r/Internationalteachers

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for recommendations for locations where it’s easy to make friends and there’s plenty to do. My biggest concern about moving to an international school is feeling lonely.

I’m a 40 year old single British teacher with no children. I enjoy cycling, hiking, exploring new places, travelling, scuba diving, comedy, theatre and live music. I’d love to live somewhere with a welcoming expat community where people are keen to socialise, whether that’s through sports clubs, diving, hiking groups, or just meeting for food and drinks.

The places I’m currently considering are:
Hong Kong
Singapore
Bangkok
Kuala Lumpur
Taipei

For those who have taught internationally, which destinations have the friendliest teacher/expat communities and the best social scene? Which places make it easiest to build a social life if you’re moving on your own?

I’d also be interested to hear whether schools themselves tend to have a strong social culture, or whether most friendships happen outside of work.

Thanks in advance!

I’m looking for some perspective from other international teachers.

I’m a fully licensed teacher with 4 years of experience. I just finished my first year overseas and have already signed for a second year at my current school.

Here’s how I’d rate things:

Home: 10/10. I absolutely love where I live. Great apartment, nice neighborhood, and everything I need is within walking distance.

City: 6.5/10. It’s safe, clean, beautiful, and I’ve genuinely enjoyed living here. That said, it’s starting to feel boring, and I don’t see it as somewhere I’d want to settle long-term.

School: 6/10. I love my students, but that’s honestly the highlight. My colleagues and administration aren’t a great fit for me, and professionally I don’t feel very inspired. I’m essentially keeping my head down, doing good work, and collecting my paycheck.

Financially, the salary is comfortable enough to live well, but the savings potential is low compared to what I could potentially earn elsewhere.

My current plan is to complete my second year and start applying this fall for jobs beginning the following school year. But lately I’ve been wondering if it would make more sense to stay at my current school for 3 years total or move on after my second year.

For those of you who’ve been in international education for a while:

How long do you typically stay at schools that are “good enough” but not somewhere you love?
Do you prioritize stability for a few years, or do you move once you realize a school isn’t the right fit?

If you were in my situation, would you stay another couple of years or start looking elsewhere after year two?

I’d especially love to hear from people who’ve changed schools early in their international careers. Looking back, what do you wish you had done?

Did you experience many staff members leaving? Or witnessed colleagues being made redundant? I suspect because of the war. Other thoughts?

Hi!

I made a post recently about my situation here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Internationalteachers/s/t8FF152JjZ

To summarise:

My goal is to become a history or humanities teacher in an internaitonal school within the next couple of years (preferably in an IB school as that is where my current experience is). My only teaching experience is 7 year's experience as an EAL teacher in my current school (IB/MYP internaitonal school) but I have no history or humanities experience.

HOWEVER I do have a PGC_E and QTS in History from the UK that I obtained back in 2018 (and my degree is HIstory with English Studies). I just decided at the time that I wasn't ready and went down the EAL path instead.

I know the priority now is to get as much classroom experience in humanities as possible (and luckily my current school has agreed to give me some humanities classes next year along with EAL), but I would also like to do a master's.

Problem is I'm finding it REALLY hard to decide between doing an education MA and a history-related MA, specifically I'm looking at these online courses:

MA Education (Exeter University)

or

MA Global History (University of London SOAS)

Given my goal of becoming a humanities teacher, which MA would look more attractive to international schools? I'm leaning towards the Global History because it aligns really well with IB's Integrated Humanities approach judging by the modules on offer, and I would genuinly enjoy it more, but striclty from an employability standpoint, I have no idea which would be better.

Hey everyone! Would I be able to work at an international school in China or Thailand as a counselor or any other support position with a masters degree in social work? From the research I have done so far, it appears can only get a teaching job at an international school with a teaching license in your home country. What opportunities would be available to someone like me with a masters degree in social school and experience in child welfare ?

Hi everyone, my wife is a Kindergarten teacher and got an interview for above school. We are based in Tashkent (as expats) and will be relocating to Georgia if this works out.

Has anyone worked here before or know someone who has and can share any feedback about the school? Thank you for your time!

I am thinking of doing a primary P G C E. My bachelors degree is in Sociology. I heard that now Kuwait and Qatar have required primary school teachers to have a bachelors degree in education or a bachelors degree in English, Maths or Science with a primary P G C E. I have a CELTA and a MA in TESOL & Applied Linguistics. I am looking for ESL positions in the Gulf Arab region. Is it worth pursuing the primary P G C E or shall I just pursue ESL positions in the Gulf? Im worried that if I get a primary P G C E, I will get rejected by the aforementioned countries for not having a relevants bachelors degree. I would appreciate advice from teachers who are working in those countries. Thank you.

