Search found 40 matches

by FV2020
Sun May 19, 2019 10:07 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Excess baggage?
Replies: 10
Views: 12676

Re: Excess baggage?

Thanks @buffalofan and @PsyGuy! Glad to hear that you've never had (or heard of) bags having to be left behind-- that would be a nightmare scenario for me. If someone can get 49 bags on a plane, then hopefully there will be no issue with my 6 (+/-) large duffle bags. Thanks for the advice about insurance-- I hadn't thought about that!

If anyone has other advice or experience to share, please chime in-- even it is just to assuage my fears!
by FV2020
Sat May 18, 2019 4:16 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Excess baggage?
Replies: 10
Views: 12676

Re: Excess baggage?

Thanks, Mamava. Wow-- 26 bags! I am really hoping to be booked on Delta since they seem to have the best baggage policy (if your bags don't fit on your flight, they will send them on the next one). To clarify, I'm not asking how many bags I should bring or what to pack. I'm just interested to know if anyone has had issues getting their bags to their destination.
by FV2020
Sat May 18, 2019 10:49 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Excess baggage?
Replies: 10
Views: 12676

Excess baggage?

Hi everyone,

I've decided to move all my stuff via excess baggage rather than ship it this summer. I'm curious about others' experiences doing this. How many bags total (per individual) did you end up bringing? Did any airline ever measure your checked baggage (it looks like 158 cm/62 inch is the maximum size allowed on most airlines)? Some airlines list on their website that checked excess baggage space is limited and that you may not be permitted to bring more than two checked bags; has anyone actually encountered this and not been able to bring all their bags? I do not know what airline I'll be flying since the school will book the ticket, and cost is not a concern for me. Is there any other advice you'd give me about moving in this manner?
by FV2020
Thu May 09, 2019 1:11 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Search "Verifying" references thru personal email addresses
Replies: 7
Views: 9563

Re: Search "Verifying" references thru personal email addres

The verification depends on your associate. You could just ask your references for their new work email address and have it sent there. I used a retired administrator from a previous job and I’m pretty sure my associate just researched a little online to verify. But that was only one of my six references— the rest were work email addresses.
by FV2020
Wed May 08, 2019 9:24 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Getting a real job at a real school without experience
Replies: 90
Views: 81184

Re: Getting a real job at a real school without experience

If living in Brazil is an option, you could try to get hired as a local hire (lower package) if any last minute vacancies pop up in the fall, or if there are any “runners” who abandon their posts mid year.

You could also consider schools in Venezuela. Obviously there is a very difficult situation there now, and it is a huge risk to go there, but that means it is difficult for them to fill vacancies, especially for schools that are 3rd tier.

Since pay is less of a concern you could also try to sign up with Search as an intern.

As far as odds go, you never know until you try. Teaching domestically would be a better back up plan than ESL abroad. With a year of ESL you would be right back in the same position next recruitment cycle.

Another sort of “out of the box” option would be to teach in public schools in Hawaii or New Zealand. Both would give you a different cultural experience than Massachusetts, and both have teacher shortages. Of course these would not provide IB experience. New Zealand will currently pay $5,000 in relocation costs.
by FV2020
Mon Apr 22, 2019 8:49 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Feeling like I want to move my family back home
Replies: 29
Views: 30137

Re: Feeling like I want to move my family back home

I'll add clarification for my insurance comment-- it looks alarmist reading it now. The school/district does usually pay a portion of the premium; my comment was more meant as an indictment of the system (even with a "good" plan, my out of pocket costs are high). Also, for families and spouses, be prepared to pay the monthly premium. Your employer will always offer the option to purchase a family policy through them, but I've never heard of a school/district paying the premiums for a spouse/kids (this may exist somewhere, I've just never heard of it). My monthly out of pocket costs have varied over the years based on district budget cuts and years where I opted for very poor coverage because it cost less and I'm generally healthy. Subsidized by my employer, I've paid about $150/mo. out of pocket for the premium for just myself. You may be able to simply Google and find a state health care benefit summary online. If it's not published online, you could email the district HR director and ask to see it.

Anyway, best of luck with your decision! There are challenges everywhere, and if you feel the pull to move back abroad, you always can!
by FV2020
Sat Apr 20, 2019 10:47 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Feeling like I want to move my family back home
Replies: 29
Views: 30137

Re: Feeling like I want to move my family back home

I’m sure that nothing compares to the feeling of being “home” and that is a strong pull. I’m on the opposite end of the situation (leaving the US) so I’ll share my two cents about what I won’t miss. Firstly, the pay may look reasonable on paper, but in reality it means keeping a very strict budget. Sometimes (but not all the time) that means going into debt just to cover the basics. We have a two teacher household with no kids. Along with that, the health care industry in the US is absurd. Be prepared to spend thousands of dollars for even minor health issues; that is with an HMO plan that costs $400/month per person. As for classroom management, the culture of schools varies widely. There are some nightmare situations and some very pleasant ones. You can always switch schools after one year if it’s a nightmare. If you haven’t had to do active shooter drills before, that will be a shock to the system. It still shocks me that I have to explain to kids what to do to have the best chance of not getting shot. The best advice I can give is to find a private school in an exurb where housing might be somewhat reasonable.
by FV2020
Thu Mar 28, 2019 8:37 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Good cities for families in China?
Replies: 30
Views: 38200

Re: Good cities for families in China?

