I've been writing to most of the schools through Search. Yesterday it occurred to me that if a school gets an application thru Search, and another directly, might they go for the direct applicant so they don't have to pay the Search fee?
But then, if I apply directly, I'd have to tell Search where I got a job anyway. Right?
Just grasping at straws at this point.
Search vs. direct contact
Re: Search vs. direct contact
Search has a couple of different ways to tell if you were hired through their service. The main way is if the school accessed your file. If you apply directly to the school, and the school does not access your file on the Search database, the school does not owe Search any money even if you are a Search candidate.
I do not know of any quality school that would hire a candidate who contacted them directly over a Search candidate to avoid paying the fee. As a recruiter I prefer Search and ISS candidates because they have confidential references. When I am contacted by a candidate that looks promising, I can quickly check the references to see if the candidate is worth the time to interview. With candidates who contact me directly, I do not have that information easily available.
My advice is to contact the school's directly, include a resume, and let them know you are a Search candidate.
Best of luck.
I do not know of any quality school that would hire a candidate who contacted them directly over a Search candidate to avoid paying the fee. As a recruiter I prefer Search and ISS candidates because they have confidential references. When I am contacted by a candidate that looks promising, I can quickly check the references to see if the candidate is worth the time to interview. With candidates who contact me directly, I do not have that information easily available.
My advice is to contact the school's directly, include a resume, and let them know you are a Search candidate.
Best of luck.
Re: Search vs. direct contact
Confidential references are BS to the nth degree. A teacher has a right to know EXACTLY what an admin thinks of them and what is written about them in a recommendation. Confidential references are just another way the international education admin types likes to tilt the playing field in their favor. Gutless heads and principals who smile at you then cut you up behind the safety of a confidential reference often because they can get away with it.
The only question on any reference should be: Would you hire this candidate again?
The only question on any reference should be: Would you hire this candidate again?
Response
When you send a message through SA, you are really just sending your message text and a link to your profile, they still have to access the link and the profile. With a direct application you can include additional information and documents that you cant do with a SA message.
The fee has ranged between $1000 and $2500 in recent history. There are admins and schools (mostly lower tier, but some second tier ISs) that will use various strategies to avoid paying the placement fee. Some will even suggest that by not reporting you can keep your membership. A direct candidate and not paying the Search fee can be very attractive especially in low paying economically disadvantaged regions like S.A.
You do not have to tell an Agency where you got a job, you could simply deactivate your profile and claim your working domestically. You could just keep your profile active until you "expire out".
SA can not really definitively determine when an IT has been placed. They rely on their relationships with ISs and ITs to faithfully report. Its not worth it to SA to do anything about it, the upper tier schools do so little recruiting and need the premium agencies so little that the status gained from the relationship benefits the agency more then the coin. The lower tier schools do so much volume business its not worth alienating a client and the revenue stream from the volume business they bring.
Accessing your file means nothing, a school can freely browse and search candidate profiles, accessing them. Technically a repped school is contractually bound to pay the placement fee for a repped candidate, regardless of how the two found each other.
Confidential or closed references are of little value, there is little worth in checking them as a recruiter should and will often inform you to replace the reference if it is negative. The majority of them are either neutral, overly enthusiastic (candidates with no flaws or weakness), or generic (as if the admin used a template and just changed names, dates and titles). A recruiter/admin/HOS will still need and want to make direct contact to get a more honest report, for most recruiters and admins the absence of a negative reference and presence of a positive reference regardless of the details is good enough.
The fee has ranged between $1000 and $2500 in recent history. There are admins and schools (mostly lower tier, but some second tier ISs) that will use various strategies to avoid paying the placement fee. Some will even suggest that by not reporting you can keep your membership. A direct candidate and not paying the Search fee can be very attractive especially in low paying economically disadvantaged regions like S.A.
You do not have to tell an Agency where you got a job, you could simply deactivate your profile and claim your working domestically. You could just keep your profile active until you "expire out".
SA can not really definitively determine when an IT has been placed. They rely on their relationships with ISs and ITs to faithfully report. Its not worth it to SA to do anything about it, the upper tier schools do so little recruiting and need the premium agencies so little that the status gained from the relationship benefits the agency more then the coin. The lower tier schools do so much volume business its not worth alienating a client and the revenue stream from the volume business they bring.
Accessing your file means nothing, a school can freely browse and search candidate profiles, accessing them. Technically a repped school is contractually bound to pay the placement fee for a repped candidate, regardless of how the two found each other.
Confidential or closed references are of little value, there is little worth in checking them as a recruiter should and will often inform you to replace the reference if it is negative. The majority of them are either neutral, overly enthusiastic (candidates with no flaws or weakness), or generic (as if the admin used a template and just changed names, dates and titles). A recruiter/admin/HOS will still need and want to make direct contact to get a more honest report, for most recruiters and admins the absence of a negative reference and presence of a positive reference regardless of the details is good enough.