The school will violate its contract and then harass you for complaining about the contract conditions not being met and threaten to terminate you. The environment is highly toxic and allows students to assault, stalk, and injure teachers, and refuses to discipline students. Teachers have been hospitalized because of injuries and the school refuses to cover the medical bills and will blame the teacher for being injured. If any complaints are filed, the school punishes teachers with extra work and then harasses the teachers into silence and force the teacher to remove the complaint. The school will dock pay from teachers based on their opinion of performance and will deny sick pay even with medical documentation, even if it is listed in the contract. The administration is extremely abusive and treats teachers like they are worthless. The administration harasses teachers constantly and will have the staff harass teachers as well. The administration spies on teachers constantly and will monitor social media of all the teachers for anything that they do not agree with. The leadership of the school has never been teachers; they are career bureaucrats. If a student’s grade is too low, they will force the teacher to change it. The yearly turn overrate is 100% among the foreign staff. Even if you complete your contract, and leave quietly, the administration will have their staff reach out to all schools in the city, and tell them to not hire you; not acting as a reference, but proactively making sure that no one will hire you. Several qualified teachers/colleagues have lost opportunities because of this. You have been warned.

The pay is also low, hours are long, and abuse is constant. If you decide to ignore this warning, ask for nothing less than 5000.00 lari per month.

Looking back at your international school history, what are the top 3 pieces of advice you would want give to the younger colleagues or yourself?

Curious as to how many holidays everyone gets at different schools.

I'm in Vietnam and currently get 6 weeks for summer, 1 in October, 2 Christmas, 2 Lunar New Year, 2 March/Easter plus four 4-day weekends due to public holidays. So in total around 14 weeks off. Still kinda hate how short our summer holiday is.

Hello,

So, I was on another thread a couple of days ago, and like so many, we all have had to sort through the weeds of the offerings in the job pools. I have learned so many lessons about when I apply to some of these schools. I will list some of what I found to be important, and feel free to add to it.

1. Dont just look at the LinkedIn. Also, look at the reviews left by other teachers. Many times, this will help you to know the type of environment this is. You may feel like it is a good fit, as no place will ever be perfect, however, you may also, at the very least, be able to have a glimpse into the school.

2. Ask questions that are open ended as well as those that require yes or no. Write down at least 5 questions so that you can understand what is expected of you. When you are asking these questions, make sure you are listening to what is being said. Write down anything you need to follow up on. If the person isnt answering questions in a clear way, ask for clarity. If it is still unclear, dont take the job unless you get the answer from someone else. Most of the time, them not answering, is the answer...

3. Insert your personality into the conversation. People arent just working with you as a teacher, you will also work together as people. It may not seem like it, but 30 mins is a long enough time to figure out if your personalities will go together well.

4. Think about what you need and listen to any benefits that are listed. I have noticed that some will not clearly state these benefits. In those cases, I didn't accept the offers, as I cannot put myself and family in the position to be in a bad situation.

I hope all of this helps!

It’s July and I’m still wrapping up the year with useless meetings and workshops after students are long gone. Feeling super disappointed to only have 1 month off. Is this typical for international schools??

It’s making me reconsider where I want to work in a year or two.

How long is everyone’s summer break, and do you consider vacation time when job hunting??

EDIT: WOW thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences, and validating how I’m feeling.

FYI I have 185 contact days, and 210 working days.

Reading everyone’s responses I definitely feel I have the short end of the stick and will be applying for something more aligned for 2027 🌟

IBPYP coordinator made accusations about me. Teacher's...no principal's pet! I denied everything. What a loser for lurking on Reddit trying to throw people under the bus by reporting to the loser. Nobody likes you at work. Get a life. I know you are reading this.

I’ve recently accepted a position and will soon be moving to Bucharest. I’ve read virtually all the posts here to help prepare me, so I am well aware of the problems with traffic, people’s personal gripes and the issues with visa processes so I’m not really interested in negative tales - I’d love to hear peoples success stories and what makes the city great?
What makes your school special?
What’s a good weekend look like?
What is the wider community like (both expat and Romanian)?
What is one authentic Romanian thing you’ve grown to really love?

Again, let’s keep things positive!

I don't know what to do. I am set up for a job in Dubai making 11k dirham (2500€) tax free with free accommodation or I can take a job with EMG in Ho chi min making 52Million dong (1750€) before tax and I will have to rent. Any advice from anyone who has done either job or maybe even worked in both?

Hi everyone,

I’m hoping to move from the U.S. to Bangkok in the next couple of school years and would really appreciate input from anyone who has taught (or is currently teaching) at an international school there.

