I hate my life right now. I have been here a year and a half and I am just unhappy. This just isn't the placement for me. It's not a terrible match since I like my job and most of my colleagues. I just don't have a good life outside of work and I am just struggling through it right now.

I've been here a year and a half. I have six more months left. I know I'm not the only who has ever been in this position. So....what did you do? I'll feel better if someone else shares that has experienced the same.

Misery loves company :wink:

I tried to post a poll, but it didn't work. So, here's my generic poll below.

How do you handle a not-so-wonderful stint?
A-Just ride it out
B-Exercise
C-Drink
D-Obsessively look for a new post
E-Other (Please specify below)

This board seems to be slow lately, but I think it will definitely pick up around here as soon as recruiting is underway.

With your husband's masters in education, 12+ years experience and a certificate in administration, I think he has a good chance of getting a position. If you open to go to many different places, this is an advantage. However, if you only want to go to Europe, not so much.

As a pediatric nurse with no teaching experience, applying as a school nurse is definitely a possibility. I honestly haven't seen openings for a nurse, but I'm not sure if they post those on Search. I've never looked.

Since you are willing to teach - a subject appropriate to your knowledge, I think that's a definite posibility. If I were you, I would apply as a teacher, school secretary, librarian, or an aide, but let them know your other possibilities.

[u]Would they hire a non-native speaker as a nurse?[/u]
It depends on the school and your grasp of the english language. From your post, I would guess that you are fluent LOL and it shouldn't be a problem.

[u]Do schools hire spouses of teachers that are non certified teachers? [/u]
Quite often, but again, it depends on the school.

[u]Also, how often do schools cover the tuition of dependents? [/u]
Often, but again, it depends on the school. Some do and some don't. Some only cover partial tuition. Some only cover tuition for one child. And so on...

[u]How common is it that schools now use Skype or other means of interview in place of ISS, Search, etc events?[/u]
A lot of schools hire via Skype. Some even hire via email and do a phone interview. However, you will find that most good schools won't do this early in the recruiting season and tend to do it after the fairs. IMO

[u]Is it worth applying to schools directly. [/u]
Absolutely!

Good Luck! I think you should get your resumes together and apply. You could definitely find a position [i]somewhere[/i].

:D

Are any of the recruiting agencies letting this school attend their recruiting fairs? Were you hired through a recruiting fair?

My school requires notice before the December holiday. The only reason they do it is so they can interview for definite openings at the January job fairs. I don't mind, because if you don't move out of your job, I can't have a guaranteed opening or offer at the January job fairs. A risk we all have to take! It is early, but they are interviewing earlier now too.

Are the recruiters responsible for moving this date forward by moving the fairs forward?

I had a position in Italy for two years. I had a tax break for those two years. I know I will have to pay taxes if I ever decide to work in Italy again.

If I get a job in Germany, Poland, or another EU country, will I have to pay taxes there, or would I get a tax break in that country?

Thanks for the posts Marlow and Overhere!!!

I've taught elementary in Int'l Schools as well. I plan to apply for elementary positions as well as SPED. I have been teaching for 12 years and SpEd is definitely my fist choice.

Marlow-I'm thinking I have the same paranoia as you. I don't want to miss out on the few openings that may be out there.

MMMC-There are too many schools to list which ones have SPED programs. I would just search schools in countries that you are interested in. You may also want to apply for other positions you feel comfortable teaching in (ie elementary or ESL) if SPED isn't available.

Marlow-It's good to hear that another single had luck at the Jan. Bangkok fair. I'm single.

I am still not sure if I will attend this fair or not. The fact that you had such a positive experience makes me wonder if I could miss an opportunity if I don't go to an earlier fair. ????

There are so many schools listed on the anticipated attendance list. I know this will change, but not too drastically.....right? There are A LOT of schools there! Schools are also asking for earlier notification from teachers that they are not returning, so it makes sense that schools would recruit sooner. The other "big" job fairs are in February....so most schools probably know opening in January. Right?

