The International Schools Review Forum

Are there any good schools, locations where teaching couples are preferred even if not married? My boyfriend and I are both elementary school teachers but not ready to tie-the-knot. Or we may forego that ancient institution entirely.

Western Europe is pretty liberal. I am sure there are plenty of places, but I can actually speak to this one.

Anywhere in South America....

from my experience, you'd only really have official problems in certain places in the middle east and turkey.

however, schools are sometimes legitimately hesitant about taking a chance on a couple who isn't married and putting you in the same flat. things happen overseas, you meet new people. you never know. at least when you're married you have to go through all the damn paperwork and get it all 'officialized' and then if something bad does happen you can at least prove you WERE married, etc...

that being said, there are many, many couples i know who are not married who are working and living together abroad. a previous poster mentioned europe, and i second that. even in the middle east you can get around it, though if it ever comes down to it you COULD get into trouble if you don't have a marriage license.

best of luck!

v.

Be wary if you plan to go to Asia.

More than 1 man has left his girlfriend - or wife - for some hot little Chinese or Thai woman.

I say this in complete seriousness.

And schools also might not take a chance because if trouble in the relationship brews, one or both of you might bolt.

Latin American would be fine. Plenty of 'em live in sin :)

One thing to consider is that you will mostly liked be hired as couple as opposed to two individual contracts. One impact is if a problem arises in the contract and one person leaves, the other person may not have a position as well. One school had a practice of come as a couple, leave as a couple.

It can be seen as a sign that you are trying to "strengthen" the relationship, or reset it. For that reason, many schools will be hesitant to take you on. Others, not so hesitant. The problem already has been mentioned about breakups. If you do breakup, the school isn't going to magically produce another apartment or housing allowance for the one on the outs, and both are likely gone at the end of the year, which if it is the first year of a contract, costs the school money.

I disagree @@Nomad, ISs would likely hire you as singles rather than a teaching couple.

Understand that teaching couple is not a relationship term, but a fiscal term for contracts. ISs dont care who you date, who you live with or what you do behind closed doors. Even highly conservative regions among leadership no one except the secretaries is going to care very much about who is hooking up with who. Teaching couple exists because it provides the IS economic efficiencys. The primary benefit is reduction in housing costs and benefits a teaching couple requires one residence as opposed to two. In addition there are saving in insurance as well as some minor social stability issues (but yes I concur with @yankee, it wouldnt be the first time the male in the relationship dumped his spouse and family for some younger Asian option).

There are regions and ISs where the ethos of the IS or the region would prohibit such a relationship. Leadership may not care who is with who, but ownership is generally more conservative, and they wouldnt want to be in the position of having to condone in practice two faculty members who arent married formally residing together. It could be seen by the community as endorsing the relationship or even sanctioning it.

EU and specifically the WE would have the least restrictions, mostly because those regions generally dont provide housing and in the ISs that do even if there are efficiencies between single and couple allowances, local and regional laws would prohibit the IS from discrimination, such that each contract is written individually with each IT getting half of the couples allowance (IE.. If the couples housing allowance is €1500 than each contract is written for a housing allowance of €750). EU law generally recognizes that you cant discriminate salary within the same class of employees, but this generally doesnt apply to benefits as part of the organizations normal cost of business. In such cases housing is not a form of compensation but an employment expense (IE.. an employer can provide first class air travel to one employee and economy air travel to another without having to justify doing so). In this case housing is categorized as accommodation incurred during the scope of employment.

Unmarried couples that have children are more likely to be treated and recruited as teaching couples than those with out children.