PLS HELP!! Take a risk or not? Teaching in Turkey

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Ebz1983
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Joined: 20 Apr 2015, 07:03
Status: Prospective Teacher

PLS HELP!! Take a risk or not? Teaching in Turkey

Unread post by Ebz1983 »

Hi all,
My husband and I are thinking of taking a huge risk by selling up and moving to Istanbul/Turkey. :roll:
We currently reside in Australia.
We are both Project Managers for a Telecommunications company and have no experience in teaching what so ever! In fact, he has a degree in Science and Maths whilst i have no degree at all! :cry:

We are both looking at starting the 140 hour TEFL/TESOL certificate in order to be able to teach and travel.

The issue is we have SO MUCH to wrap up here and need to get a move on. We've applied for jobs all over Istanbul but they seem to take their good ol' time! Time which we do not have.

So my questions to you are:
- What is the chances of us actually find a job in a few weeks if we were to just pack and leave?
- Any recommendations on added training we should do?
- How do we find a job when all people ever tell you is "It's who you know, not what you know"

Please help me with any suggestion, recommendations, contacts and connections you may have
Briona
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Joined: 29 Jul 2009, 20:33
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Re: PLS HELP!! Take a risk or not? Teaching in Turkey

Unread post by Briona »

Hi there,

To be honest, I wouldn't risk it. First, a degree is a requirement of the work visa. Without one, you won't be able to find legal work. Secondly, now is not the time to be looking for work. The academic year ends in June, and the little summer work there is will go to teachers already in-country and with valid work visas.

Another consideration is that as non-EU citizens, you can only stay in Turkey on a tourist visa for 90 days out of every 180 days. This means that you'd need to find an employer willing to organise a work visa almost as soon as you land. Poor timing and your lack of a degree means that this is not a very likely proposition. For more on finding work in Europe, have a look at my advice guide: http://toiberiaandbeyond.blogspot.com.e ... urope.html

You need to do some serious research before selling up and jumping on a plane. For a start, there are very few places left where you can legally work without a degree, and one TEFL salary isn't going to be enough to sustain two people.

Bri
Experience teaching in Vietnam, Portugal, Poland, Spain, the UK, and Qatar
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John V55
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Joined: 02 Apr 2015, 01:34
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Re: PLS HELP!! Take a risk or not? Teaching in Turkey

Unread post by John V55 »

Good advice above, think carefully before you leap. Also and on a personal level, in the middle of the biggest recession in living memory and if you both already have good jobs, you’re taking a huge risk by hoping you can find the equivalent elsewhere. You sound desperate to move, rather than having thought it through.

a) The chances of either of you finding work if you just pack up and leave are zero.
b) Take your time and get a degree first, followed by a p/t PGCE, or the Australian equivalent. Your chances then will be much higher.
Look below for Turkish TEFL jobs. There are five at present, none of which either of you come anywhere near applying for
c) TEFL jobs are based around what you know - experience and qualifications

http://www.seriousteachers.com/index/0/156/0
Ebz1983
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Posts: 2
Joined: 20 Apr 2015, 07:03
Status: Prospective Teacher

Re: PLS HELP!! Take a risk or not? Teaching in Turkey

Unread post by Ebz1983 »

Hmm.. Good point on the Visa issue.. I just assumed we'd easily find a job within the 3 months.

Any suggestions on where we could find jobs other than serious teachers link you've given me above?

Lastly, I'm struggling between and i-to-i TEFL course and a Australian company named ATA which provides a TESOL course. Any reconsiderations there? ATA is double that of i-to-i. Both seem to cover similar things.
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John V55
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Re: PLS HELP!! Take a risk or not? Teaching in Turkey

Unread post by John V55 »

It’s not really a matter of just finding a job as it would be in the west; as you’re coming from a first world country and there are no government quotas or reverse discrimination practices to help you. You would be hired on your qualifications and experience alone.

You could also try internationally at http://www.eslcafe.com/joblist/
or specifically for Thailand at http://www.ajarn.com/recruitment/browse_jobs/

Have you thought of volunteering somewhere for a year? This would give you some experience, whilst also providing a safety net to return to.
You could try putting your resume on these sites and see if they attract any interest, but it’s doubtful. I’d strongly advise accepting anything that says no degree or experience required. Many will be very low paid private language schools and your lack of experience, qualifications and eagerness leaves you wide open to scams. Be very careful.
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