Too late to get hired for fall 2006?

[guest]

I am a specialist teacher with 3 years teaching experience in the US. I decided not to go to the job fairs in Boston after reading all the mixed reviews. I was worried that as a teacher without intern'l exp I would be wasting my time and money by attending. But now I'm getting worried that I've made a mistake since many schools are posting that all their positions are filled. AHHH! I want to go abroad next fall but did I miss the boat?

Does anyone have experience attending the job fair in May or June in the US? I think they're in the DC area.

THANKS! hopefully I'll be reassured...

[Guest]

Attend a summer fair or check out job lists from places like www.joyjobs.com. I heard Boston's fairs were a candidate's market; more jobs than people. Put your ear to the ground and be flexible and you'll be overseas in no time.

[Be alert]

The previous poster mentioned JoyJobs - be careful. Joy Jobs is a purely financially-motivated site and I suspect the validity of their reviews. They take their listings from other sites (CIS, TES, TIE etc) although their write-ups suggest that they are advertised there. They prey on naive, usly US, teachers looking for that dream overseas job who do not know that they can find the same information elsewhere for free (CIS, TES etc), or through places like the ISR website.

[Guest]

I attended the June ISS fair some years ago and can tell you that there were only about 30 schools present. The problem we ran into as a teaching couple was that the schools just had odds and ends to fill and there were not two postions open that we could fill. You will have better luck as a single person. You just never know until you try. A match for you could be there and then it might not.

Too bad you missed the Boston fair. That's a good place to get a job. I hate ISS. They like to brag they are a non profit but you realize that only means they don't invest the money they make. They make millions and pay them self great saleries while they parade around as a good-guy non profit. By non-profit I think they really mean they are not profits, or, inother words, nice people. Anyway --- good luck to you. You'll get a job. It's a lot easier than you may think. I've been teaching on the international circuit for almost 20 years now. I never went to a fair where I didn't get a job -- except the June ISS fair.

[Lifer]

The ISS and SEARCH job fairs are a real crap shoot with not very much to offer. But, they might have the job you are looking for. If you don't already belong to either ISS or SEARCH, then it would be expensive to join in order to get access to their list of recruiters who will be at the June job fairs.

Try joining this website: http://www.tieonline.com/
It is run by the International Educator and is excellent for searching for job possibiities at schools around the world. Just be sure to screen your prospective schools through the International Schools Review first to find out if there are any problems.

[Guest]

Also, the fair at George Mason University in June is FREE!

The ISS and SEARCH job fairs are a real crap shoot with not very much to offer. But, they might have the job you are looking for. If you don't already belong to either ISS or SEARCH, then it would be expensive to join in order to get access to their list of recruiters who will be at the June job fairs.

Try joining this website: http://www.tieonline.com/
It is run by the International Educator and is excellent for searching for job possibiities at schools around the world. Just be sure to screen your prospective schools through the International Schools Review first to find out if there are any problems.

[Been there etc]

The previous poster is corerct; avoid Joy Jobs - they simply mirror advts from ECIS, Times Ed etc and keep up posts that have been filled to make it look like they have connections. They are purely financial and I too doubt them and the authenticity of their reviews. Incidentally, has anyone noticed how ISS seems to have lost the majority of their clients? Perhps the schools too have jadd enough of their less than professional -isms.

[swissmiss]

I've used Joyjobs for quite a few years now. For a relatively small fee the service provided, in my opinion, is worth it. The site hosts my web page and provides useful tips for the job search, which has enabled me to reach potential employers. So what if they troll other sites for jobs; if it means that my time is more productively spent getting the job I want, I'm willing to pay a small price for that.

[Max]

The value of JoyJobs is not their job ads, in my humble opinion, but rather their excellent information for those "newbies" who want their first job overseas. Nothing comes close to their infomation posted there.

I always suggest to newbies to sign up at Joyjobs and at TIE online.

[Informed]

Joy Jobs is fabulous
After setting up one of their suggested (and free) web pages I RECIEVED 4 REPLIES WITHIN A WEEK AND ACCEPTED A JOB AFTER 11 DAYS!!!!!!!
We are now working on our paperwork.
The listings, regardless of where they come from are up to date and accurate!

[Jody]

To be honest I don?t see what is wrong with Joyjobs- yes all there adds are cured from other places BUT it saves you the time of having to navigate or joining other web sites. It is the most complete list of jobs in any one place. I have even seen jobs there that I did not see in TIE or TES or CIS. They should improve and have forums and up to date reviews like ISR but as a single sources for job leads and as a time saver, it is well worth it. It costs less then a night out in London or New York or a good place in Thailand for that matter. Why are teachers miserly about a small fee yet will spend great deals to travel etc..? In this business ?with agencies like ISS and Search and directors who can and do blackball teachers we have to be very creative how and where we find jobs.

[gest]

I had bad luck with tieonline because they could not get my resume to post online and didn't help out with the problem or follow up.

Incidentally, how does one know if one has been blackballed?

[Guest]

I had bad luck with tieonline because they could not get my resume to post online and didn't help out with the problem or follow up.

Incidentally, how does one know if one has been blackballed?

If you're asking................

[msjane]

I have been teaching in international schools for the last 6 years and it seems that a lot of schools go to the recruitment fairs to hire, they offer a contract to a teacher who then accepts but sometimes, at the last minute, the teacher does not take the position. The school then has a mad scrabble to try to find a suitable replacement.

Also, sometimes teachers leave schools part way through the year ... maybe they have to go home for family or health reasons.

I would recommend that you just send a cover letter and your cv to any schools that you are interested in (taking into consideration what you read about the schools in the review section of this site).

Contrary to what some people think of http://joyjobs.com, I think they are also a good starting point.

[anlily]

I have an add on question to this, when is too late to apply to ISS, and does anybody know if they're doing a summer fair (I didn't see it listed on their website)? I decided to get into this process too late to go to either of the winter job fairs left (San Fran or Boston). I'm registered with TIE but while I've been contacting schools I haven't been getting a lot of interest back (maybe because I'm not registered with any fairs?). Coincidentally I will be in San Fran when the fair is going on, wish I had started planning before!


At this point is it worth it, or would I have better luck just sticking with TIE?