The International Schools Review Forum

I have made the last minute decision to attend CIS in London. This is only my second fair- I attended AASSA and didn't get a position because of my non-teaching spouse. I have a few questions for those of you that are more experienced with the fairs.

- Most schools indicate that they have no preference in marital status on their CIS info sheets. Is this really the case?

- I will probably be staying at a hostel or with an acquaintance in London to cut down on costs. Is it okay not to have a phone if I tell recruiters that I will check my email every hour? My cell phone won't work in London, but I'm bringing my laptop.

- How much of a chance do you think I have of landing a position with the following qualifications?

- 3yrs experience teaching in a multi-cultural setting in the US (75% ESL, students from 5 continents) + 2 years as a teaching assistant

- Experience teaching 2nd grade, 3rd grade and ESL

- ESL, Elementary and Art License

So far I have mostly received only acknowledgments from schools where I have sent my documents. I know there are probably a lot of elementary school teachers out there but I do have excellent references.

Thanks for any info you might have.

Suquita, a non-teaching spouse limits your options. For example:
- some schools won't hire you because you're more expensive (2 airfares, larger accommodation etc),
- you won't be able to afford to live in some countries if you need to save. Some European schools don't pay for accommodation or airfares and you have to pay tax after 2 years.

Having said that, having a non-teaching spouse doesn't mean you can't work internationally. You just need to be aware that not all doors are open to you. I have a non-teaching spouse and have taught in 5 countries on 4 continents for the past 14 years. It sounds like you're a US citizen so that already move you forward in the queue.

Does it move you on in the queue in London? And at British international schools? And European schools?

I guess not at UK curriculum schools, I'm not sure about European schools. Given Suquita's US credentials I assumed s/he would be applying to a US school.

There is a network of US schools across Europe and in Eastern Europe, I'm not sure there are as many UK or European International Schools.

I have applied only to US schools or those international schools that indicate that they will hire Americans. At first I only received acknowledgments, but in recent days I have scheduled one interview and I have several invitations to talk. I hope that something works out, but I'm certainly not counting on it. I'm not sure if being American at the London fair will help or hurt me, but as I said, I am only targeting schools that indicate that they will consider an American with a non-teaching spouse.

Suquita,
Good luck and I am sure it will go well. Was there a reason you opted out of the Seattle Fair?

Now that I'm leaving the London fair, I can answer my own questions for anyone interested.

The fair was nicely organized and not crowded. I never waited in line at sign-ups and within 30 minutes I had 10 interviews. After I left the interview session, 4 more schools approached me requesting interviews.

While at the AASSA fair, not being part of a teaching couple was a real disadvantage, here schools didn't mind my non-teaching spouse. I had great interviews with directors that really wanted to know about my teaching, not just my personality.

By Saturday morning, I was called back for two interviews, with several other schools still deciding. I ended up signing a contract first thing Saturday with a school in Amsterdam, my first choice for location.

I would definitely recommend this fair for teachers with non-teaching spouses. European schools don't offer housing, so a non-teaching spouse doesn't matter so much. My other second interview was with a school in Singapore though, and they had no problem with my husband either.

Just communicating through email was fine, and I saved a lot by staying in a hostel.

Now I have two days to explore London. Good luck to all!

Do you mind telling which schools in Amsterdam and Singapore?

Thanks-

I accepted a position with AICS, and I was scheduled for a second interview with United World College Singapore. I was very impressed with UWC and they have a great package. My husband and I decided against the location.

Hey Congratulations Suquita! That is just great! It sure paid off, but why did you decide to do London rather than Seattle? I have to admit it doesn't sound so promising for us as a lot of jobs seem to be filled. I sure am happy for you guys that is neat. Hope you are enjoying the rest of your trip!
:D

Hi Shansar,

I decided against Seattle because I really wanted to work in Europe, and most of the schools listed are from Asia and the Middle East. About a month ago I had Seattle interviews scheduled with JFKS and a school in Cyprus, but JFKS decided not to attend, and the position was filled in Cyprus. I thought London was worth the risk as most schools were European..it all worked out in the end.

I think you probably have a good chance in Seattle if you are more flexible than me with your location. In interviews, I kept hearing that I would have my choice of schools as there were so few candidates. If I would have let it play out, I think I would have had 4-5 offers as I received several invitations for second interviews after accepting my position. Seattle will probably not be too crowded either, as I think everyone is at ISS in New York right now.

Good Luck!!

AICS! That is great, Amsterdam is a great town. They are really cleaning up their act nowadays. Congrats!

I also have a non-teaching spouse and found it to be very difficult to get hired by one of our "choice" schools. Lots of choices, just not what we were looking for. It is good to know there is someone who got what they wanted and deserved.

One question about living in the NL, are they going to help secure some type of employment for you spouse? We understand getting work permits is difficult in the EU when going at it alone. If not, did they express much concern about salary/cost of living in the NL for two on one salary? That was a big factor for us in our search. Having travelled extensively through the EU for the past two years (We live in Istanbul.) we felt like it would be too difficult to do on one salary, after taxes and all. I don't mean to sound neg. I am only looking to see how others have tackled this issue so that we can add the EU to our "list" one day. :D

I am thrilled to think we could manage to live in the NL one day! Please share your thoughts.