-qualification experience. Also, the schools we work with are all English-speaking and so if you aren’t a native English speaker it can also limit your options.
What are the visa restrictions and laws?
Every country is different. For example some countries don’t have a minimum experience requirement for visas, most have a two- or three-year minimum requirement but for some it’s as much as five years! In some places you have to be specifically qualified in what you want to teach and your Bachelors degree may be taken into account (eg. if you want to teach Maths in the UAE you’ll need both your PGCE and Bachelors degree in Mathematics). You should also be aware of what laws you will need to abide by in your new country. If you have any specific questions about this get in touch with us!
What sort of schools do you work with?
We work with a whole range of international and bilingual schools all over the world. They teach different curriculums (the most common are UK, US, Australian and International Baccalaureate) but all will have you teaching in English and covering subjects in the same way you would back home. They can be part of larger groups of international schools, offshoots of British or American school networks as well as individual schools and government projects.
Where are the best places to go?
This is very subjective and will depend a lot on who you are and what you want, but a good general answer is the best places are often the places where the least people want to go. There are so many people saying they want Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Spain, Hong Kong, Thailand and Singapore that the majority of people who want to go there won’t be successful and the people who do go there often have to make some large sacrifices including lower salaries and working in more difficult schools. It’s worth remembering that you’ll probably have a much better time getting paid more and working in a great school somewhere you haven’t considered yet than on a low salary dealing with a not-so-great school somewhere that you’ve been on holiday! Some of the really up-and-coming places are China, Kazakhstan, Kuwait and Qatar - but there are plenty of others too!
What are the salaries and benefits?
Another thing that will vary greatly not just from country to country but also from school to school... With most regions it’s fairly standard for schools to include accommodation (either a 1/2 bed apartment or a fixed accommodation allowance), cover the cost of the flights, visas and medical insurance. Your salary will always be enough to live comfortably where you are, but how much you can save will depend on what you get paid, the cost of living and your lifestyle. If you have a savings goal let us know and we’ll advise where you can achieve it.
Can I take my family with me?
If you are planning on taking family with you’ll have reduced options compared to a single teacher as there are a lot of schools which don’t consider sponsorship of dependents. There will still be options but you may have to sacrifice on some things, such as location. If you have a (non-teacher) partner you will need to be married in order to be eligible to visa sponsor them. If you have children there are some schools which also provide free schooling, but if you have more than two children then it’s very unlikely you’ll find a school willing to go to the extra expense of hiring you.
Will I get a promotion?
It’s very rare that an international school will hire above your existing level of experience as there will be a lot for you to adapt to without having to worry about extra responsibilities. However, many of our schools are renowned for their career development and if promotion is something you are keen on you could be put on a path to take that next step much quicker than if you stayed at home.
Will the pupils speak English?
Don’t expect every child to be a native English speaker, every international school will have a large proportion of EAL students and in many cases the vast majority of students are EAL, however as the students will be used to receiving tuition in English and there are dedicated EAL departments and teaching assistants you’ll be able to teach effectively without learning the local language and particularly in Secondary you may well be impressed at just how well the students use English.
Why should I work with Teachanywhere?
We have been dedicated international recruitment specialists for over a decade and are focussed on recruiting only for international schools, but are also part of Randstad which is one of the largest HR companies in the world, so we have the knowledge, systems and contacts to provide the best care to our teachers and schools. We have a vetting process for all the schools we work with and won’t recruit for schools who don’t treat their teachers properly.
Why do schools hire through you?
Our schools trust our judgement and know that when we send a teacher to them they will have been properly referenced and document checked so they can be as confident as possible in that teacher. We are also much more time effective for them as we only get them to look at checked and suitable applicants and we can save them money in the hiring process as well as finding them the best teachers!
What do you do for me?
You’ll have a consultative phone call with one of our team who will find out more about you and what you want as well as advising you on what your options will be given visa requirements and job availability. We’ll gather all your relevant documents and get your references - this only needs to be done once no matter how many jobs you apply for. After you’ve passed our compliance checks we’ll help with your CV, advise you about jobs and sprinkle some recruitment magic on your job search. We’ll give you interview tips, give expert advice if you have to choose between job offers and help you liaise with your new employer as well as answering any questions you have along the way… In short, we’ll do everything we can to help you find a job and make sure you are happy.
How do the interviews work?
The majority of jobs are interviewed for via a video call and it can be as quick as getting a job offer at your first interview or may take three or more interviews depending on the school. In some cases schools may fly their management team to locations around the world to conduct a number of interviews face-to-face which is a great opportunity if it works for you but as that only usually happens once per year you are much more likely to be interviewed on Skype (or other video call). We’ll give you tips and guidance ahead of your interview to help you impress.
How much do your recruitment services cost?
We won’t charge you anything to use our services and we’d recommend being very suspicious of any recruitment company that tries to take any money off of you! We get paid by the schools we recruit for and we generally work out cheaper for them than trying to recruit on their own because we are specialists and can work more efficiently with our teachers. The only costs you may have will be some small ones after you’ve accepted a job offer (such as document notarisation or medicals for visas) which are usually reimbursed by the school after you’ve arrived.
What happens next?
Simple, just get in touch with us - submit your CV by clicking here or email any enquiries to teacher@teachanywhere.com and one of our team will be in touch!