Let me know what you guys think.

I've been out of the recruiting loop for awhile. New job fairs have been added and it seems the recruiting season has been bumped up.

The Search job fair in Bangkok (early January) seems to have the most schools signed up for anticipated attendance. There are some good schools that I would really like to interview with. However, I don't want to attend if this is just sort of a "window shopping" opportunity for recruiters. The schools I'm interested in aren't listed for attendance at later fairs yet. Do the later fairs fill up later?

I have six years (3 schools) of international teacing experience (sp ed). Am I a good candidate for this fair? Are the later fairs more fruitful?

Is the Search Cambridge fair (February) still considered the biggest?

I have been registered with Search before and didn't have any problems. However, I am curious about ISS.

Is there really any difference?

I don't know your situation exactly, but one thing came to mind when reading your post.

Does the school know you are married to someone from the host country? I would find out about the schools policy in regards to you being married to a local. In some places, they may put you on a local hire salary (which can be significantly lower). Not all places do this, but it seems like some places I have been to have been very adamant about switching overseas hires to local hires once they are married to someone from the host country. Some don't wait for the honeymoon to be over before dropping the "salary change bomb". I would find out what their policy on this is.

If you have documentation proving that you have legally adopted your daughter, you should receive tuition. Again, I would check on their policy regarding children of the host country.

My school expects to know in December if we are leaving. Is this early?

My colleague told me that this has changed over the past couple years and International schools are asking earlier now. I always remember being asked after February (unless attending a job fair).

When do your schools ask if you plan to stay another year?

Sometimes it is easy to see when someone is just disgruntled. All you can do is prove them wrong.

I read negative reviews with caution and use them to formulate my own questions. I then ask questions and draw my own conclusions based on my experience....not the other person's review.

I think we all realize that the purpose of this board is to educate ourselves and then use the information to help us make our own conclusions through our own investigations.

Good Luck!

I am currently at a western european school. I had worked in Africa and Asia prior to coming here.

In Africa and Asia I easily saved $8,000 annually. I was paid around $28,000 annually. This was 8-9 years ago.

Currently (in Italy) I am paid $48,000 annually. After completing my first year, I have saved $3,000.

After two years I have to pay taxes. I think it amounts to around 35%. I am leaving after my second year as taxes would make it impossible to stay here and live comfortably. It would definitely be a struggle to survive on my taxed salary. Overseas hires before me did the same.

It basically costs the school the same amount to hire a new teacher (shipping, flight, paperwork for residency, etc.) as it would to pay my taxes. If they paid my taxes, there would be a lot of upset teachers at my school as they tend to marry Italians and end up staying here. The local hire and foreign hire salary scale does not exist here.

Our board reports are on the school website. They are distributed to staff via email as well. The financial reports are in there. The distribution of funds goes primarily to teacher salaries. 70%

The state of the economy has affected my school.

I am worried about what the upcoming year holds for all of us. We have gotten an email or two from our director telling us that hard times are coming.

My school is renegotiating teacher contracts as well. YIKES!!!

Teachers are being denied personal days and leave (even though the law says they should have it).

Teachers have been refused return airfare as there is a new director now. One teacher got it (b/c she had an email to prove that the previous director said she got a return ticket), but her boyfriend didn't.

What can you do without putting your job at risk? Seriously, who wants to "rock the boat" in these times? If you plan to leave, fine. However, if you are staying, you risk putting yourself up as an easy target for elimination if need be. Right?

I am keeping my mouth shut and figure I might be here longer than planned. I don't want to complain about anything and run the risk of possibly "shooting myself in the foot".

Just grinning and bearing it and hoping I still have a job next year!

I think my culture shock has been extended by a lack of assistance upon arrival and having to deal with moving, being expected to set up insurance, transportation, bank accounts, deal with plumbers, etc without ANY assistance from the school (and not speaking the language...yet).

Given all of that, I am FINALLY starting to settle in and become more adjusted to my new culture.

Anybody else? What do you think "jolted" you out of it the most?