I went to the Bangkok fair last year and found it quite brutal. One thing that I will confirm was that I did have slightly unrealistic expectations of where I wanted to work (basically tier 1 schools not in China or the Middle East).

As such, I was a good candidate but did not stand out at this fair. I will say that many of the candidates did seem to think a lot of themselves - but if the truth be told I probably thought the same of myself but was not a vocal as some of the other candidates.

On never visiting another fair again - I'm now a strong believer in choosing the correct fair for the correct person. This year - I visited the Melbourne Fair and as I have a decent amount of international experience I really stood out and got a few offers - one which I accepted. Just remember that Bangkok is almost exclusively attended by people who have been on the circuit for a while and many are good at selling themselves.

You also talked about some unprofessional admin - I actually slightly relish overhearing these conversations as it gives me information on which schools I should probably stay clear away from. After some conversations last year - I now know of schools I don't ever want to teach at but some admin may also feel the same way about me - I never know ....

Just my two cents....

Although it's true that many positions will be filled at Bangkok (I think 50% of people accept a position from memory) we need to remember that quite a few of these people will then resign from their current position.

Also - many schools are still confirming who is leaving and who is staying for the next school year. As such - it's fair to say that there are still plenty of jobs out there include MANY that have not been posted as of yet.

I was just at the Melbourne Fair and there was a lot of people being offered jobs there. It seems as though there were not too many people who left feeling very unhappy from here. Some of the major schools (such as UNIS) were taking all positions to Bangkok which is fair enough. I don't like to say it - but these schools have a lot of people to choose from so they can test the markets and see who they like.

How it is all going this year - I can't really comment as I only went to BKK last year. From memory however - there is not really enough time to frequent this board during the fair as normally you are quite busy....

It's not exactly a diary - but I attended the Melbourne Job Fair this year (Search) instead of Bangkok which can be a bit brutal.

As I teach MS MYP Science/Math, I was a bit spoilt for choice but cast a very wide net over potential jobs. Apart from schools which I did not want to touch with a 10 foot pole, I ended up interviewing with a total of 12 different schools which was quite challenging. Completing a lot of research about potential jobs really helped as you don't really have any time at the fair to research 5+ schools in around 24-48 hours.

When I went to Bangkok, one of the main problems was the long waits for the elevator. Thankfully in Melbourne, this was not such a problem but I do suggest that you don't have more than 2 interviews back to back. Some people may also disagree with me - but I find staying at the hotel when you have interviews invaluable as you have a little oasis to get away from all of the interviews itself.

At last years Bangkok fair - I will say that I did find that there was not much collegiality compared to the Melbourne Fair. In general, everyone was very relaxed and very supporting compared to Bangkok. Don't take it the wrong way - but I think choosing the correct fair is very important. In the future, I'll choose the Melbourne Fair for myself as it has a good range of strong schools along with the odd Tier 1 school. I also have international experience which means that I stand out. Many of the schools are actually looking to hire but some schools like UNIS did not employ anyone as they were waiting for the Bangkok fair which is reasonable.

Overall - I was offered two positions (both in China at good IB schools) and had interest from some other schools in Europe and Asia. It was tempting to wait to see if UNIS would employ me after a reasonable interview in Melbourne - but I'll be fair and say I doubt it as there are normally quite a few teaching couples in Bangkok.

So if I was to give some pointers for any fair newbies, it would be

(1) Come prepared with a double sided resume and write a short note introducing yourself and which position you are interested in. Then - drop these in the folders as soon as you get to the hotel. This allows the schools to see you ASAP so that you may get a Fast Pass!

(2) Do you research early. Have a hit list of schools you want to work for and make sure you attend their information sessions (if they have one). The schools want to make sure you are interested in them - not just accepting as an option of last resort (a mistake I made last year!)

(3) Make sure you have a couple of questions about the school at the end of each interview. I would often have questions but they would be answered during the interview. However, I wish that I had some extra that I thought I knew the answer too just to make sure I was correct.

(4) Contact schools before the fair. They most likely won't reply - but at least the know that you are interested. This was mentioned to me by a couple of schools who noticed that I contacted them.

(5) Go to the formal . as admin wants to see what you are like with other people in a social environment. For some strange reason - I was very stiff at the BKK fair but very relaxed at the Melbourne fair. This could be the fact that it was a second fair. Also be friendly with the administrators - but don't force yourself onto them. I actually had admin come and speak to me this time which was a nice change. Also try and remember which school they are from - if possible. I looked like a NOOB when I thought I was speaking to a fellow teacher when I was speaking to the admin of International Academy - Amman (Jordan).

Best Regards,

Sciteach

I did have a few

Personally, I would not call this a Tier 1 school - but what I think a Tier 1 school is different than the next person.

So is it a good school? Yes it is.

Can you save money? Definitely. But with an increase in taxes and lowering of the Yen, international savings have taken a hit.

Would I personally work at this school? Yes I would.

