Teaching abroad can be an extremely rewarding personal and professional experience. There are two main paths to teaching abroad. The first is through working in international or public schools. These schools use the same curricula mentioned in this previous post. The second way is to Teach English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), which I will discuss in another post.
Although TEFL is a unique field of teaching, acquainting yourself with it is a great idea. If you have never taught students who are learning EAL (English as an Additional Language), it is important to understand ways to teach them. However, in many schools, there are EAL departments to provide extra support to these students.
Perks of Teaching Abroad
There are many benefits which can include the following:
- Paid housing/Housing allowance
- Health insurance
- Free or discounted schooling for your school-aged children
- Paid flights
- Moving allowance Professional development in and outside of the country
- Tax-free income (for some countries)
Basic requirements for employment are usually:
- Bachelor’s Degree
- Teaching certification in your home country
- Classroom experience
Most schools will conduct your interview over Skype or Zoom, but some prefer to see you face-to-face. Job fairs are where this will happen. A few of the agencies used to teach abroad listed below host in-person and virtual job fairs.
Job Agencies
International Schools Services
A paid site that cost U$75 per year. for a short period had a partnership with Schrole, known as ISS-Schrole Advantage. This is the agency that I used for my second role teaching abroad. They host a variety of recruitment events and also conduct professional development courses.
Schrole
Has both free and paid membership. With the free membership, you can make a profile and be visible to recruiters. You can also apply to promoted vacancies or via the schools that publish job links on their websites. With the paid membership (U$75 per year), you can search the site for vacancies and participate in teach abroad recruitment events. This platform also has detailed information on the schools’ background, compensation and benefits.
The International Educator
Is a paid (U$49 per year) website that posts teaching jobs. You can build a profile with your resume that schools can access. It is more of a job board and points you in the direction of applying. On the other hand, it has articles and other resources that one might find helpful. It is important to note that TIE also has some of the jobs listed on the more expensive platforms.
Search Associates
Is a paid agency that costs U$225 once they accept your application. This fee lasts for three years or until you accept an offer (within those three years). There is generally an assignment of an associate who recommends jobs to you. But you can also browse their job database that also gives information on the school.
Search also has yearly recruitment events.
Times Educational Supplement
Or TES as it’s better known. This free teacher recruitment site mostly lists jobs that offer the British curriculum worldwide. There are also posts for schools in the United Kingdom.
Global Recruitment Collaborative
Is a free agency that lists teach abroad positions. Although based in the Middle East, GRC has member schools from all over the world. It allows you to post your resume and lists you in their database, where recruiters can find you.
Federation of British International School in Asia
Is the premier Federation supporting and promoting high-quality British education in Asia. They do not require that you register to use their site. Instead, jobs posted list the full application details.
Teacher Horizons
Is a free teach abroad site that lists jobs from all over the world. You can browse without registering, but you will not have access to the whole site. Registration is simple! You can start applying for positions once you have two references on file.
The Association of Christian Schools International
Posts vacancies worldwide and prioritizes teachers with a Christian background. It is free to apply for their vacancies but ensure to check that it is a salaried position. Some of their positions require that teachers raise additional financial support.
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Am a biology teacher trained and employed by the teachers service commission in Kenya..I have enough experience to handle high school learners at all levels
Please sign up for any of the sites I listed in the teacher recruitment articles based on the regions you are hoping to go.