Hello everyone,
This is my first time on the forum, so forgive me if this topic has been covered before.
I am a UK citizen and have been teaching secondary here (in London) full time for 2 years. Prior to this I did my PGCE year and before that 2 years of inclusion/sen work within primary and secondary schools. I have always wanted to teach internationally, and it was the sole purpose of getting qualified.
Now, to my question.... In the past year I have been on maternity leave after having my first child. We (my partner and I) are thinking of having another one soon then making the international move. But after a 2-3 year career break, what are my chances? Are the any slimmer? Should I go back to work for another year after mat. Leave to impove my prospects?
Our first choice of location is the Middle East, namely Oman, Abu Dhabi, Dubai (in that order) as we have friends there and my partner could easily find employment in his field.
Any advise or comments would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
International teaching after career break
Response
Stop all your family planing now. Sorry not to be rude, but your intentions are only going to increase the logistical factors in your marketability. The rule is you can do anything for up to a year and not impact your marketability, passed that and your resume begins to decay. As it is you are one IT who has a partner (really need more clarification, are you married?) If you arent married your arent likely going to get dependent benefits, especially in the regions youve outlined. Add a new child and now you are at 2 (maybe 3) travelers an IS has to accommodate. You are now getting expensive to fill one role/classroom. Add another child and you move into the realm of being a logistical nightmare and too expensive to hire at anywhere that isnt a first tier IS, and your resume isnt strong enough for those ISs.
Re: International teaching after career break
Interesting response psychguy. Yes we are married. I am also Arab by ethnicity so know the cultural climate well in the countries outlined.
Understand what you are saying about the school having to accommodate us and being more expensive in that respect, but couldn't I negociate to have some of my accommodation paid for or subsidised rather then get the lot for free as part of the package?
We are making the move for better quality of life rather than financial. Our aim is not to save scores of cash, but to live our lives happily in a setting where we can balance work and life in a culture that suits us.
I am not going to stop my family planning for this. The option is either to apply with a career break or go back to work here in London after ive had my children and gain more experience in order to apply, if thats what i need to do.
Have heard of so many women with 'dependants' getting international jobs just fine, some as single parents too! Anyone out there with a similar experience they can share? -or another perspective?
Understand what you are saying about the school having to accommodate us and being more expensive in that respect, but couldn't I negociate to have some of my accommodation paid for or subsidised rather then get the lot for free as part of the package?
We are making the move for better quality of life rather than financial. Our aim is not to save scores of cash, but to live our lives happily in a setting where we can balance work and life in a culture that suits us.
I am not going to stop my family planning for this. The option is either to apply with a career break or go back to work here in London after ive had my children and gain more experience in order to apply, if thats what i need to do.
Have heard of so many women with 'dependants' getting international jobs just fine, some as single parents too! Anyone out there with a similar experience they can share? -or another perspective?
Reply
@Nangu
I mean no offense, we have had readers in unmarried relationships and those in same gender relationships, who have assumed they will be warmly accepted everywhere.
In general no you cant, there are lower tier ISs that will individually negotiate a contract and will try to get an IT for as little cost as they can, but they arent generally places youd enjoy working. The other ISs have a salary scale and LH and OSH packages and you will get what is part of that package, you cant under cut the package to be a stronger or more competitive IT.
I would advise waiting on further children until you are on the ground and in contract at an IS you are happy retiring out your career. A 1:4 logistical ratio is nearly a career killer, you are just to expensive at this stage in your career.
Yes single parents get hired, even those with large families, someone also wins the lottery at some point.
I mean no offense, we have had readers in unmarried relationships and those in same gender relationships, who have assumed they will be warmly accepted everywhere.
In general no you cant, there are lower tier ISs that will individually negotiate a contract and will try to get an IT for as little cost as they can, but they arent generally places youd enjoy working. The other ISs have a salary scale and LH and OSH packages and you will get what is part of that package, you cant under cut the package to be a stronger or more competitive IT.
I would advise waiting on further children until you are on the ground and in contract at an IS you are happy retiring out your career. A 1:4 logistical ratio is nearly a career killer, you are just to expensive at this stage in your career.
Yes single parents get hired, even those with large families, someone also wins the lottery at some point.
