In her second monthly column, Sharon Couzens de Hinojosa discusses the advantages of having strong connections when looking for teaching work.
If you look through job boards, you probably won’t fine the creme de la creme jobs. But they’re out there. Everyone knows that the top notch cushy jobs aren’t advertised in the newspaper, but how can you get them?
Connections are key. If you’re looking to teach in other city, or country it can be harder to make connections than if you’re already there, but it’s not impossible. Thanks to the internet, you can still get a great teaching job.
Teachers can help give you pointers, such as which schools are good and which should be avoided. Another tip to keep in mind is that you shouldn’t just answer adverts. Try sending your CV to schools even though they’re not looking for teachers. You may be able to fill an upcoming teaching vacancy and avoid competition by doing so.
Two great sites for making contact with teachers are ESL Cafe and ELT World. You’ll find that overall people on these forums are very helpful, but just remember to do a search beforehand. Although people are helpful, they don’t enjoy having to say the same thing over and over again.
Try also finding forums and websites related to where you want to teach. Type in the place where you want to work and expat in a search engine and you should come up with some good results. Yahoo groups and Yahoo Answers might also be able to help you find people who can help you find a job.
Lastly, remember what goes around comes around. When people help you out, be sure to thank them for their efforts. And the next time someone’s looking for help finding a job, try your best to help them out.
About…
Sharon Couzens de Hinojosa holds a BA in Liberal Arts and a MA in TEFL. She has seven years teaching experience and has worked in the Czech Republic, China, Korea, Taiwan, and Peru. She is currently working at Sungkyunkwan University in Suwon, Korea.
Sharon’s websites
www.tefltips.blogspot.com
www.theultimateperulist.blogspot.com
www.thelajoblist.blogspot.com