A little about me:

-U.S.-licensed 4th-12th Social Studies teacher
-6 years of public high school teaching experience
-AP World History teacher with strong AP scores (consistent 90%+ pass rates with cohorts of over 80 tested students per year),
-Experience teaching Geography and Government, too
-Single with no kids
-Master of Education plus History Graduate Certificate
-Community college adjunct teaching experience
-However, no international school teaching experience (yet)

My priorities, in order, are:

-Teaching either middle school or high school social studies courses
-A salary/benefits package that allows a comfortable lifestyle (travel, dining out, saving some money, etc.).
-Professional trust and autonomy. I really value an administration that treats experienced teachers like professionals. I’m hoping to avoid environments where teachers are constantly submitting lesson plans or dealing with excessive micromanagement.
-A reasonable work-life balance.
-A location that allows me to live in or near central Bangkok
-A realistic chance of being hired despite not having previous international school experience.

These are the schools currently on my list that Chat GPT helped me narrow down (please don’t judge, my brain is currently on lackadaisical, summer break mode lol):

ASB Sukhumvit
St Andrews Sukhumvit
Bangkok Prep
NIST
Shrewsbury Riverside
Garden International
Wells On Nut
Aster International
KIS Bangkok
King’s College Bangkok
SPIP
New Sathorn International

For anyone who has worked at or knows these schools:

-Do these schools seem to fit my parameters?
-Are there any of these that you would avoid, and why?
-Are there any schools I’m overlooking that you think should potentially be on this list?
-And do you think I’d stand a chance at landing a job at these schools with my current resume?

Thanks so much in advance! I really appreciate any insight you can share.

Curious to hear what would you add. From my experience over the years, these are some of the main red flags:

• Toxic environment - favoritism - nepotism
• Micromanagement leading to disengagement
• Poor quality control, inconsistency, constant changes without planning
• Hysterical leadership lacking expertise and ineffective
• Burnout culture
• High turnover - usually hidden during interviews
• Gossip and bootlicking culture - mainly from underqualified teachers
• Loyalty over competence - appearance over learning - profit over quality
• Big gap between marketing image and reality
• Cliques
• High drama
• Long meaningless meetings and deceptive conversations leading nowhere

These are the sort of red flags that,if you take your profession seriously and have any respect for what you do, should probably tell you.... it's time...

A research to understand to what extent different people might tolerate some or even all of these red flags, and at what point they could become dangerous to a career.

Hey everyone, as I prepare for my first hiring season, I find myself becoming a bit nervous.

For context, Ive been teaching ESL for almost 7 years in South Korea. I've finally got my certification, am about to start a M. Ed (University of the People), and am excited to finally become a "real" teacher.

However, ESL classes are quite different than a primary education environment. Theres more students, more responsibilities, and generally more pressure to ensure competence.

I love teaching, I've had many positive experiences with student rapport, and have made strong impressions at my hagwons with management and study body. I am very enthusiastic about finally making this change. But I'm just getting a bit nervous when I think of the difference between my "after-school ESL" experience versus a bona fide educational environment.

So, I'm just looking for experiences people have had making the switch. How did you find the class sizes? Did you find it harder to engage with the classes? Did you notice a difference between coworkers?

Any of your insight would be great to hear! Thank you!

Career Advice: UK PGC + UK Experience vs. Sunderland iPGC (with iQ*S) for Top-Tier International School in Hong Kong**

Hi everyone,

I'm at a crossroads and would really appreciate some honest advice from experienced teachers, especially those familiar with the Hong Kong international school market.

Background:
I'm a non-native English speaker with a strong academic record from a UK top-tier university and high IELTS scores (overall 8.5). I'm trying to choose between two routes to get my teaching qualification, with the goal of returning to Hong Kong/Asia to secure a teaching post at a top-tier international school.

Option 1: UK PGC with QTS*
Move to the UK to do a traditional PGC* with QTS at a top-tier university, then ideally stay there for several years to gain teaching experience and possibly PR before returning to Hong Kong.

Option 2: Sunderland iPGC with iQS**
Stay in Asia and do the University of Sunderland's iPGC* with iQ*S while continuing to teach here.

My Concern:

For Option 1, my main worry is that I might not land a position at a good/competitive primary school to beef up my CV. Given how competitive top-tier international schools in Hong Kong are, I feel like there's only a solid chance of getting hired if I've taught at a strong school overseas. If I end up at an average UK school, will the UK PGC* + experience still give me a meaningful advantage over candidates who took the iPGC* route and have been building experience in Asia?

I plan to work for another 4-5 years, preferably at a school, before transitioning to retirement. Assuming I retire around 2030/2031, which cities or countries offer a reasonable cost of living where I can rent a home, purchase local health insurance, and live comfortably on a monthly retirement budget of USD 2,500 to 3,000? I am particularly interested in locations that provide good opportunities to work at Tier 1 or 2 schools during those final working years while also offering a smooth transition into retirement. I'll be 58 when I retire.