Re: International teaching after career break
Ok Psychguy, i get it. Makes sense. I appreciate your advise.
So, say I delayed 2nd child and secured a job for this coming september committing to a 2 year contract, which seems to be the norm for region, what would my options be to extend my family once in the post? Do they offer maternity packages? Would I end up loosing my job and having to take another career break?
So, say I delayed 2nd child and secured a job for this coming september committing to a 2 year contract, which seems to be the norm for region, what would my options be to extend my family once in the post? Do they offer maternity packages? Would I end up loosing my job and having to take another career break?
Reply
@Nangu
2 years is typical but there are ISs with 1 year contracts and some that have 3 years for the initial contract.
Much of what happens depends on where you are and what the policy is. ISs must comply with whatever the local/regional labor law is and if applicable what the labor union rules are. However those regulations can vary significantly. In general ISs dont offer very generous maternity leave benefits. Typically what you get is some time that is paid leave, the opportunity to use accrued leave, or other types of paid leave (such as medical leave and personal leave), you then get a varying amount of leave that can be multiple years in length thats essentially unpaid leave, but the IS must continue to provide you with your OSH benefits which could include housing, transportation, insurance, and other allowances. Typically expectant mothers take off a term in maternity leave combining some amount of holiday breaks (summer) with an academic term (fall or spring).
Its possible youd be dismissed, and ISs have rewritten policies in just those types of scenarios.
In a two year contract its better to take maternity leave your first year and return to the classroom your second year due to the recency effect. What an IT has done recently has the strongest impression of value to an IS. It will also leave you with potentially increased and necessary benefits for your new born child, being mid contract.
The brutal reality of it is that ISs are business that provide a service and charge fees for that service. Someones got to teach those classes, and if you arent there for whatever reason, your not there. The IS has to have those courses taught, meanwhile providing both benefits of some kind to you as required by regulation or contract, and providing for the supply/substitute IT who is filling in for you. Doing that doubles the cost of your contract.
From a utility standpoint its better to have two one year absences interrupted by a year of teaching than two continuous years of absence.
2 years is typical but there are ISs with 1 year contracts and some that have 3 years for the initial contract.
Much of what happens depends on where you are and what the policy is. ISs must comply with whatever the local/regional labor law is and if applicable what the labor union rules are. However those regulations can vary significantly. In general ISs dont offer very generous maternity leave benefits. Typically what you get is some time that is paid leave, the opportunity to use accrued leave, or other types of paid leave (such as medical leave and personal leave), you then get a varying amount of leave that can be multiple years in length thats essentially unpaid leave, but the IS must continue to provide you with your OSH benefits which could include housing, transportation, insurance, and other allowances. Typically expectant mothers take off a term in maternity leave combining some amount of holiday breaks (summer) with an academic term (fall or spring).
Its possible youd be dismissed, and ISs have rewritten policies in just those types of scenarios.
In a two year contract its better to take maternity leave your first year and return to the classroom your second year due to the recency effect. What an IT has done recently has the strongest impression of value to an IS. It will also leave you with potentially increased and necessary benefits for your new born child, being mid contract.
The brutal reality of it is that ISs are business that provide a service and charge fees for that service. Someones got to teach those classes, and if you arent there for whatever reason, your not there. The IS has to have those courses taught, meanwhile providing both benefits of some kind to you as required by regulation or contract, and providing for the supply/substitute IT who is filling in for you. Doing that doubles the cost of your contract.
From a utility standpoint its better to have two one year absences interrupted by a year of teaching than two continuous years of absence.
Re: International teaching after career break
I know of a several schools (including the elites) that have shifted their maternity policies to not covering maternity leaves in the first year. It's a huge cost to hire someone to start in July/August and then find out they'll be out on maternity leave for a few months. Expecting teachers to settle in and teach while managing a maternity leave is asking a lot. Schools seem to be moving toward no paid leave the first year, but then honoring an official maternity leave the 2nd year. If in doubt (for any benefit question) ask up front!
Comment
I concur with @Mamava you need to have a solid understanding what your ISs policy is. Also understand that IS policies are not always compliant with local and regional regulation, and that an IS may say you cant do something that you actually can, even if it is "hard" for the IS to manage.