International Teaching: How to Get a Job Teaching Abroad

Takeaway: 

If you wish to teach abroad, or hope to make a change from your current international school, now is the time to begin applying. Knowing how to do that can feel like it requires secret information, but the tips below will help you to get a job teaching abroad.

International Teaching:

About 12 years ago my wife and I were teaching in the USA. I was a middle school math teacher in an urban school and my wife was teaching upper elementary just outside of the city. We both loved our jobs, which served very different student groups. However, the school district had gone from giving us big bonuses to take jobs there in one year to requiring us to work without pay the next. With a newborn on the way, we knew we could not afford to live well in our own country.

Having spent that previous summer backpacking in Europe, we knew what we wanted to do. During the winter of 2010 we applied to more than 100 schools and I called each one, one at a time, hoping to find a job for us. Four months later we had options to go to Thailand, Yemen (there was no civil war at that time), or Montenegro. We immediately jumped for Montenegro.

Since making that choice we have now worked as educators in five countries across four continents. We have three children, each born on a different continent. I have been working as an administrator for the past seven years and my wife is a high school science teacher. This level of adventure and flexibility has been amazing and one that we always want to keep.

Our students are incredibly diverse and these are the friends that our children grow up with. The exposure of living in different countries and cultures has opened us to so many to new ideas about the world and human nature. Teaching abroad has been a blessing and is now a part of our identity. On top of this, we have been able to save our income at rates we could never do in the USA and have travelled to 40+ countries around the world. We feel so blessed!

How to Get a Job Teaching Abroad:

If you are looking to get a job teaching abroad for the first time, entering the market can be very, very hard. Most schools that I have worked at would not hire someone with no international experience unless it was for a truly difficult to hire position. These usually are jobs like special education, computer science, or something very specific that our school wishes to offer to our students that other schools do not.

However, lots of great schools will hire talented teachers who have experience only in their home countries, but have travelled abroad This is important as the biggest fear for international schools is that they will hire someone who will leave during the year, which is a logistical nightmare for a school.

For those who are already abroad, there seems to be an ever shifting landscape in which platforms to apply on and what requirements each country has for entry. We were first hired by applying directly to schools. We would never do that now unless the school requested it. Using SEARCH, ISS, and Schrole are how we both hire teachers and apply for jobs ourselves.

By this time of year, mid-October, you will see a great many postings for openings, especially in Asia. Right now only 5 percent of openings (currently around 800+ openings have been posted) are for Europe. China by far has the largest number for any country, they are nearly a continent to themselves in terms of Internatioanl jobs. By mid-January, nearly half of all international jobs are filled, many of these are at the most competitive schools, but still, half of the jobs are still open.

How Can I Make the International Teaching Leap?

In short, sign up for an online job platform. SEARCH, ISS, and Schrole are the most reputable and best for those looking for competitive schools. ISS and Schrole were one company just a few months ago, but have since separated to two different companies again. If I was highly experience and could only choose one, it would be SEARCH. If I had little or no international teaching experience, the best platform would probably be Schrole. However, job fairs are a great way for teachers to get hired and SEARCH has the best fairs by far.

I have created online courses for people who are looking to teach in another country. Primarily, the information in these courses are designed for fully certified teachers who wish to bring their talents to an international school. If you are interested in learning more, you can visit my courses on either SkillShare or Udemy. Happy job hunting!