Can International Baccalaureate be hired from "in-country"?

[troubletribbles]

Hello,

I'm finishing up my qualifications to be eligible to teach at an I.B. school. I've heard that it is difficult to find a job at an I.B. school if you are already living in Thailand or that you will get paid less since you are not a "foreign teacher." This seems strange/silly to me but I have heard from a few different sources. Does anyone have any knowledge on this? Wondering if I should move back to USA before applying for jobs at Thai IB schools.

Thanks,

-S

[Scott]

I know of a few people who have been hired in country, however, the schools were not 'true-blue' schools, they earned considerably less than the top tier international schools.   Years ago, I did know one well-qualified, licensed teacher who went to an international school while in the country.   His salary was not less than other teachers, however, his benefit package was less.   A less generous housing allowance, no repatriation costs and no paid visits back to his home country.   There were a few other benefits he miss out on at the time as well, but he was hired in the country and his salary was high.   Again, that was a number of year ago.  

[thequietman]

I'm curious, what qualification do you need to do for this?

 

Thanks.

[troubletribbles]

9 hours ago, Scott said:

I know of a few people who have been hired in country, however, the schools were not 'true-blue' schools, they earned considerably less than the top tier international schools.   Years ago, I did know one well-qualified, licensed teacher who went to an international school while in the country.   His salary was not less than other teachers, however, his benefit package was less.   A less generous housing allowance, no repatriation costs and no paid visits back to his home country.   There were a few other benefits he miss out on at the time as well, but he was hired in the country and his salary was high.   Again, that was a number of year ago.  

Thanks Scott. Do you know the reason behind only hiring from abroad? It still seems strange. Do you think moving back home for a few months would be adequate or would I need to secure a job for a set period of time in my home country?

[Scott]

Most of the top tier international schools are accredited through the home country and that puts restrictions on them about who they can hire.   Most have guidelines which require that you be licensed in your home country and have teaching experience there as well.  

 

Whether moving back would be the best option, I don't know.

 

 

[IntEdSource]

@troubletribbles: Landing a position at an IB school is not necessarily dependent on the fact that it is IB, but rather its overall position in the market. If you look on the IB website, you'll see the list of 21 schools that currently offer at least one of the IB programmes. Of these, at least four or five tend to hire more teachers from overseas than from in Thailand. They do not have policies in place for this, but rather do so simply because they are more selective in the individuals that they hire, and often seek to recruit teachers who have held positions at other top schools around the world.

 

@Scott is correct in pointing out that the packages tend to be less attractive for those hired here. A housing allowance is still often provided at the top schools, but it is less than what an overseas hire would receive. They also would not receive the shipping allowances and similar benefits. 

 

If you're aiming to be hired at one of the IB schools, you have two primary options: targeting one of the smaller IB schools (particularly ones that offer only the DP if you're lucky enough to have that be your area of specialization) or looking for a position at an IB school abroad with the intention of eventually working your way back here. Neither option is necessarily better. It all depends on how much work you're willing to put in, your skill as a teacher and making the right connections with other educators at decent schools.

@thequietman: The IB offers workshops that provide progressive training (at three levels) for each programme and subject area. These are hosted worldwide and can be searched on the professional development section of the IB website. Most IB schools look for candidates with at least category 1 training in their subject area, but are in some cases willing to hire promising teachers and send them for the relevant training.

[starshiptrooper]

What package you'll be offered depends on the school. I work in a mid tier international IB school and there is no "only hire abroad" policy. Most teachers are hired through fares (search associates) but some are hired directly and within the country. Every foreigner is offered an oversea package in my school.

Your qualifications to teach at an IB school will affect your job prospects. Every DP teacher needs to be IB- certified in their subject. If they are not, the school needs to send them to training which is an extra cost for the school. In MYP only one teacher in each department needs to be IB- certified, however knowledge of the IB- framework is highly regarded since the structure of the assessment and the units can be confusing for non certified teachers.

Bangkok has a job fare (in December or January). My advice would be to sign up for that one and look for potential schools. Good luck and welcome to the IB.


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[troubletribbles]

Thanks for the useful and encouraging feedback everyone. @starshiptrooper is the job fair you are referring to IB specific?