Perhaps not, Psyguy, but they will be aware of apartments that are available because teachers are leaving the school. Believe me, if we are able to take over a departing teacher's lease, we will do it to avoid realtor fees which can be upwards of 3 months rent. Apparently, this is a common occurrence.

I don't really care who helps me. I can do an internet search and go it alone, but it is nice that the school is willing to provide assistance at any level. I don't have to take/use the advice that is provided and will do my own research as well in terms of areas, transportation, proximity to shopping, etc. In other words, no matter who is helping, the choice of where to live is mine and I'm not going to just take advice without my own due diligence :)

I've got plenty of time, and if we have to get a vacation rental (which, incidentally, according to my research, will not cost us any more than an apartment where we are going) for a month, we will. No worries!

You are correct, ichiro; it is a "buddy" situation. I actually prefer that, to be honest, because it will be another teacher who has been through the international relocation process themselves, not an HR person who most likely has not. HR staff are too busy with other things, I would imagine. It will be nice to have some contact with a teaching colleague before moving. In a situation where EVERYTHING will be new, it will be helpful to have some conversations ahead of time and a friendly face once we arrive.

I certainly hope that the shipping company bills the school directly :) With the high cost of getting into an apartment in the city to which we are moving (@6 months rent, not counting the first month of rent), I don't think taking an additional (albeit temporary) $5000 hit is feasible, especially if we are unable to sell our house (which is looking to be the case. . .) The "settling in" allowance of about $750 isn't going to go very far. Coffee pot, groceries, everyday essentials, and tiding us over until the first paycheck. That will be about all it will cover, I suspect.

I got my list of things I have to get together for my visa today. It doesn't look like the process is going to be too terrible, which reduces my stress.

YIKES!!! A year from now, none of this will matter, but it seems a bit daunting at the moment. I clearly need to drink more often!

Thanks for all of the great info and advice, everyone!

I should be getting a packet of info from the school this week--at least that is what I was told. They are also supposed to hook me up with a current teacher to help with locating housing, etc., so it sounds like they are going to help make this a smooth transition (as smooth as moving to a country/city I've never even visited can be, I suppose. . .)

Thanks again!

Thanks Psyguy. Those are some helpful tips. I got estimates from several different companies for shipping, but they were all wildly different (often off by more than $1000 from one another). I also have no real idea how many boxes we will have. I should probably double my initial thought.

We had originally planned to bring very little with us and had planned to bring most of it on the plane as excess baggage (clothing, laptops, a few books), but with the shipping allowance we are being given, we may rethink our pack/sell/give away list a bit. We'll still leave the small appliances/electronics behind (other than laptops/ereaders/iPad), but it probably makes sense to bring other household items with us instead of buying new upon arrival.

Thanks again!

Yes. . . I definitely have no complaints about the shipping allowance. I just have no idea what that will cover and I am allowing it to stress me out :)

I should probably just wait until I get the information from my school this week to ask these questions, but we are in a situation where we have to make some decisions about what to keep to ship overseas and what to sell or give away. We have so far been unsuccessful trying to sell our house (nobody has even come to look at it!) but that's another story for another day.

My school says that they are giving us a shipping allowance, and it appears to be a fair amount (about $5200 US). Does shipping allowance typically mean an up front amount of money, or is it typically reimbursement with receipts? It just seems asinine to ship over things that will cost more to ship than to purchase new. . .but we are going to be cash poor for a couple of months until we get established. We aren't shipping any large/heavy items like furniture.

How did other people make decisions about what to ship and what to just buy new upon arrival? I have never even visited the area where we are moving, but from what I've read, household items are pricier there than in the U.S.

What are some reputable shipping companies? I've googled and read and gotten estimates, but I've never moved overseas before and have no idea how to decide which company to use.

To complicate matters, we are going to be out of the country on a family vacation (booked two years ago and nonrefundable) for a good portion of the summer, so we have to make all of these decisions and arrangements by the beginning of June. The stress of all of this (plus finishing up the school year in a less than ideal situation--and that is the sugar-coated version. . .) is a bit overwhelming.

Also, is there any value in renting a vacation rental property for a month or two to familiarize ourselves with the city and be able to make a more informed decision about where to live for the time of my contract? Has anyone here done this with success? Would you do it again? We've seen some properties online that are quite reasonable, furnished, have good reviews, etc.

I signed a letter of intent recently, but I am not concerned.

The school comes well recommended, the position posting was removed from the website immediately, and they have been forthcoming in answering all of my questions. The school's board doesn't meet until March to determine next year's contract details, so it has to wait. The salary i was quoted won't go down, but could very well increase

The school has a good reputation with Search, so I cannot imagine that they would damage that by being shady. However, I did a great deal of research before agreeing to sign. I can imagine that there have been situations where schools have used this method of stringing folks along.

When are you leaving?

I'm in the same boat. Our plan is to sell or give away
pretty much everything other than our clothes, a few books,
a FEW personal items, and our laptops and other small electronics.

It is liberating to think about not having so much baggage, both literally and
figuratively :) We are looking for an apartment that is at least partially furnished, and we've found a few that even come with pots, pans, and dishes. Maybe you could do the same? If not, there's always IKEA. Take whatever money you make selling your old stuff and buy new once you arrive. Or, maybe a departing teacher will be looking to get rid of stuff.

At any rate, good luck! Take a deep breath and realize that the hassle will all be worth it. (And I'll try to stop panicking and take my own advice.)

Thanks to both of you. You have no idea how helpful your information was and how much I appreciate it :)

Does anyone have any feedback regarding the American International School in Vienna? I've read the reviews and the Search profile, but any insider info would be appreciated.

Good to know! Thanks! That will make my difficult decision much easier :)

Has anyone had a response to their application to ESF yet? The deadline for many of their positions was earlier this week. I just need to know whether to continue to be hopeful or not....

They had numerous positions in my certification areas posted. In the meantime, I suppose I'll keep cranking out the applications. *sigh*

How often is the info posted on Search wrong, especially in terms of taxes?

I looked at one school in Europe recently that stated the taxes/other deductions were 5%, but after doing some research on my own (because that didn't seem possible), I'm thinking it was a typo and should have read "50%!" That is quite a....difference.

Who could survive on 20,000 Euro a year? Seriously. You'd have to be single, extremely frugal, and live in a hovel while having no bills back home to worry about. (Or have a high-income producing spouse, but even then....)

How do people manage???? I don't live high on the hog here in the states, but I'm not too keen on a constant diet of ramen noodles.

I survived! Nobody got hurt, not even the cats.

Tip: There's no such thing as over-preparing, and that includes being prepared for the interview to go in a direction you had not anticipated....You can turn almost any question into an opportunity to market yourself if you practice. It's worth the effort.

Tip: Look at the camera, and try not to be distracted by the video of the person talking. The impulse is to look at their video feed, but then they will think you aren't giving them eye contact. That is more difficult than it sounded like it would be. That was the most challenging thing about the interview (because I prepared extensively and knew what I wanted my overall message to be). If I have another Skype interview, I will put a post-it on my screen with an arrow pointing to the camera. :)

Tip: Put something soft on your desk or table so the buttons on your jacket don't make distracting noises. I wish I had thought of that before the interview. Hopefully, I was the only one distracted by it....

I won't be nearly as nervous for any future interviews now that I have this one under my belt. It has been a while (4 years) since I've had an interview, so it was nice to get the first one out of the way. If nothing else, it was good practice.