Hi - looking for advice.

When applying as a teaching couple, do you think it is better to submit one intro letter for each or to submit a joint letter?

Is reading 2 letters asking for too much of a recruiter's time even though there would be more information about the applicant?

Thanks

Hi - I'm working at a well respected international school in Jiangsu. There hasn't been any bonuses or stipends offered to us or any of my friends working in schools in Shanghai or Beijing. Our school has increased the signing bonus for 2 year contracts and they are shortening the mid school holidays to give a 10 week summer next year so teachers can complete the 4 week quarantine requirement after 6 weeks away.

Hi - this is probably a looooooong shot, but I thought I'd ask.

I have both 32 Teaching and Parent references going back 10+ years on SA, but I'm not really happy with their service. I would like to join ISS as a backup, but I am hesitant to start the whole reference process over again.

With SA, ISS and Schrole, these people would be getting 3 reference requests! What a way to get people upset with you.

Any workarounds?

monkeycat wrote:
> You can apply for QTS online with your DC license. Citizenship doesn't
> really matter. From what I understand QTS doesn't require renewal.

This is true. I am Canadian. I used my NJ cert to obtain QTS. It doesn't expire.

@shadowjack

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. I appreciate it.
My wife has earned her ECE diploma from a Canadian university and is now finishing off her BA with plans to get her teacher cert next year. We understand that there's going to be lean years until that happens and we're okay with that. We will make it work in the end. We have many friends in top tier schools around the world who will vouch for how awesome we are. wink wink
Thanks again :)

Overhere wrote:
> As a former BC teacher myself I thought you might find this article
> interesting
>
>
> http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news ... -to-surrey
>
> Good luck with your job search, and in the end the only people you have to
> satisfy are you and your family.

Thanks for the article :)
I'm so glad that all the BC teachers who got screwed by that 2002 government (and ALL the ones following) are actually getting the last laugh. But more importantly, the level of education in the province will surely rise with the kids being the highest beneficiaries. YAY!
I will start throwing my CV at them in the morning
Thanks again :)

I unserstand that, but it's also not that easy. The universities and colleges of the Canadian province where I came from (BC) churn out over 1100 new teachers every year. The number of Canadian teachers transferring into our province totals on average around 700 teachers a year. The average number of teaching vacancies each year.... approximately 800-900. You do the math. And yes, I know that not all graduates will actually enter the profession and others will leave the country while others are hit by busses. All I'm saying is that BC is an incredibley competitive market. Added to that, it is one of the most expensive places to live in Canada. Even if you are fortunate enough to procure a position after being on the sub list for years, the salary is barely enough to support a family. Yes, I could move my family up to the northern territories in order to do time and get seniority in the system, but isn't that settling anyway? How many teachers in their home country have their dream job?
I'm not complaining about my current situation. I understand how I got here and that it was my choice. All I'm saying is that there are times in one's life where settling might be the best option. Especially if it places you in a little bit better of a situation than the one you are in.

shadowjack wrote:
> Just a note about "settling". If you have to "settle"
> for a position that you applied for, why the heck did you even apply for it
> in the first place? Sorry - I just don't get it. You apply to schools
> because you would be happy to go there - not because you might have to
> "settle" for it. If "settling" is what you view as you
> did to get to your present school, that's just a sad statement.
>
> Sorry, just had to put that in there. I have never applied for a teaching
> job where I was just "settling" and I have never started at a new
> school without being excited by the prospects ahead. And I've been around
> for awhile...
Hi SJ - it must be very nice to be in your position, but not all of us are part of teaching couple with experience in good schools. Take me for instance. I have a trailing spouse and two school-aged kids and only 1.5 years of IS experience. I'm working at a school in China. It's a Tier 3 school (the only one that offered me a job when I started teaching internationally) and I can't stand it here. There's absolutely no CPD (other than the ones I pay for myself or offer to my colleagues) and the environment and pollution is toxic. I came to realize that if I stay here longer than my initial 2 year contract, my family will suffer. So, in November when they asked me to re-sign, I said no. Now I'm scrambling to find a job (72 CVs sent out and counting), so I can provide for my family. Search and ISS won't touch me because of my lack of experience and 3 dependents (pets, too!), so in the end, I just might have to settle for a less-than-ideal school. Are you saying that, if you were in my position, you would become unemployed instead of settling? It's easy to say you wouldn't settle when you have options. What happens to those ideals when you don't?