Note that quite a few embassy kids go here - but there is also a sizeable Japanese population. However, this is true of ALL international schools in Japan (apart from the embassy kids).

The best schools in Japan are probably ASIJ and YIS. This is closely followed in no particular order by: St Mary's, Seisen, Canadian Academy, Osaka Senri, Nishimashi and St Maur's.

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

I've managed to have a few conversations with some recruiters at my current fair before the interview signups. I'm starting to think this is the best time to speak to them before the fun and games of interviews starts.....

Hi All,

I'll be attending my second job fair soon and I'm quite confident about approaching schools about getting interviews and such. However - I also like to network a little with some of the schools which are of interest to me but currently do not have any jobs which will be suitable for me this year.

If anyone is a recruiter here - do you think it is a good thing or an annoyance if a person comes up quickly and introduces themselves, say they would like to work for your school someday and then leaves you along? I would only approach if there was not a line of course....

Any thoughts??

It's really up to you. If it's a good school and your happy with the job - then I'd seriously consider it. Many of the better schools are starting to employ heavily before the job fairs so they get the best of who is available.

On waiting for a fair - it really depends on the fair. I've attended a major fair and was a bit underwhelmed as it was very much a meat market. For myself personally - I prefer trying to get employed before the job fair and use the fair as a backup in case I don't get what I want....

Building on what shadow jack mentioned, it is quite hard to save money in Europe which may become more important as you get closer to retirement. Some of the major Asian cities are fantastic places to live and have great savings potential.

Do however note that some schools in Asia have even more people applying for them then those in Europe, but there are many more tier 2 schools where you can get a start. I guess it's important to realise that you probably won't get into the best schools from the beginning - but it is possible.

Sorry PGrass,

I have to disagree with you on some things. Most schools charge fees in local currencies which means if the local currencies fluctuate that they don't have an extra 30% just lying around to pay their staff extra.

My last school (in a first world country) was a well respected non-profit school and pays the majority of their income (80+%) of teacher wages. They also charge in their local currency which means that if their currency devalues there is not much they can do about it.

As such - demanding extra money from the school will not get you far. However, making the board aware of the financial pressures and many staff not renewing their contract often does make a difference at many of the better schools. I also mentioned it in a previous post - we agreed to a contract and have to take the good with the bad.

Also remember that we truly are a commodity in international teaching - which sounds callous but is true. There is a excess of teachers out there which means schools can choose who they want, but lower paying schools tend to get what their pay packets dictate...

Unfortunately this is something that happens in International teaching. I used to live in a country where I was paid in the local currency and was lucky for 2 of my three years as my home currency was weak but the currency of my school's country was strong. Then the US dollar strengthened and my school's country decided to devaluate (basically cutting my wage by 40% from the highs 18 months previously).

Unfortunately - this is just something that happens and we need to take this under consideration when deciding to sign a new contract....

Others may know more - but I can definitely say that 50 IS NOT TOO LATE to start teaching overseas. As mentioned before, schools like a good mix of experience from older teachers and enthusiasm from younger teachers.

I will say that there is starting to be quite a lot of competition for Elementary positions and your experience will be a hinderance and advantage. It will be a hinderance as you will be more expensive than employing a younger teacher, but you will more likely be picked up by a non-profit school which looks more for the right fit and experience than for-profit schools "might do".

Non-profit schools are normally seen as the better schools to work for - but it really depends on the school. As such - it's important to do your research when making your final decision. Also - if your husband has some experience in counselling then this may make you much more employable as a couple. Some jobs like Physics, Mathematics, Special Ed, Tech Integration and to some degree Counselling are in demand so some schools will employ these positions first and not even advertise jobs such as Elementary, English or Humanities to get that specialist teacher.

Joining up to Search Associates or the like is a good idea - but I'd do it soon as schools are employing now!

Also remember that what I mentioned above is just my opinion - so some people may disagree so take it as a grain of salt.

As the whole point of a job fair is to interview for positions, I'd say it's pivotal that you both attend if you both want job. If your partner is not after a job, it will not be as much of a problem but would still be helpful.

Also note that many schools have high startup costs such as setting up an apartment which should be considered when applying for positions....

This is a 'for profit' school from memory. I interviewed with them last year in person and the HOS did not contact me to say if I was successful or not which was a little disappointing even after emailing politely to confirm that I had not been successful. It's just something to think about.....

I don't know that much about the school - but I do know that it does take it's "Christian Values" to heart when employing people. As such, they highly prefer to employ practicing christians to the best of my knowledge....

I've heard back from a couple of schools, along with being contacted by a couple. However, most schools have not responded and unfortunately this is common. The past few weeks are also often the most busy time of the semester as the school winds down for winter holidays. Schools are writing reports and the such so most schools are focussed on getting a list of jobs ready and do not focus on employing until a little later.

Some schools have contacted me because I'm in an area of high need (Science/Math), but there has been a big difference in quality in the schools that have contacted me....