South Korea and Thailand are also nice options in Asia. Of course, the more desirable the location, the more competition for jobs it seems. For other places in mainland China, consider Chengdu and Suzhou. I’ve also heard positive things about Xiamen, Nanjing, and Dalian.
by FV2020
Sat Mar 16, 2019 2:07 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: What are 'hardship' cities with good international schools?
Replies: 36
Views: 34602

Re: What are 'hardship' cities with good international schoo

US diplomats have been permanently injured by sonic attacks in Havana recently. The US and Cuba are not allies. The ratings on that list were for US diplomats.
by FV2020
Tue Mar 05, 2019 5:32 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Raising a young family in Mexico
Replies: 15
Views: 15324

Re: Raising a young family in Mexico

I'm from the US, and I absolutely love Mexico and hope to live there some day, but the salaries are too low for us right now. We are a teaching couple and do not have kids. Most salaries we saw were in the range of 22-24,000 a year for a master's degree and 8 years of experience; those jobs didn't include housing. We read some expat blogs that broke down their finances in Puerto Vallarta, and that was really helpful. We'd live fine on those salaries in Mexico, but couldn't save or pay down debt (which we need to do). Salaries in Mexico City were higher (around $40,000), but the cost of living there is so much higher; also, those jobs are much more competitive it seems.

You mentioned Colombia, and I have seen some schools in Bogota that pay decently well (around $40,000). I would also consider Panama--there is at least one school there with excellent pay, and Panama City is a wonderful place!
by FV2020
Tue Jan 29, 2019 10:04 am
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Advice for a college professor looking to teach abroad?
Replies: 35
Views: 39571

Re: Advice for a college professor looking to teach abroad?

@Snowball

Knowing that your children are so young, I take back the Venezuela comment; a close colleague of mine just finished a contract there, and although he is fine, it would be very risky to bring a two year-old there.

As for teaching HS domestically, it all depends on what your husband's goals are in switching careers. Knowing more about that could help us give you advice. He is essentially making two career changes at once. For instance, have you lived in a small, homogenous area for a long time and want to expand your horizons? If so, why not teach college abroad since money is not an issue? If he is feeling a little burnt out on academia and wants to make a difference at the HS level, then he could do that domestically. Private high schools in the U.S. frequently hire professors with no HS experience, and a private school is certainly closer to an IS than a domestic public school.

For the fairs, have your husband brush up on the terminology/trends in k-12 teaching: differentiation, PBL, inquiry, kinesthetic/visual/auditory learning, 21st century skills, formative assessment, etc. If he can provide examples of how he already does these things in his classroom, a recruiter is more likely to see his potential as a HS teacher. While your husband clearly has a wealth of content knowledge, teaching a ninth grader is very, very different that teaching an 18 year-old. Also, he should be prepared to explain classroom management strategies.
by FV2020
Mon Jan 28, 2019 10:39 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Advice for a college professor looking to teach abroad?
Replies: 35
Views: 39571

Re: Advice for a college professor looking to teach abroad?

My advice-- you'll never really know what's possible until you try. Pay attention to the requirements in job posts so that you aren't wasting time, but apply to as many positions as you can. Search wouldn't have taken your husband as a candidate if they didn't honestly think he could get a job. You've got a few significant hurdles (3 dependents, no HS teaching experience), but that doesn't mean it's not possible.

If South America is your first choice, are you willing to go to Venezuela? Given the current situation, that would be a hardship post, but hardship posts have less competition for jobs.

If your husband doesn't get an international job for next school year, would you be open to him working at a high school where you live now for two years? If he can get IB experience, even better. Could you also earn a teaching credential during that two years? If he really enjoys HS and does not want to go back to the university job at that point, then you all would be in a better position to get international positions.
by FV2020
Mon Jan 28, 2019 12:50 pm
Forum: Forum 1. From Questions About ISS & Search to Anything and Everything About International Teaching
Topic: Should I take this salary package?
Replies: 28
Views: 32373

Re: Should I take this salary package?

applebutter wrote:
> @Cherrypop
>
> This is a very poor offer. I currently live in Suzhou, and housing is much
> more expensive than that. At a minimum, you are looking at 3,000-3,500 RMB
> for rent per month. This is also a very low salary offer. At my school
> teachers start at 30,000-32,000 RMB per month before tax. Plus all of the
> other benefits. If you are set on Suzhou my school will have some openings
> for August. Send me a private message, and I can talk to you about my
> school here.

@applebutter I’d like to DM you but can’t here— are you teaching IB curriculum or another curriculum?
by FV2020
Mon Jan 28, 2019 12:45 pm
Forum: Forum 2. Ask Recruiting Questions, Share Information. What's on Your Mind?
Topic: Boston Fair Info and thoughts..
Replies: 6
Views: 17290

Re: Boston Fair Info and thoughts..

Thank you for the updates, Frenchie! I have my fingers crossed that something will pop up for you. Keep us posted!