vikk

Hello, I have loads of questions about the actual process of applying for (infant) teaching jobs in QLD. I have downloaded & read all of the info from the relevent teaching sites & I'm currently waiting on a few references in order to begin my state & government teacher registrations. (A visa would be lovely too! Hint, hint you lovely DIMIA people!). I will (hopefully!?) be moving to Brisbane / surrounding areas entirely by myself this summer and so I have begun meeting some lovely people who will also be emigrating so that on arrival I will not feel so completely alone. BUT what concerns, ok-scares the living daylights out of me is the whole 'country service' process whereby in order to get a teaching job I'll be posted to some vague remote place hundreds of miles away from any of the lovely people who I am just beginning to get to know. I understand that this is the rule & I don't expect to be treated any differently from anyone else but is there anybody on here who has emigrated out there & done country service who can shed a little bit of light on all of this? What were your experiences of this & isn't it a bit difficult having to arrive in a new country, find somewhere to live to do your 40 days supply / casual in one place & then be shot across the state for 2 years to the back of beyond? I thought QLD were supposed to be crying out for teachers? Help! what's the reality? :scared:

dawn kirbyshire

i think you can say where you would like to go, it will just restrict the job offers. i'm really replying to bump you to the top. somebody must have done this! i'm planning to go as soon as the summer term ends. so long as the meds are ok etc.

jad n rich

Hang on, aussie teachers are expected to do their bit outback (and you dont choose the bit) so why not immigrants This BTW is not just for QLD but many states/professions.

Everyone keeps saying they want australias big open spaces, but not many actually want to move anywhere other than the suburbs and cities, which are already packed to overflowing anyway. You see that is why we have the rule!

There are teachers who have come out and chipped out a career going from supply jobs or one temp contract to the next but if you want a permanant possy in a beaut place where everyone wants to live then do your bit like the aussies!

blossom

What about a teaching job in a private school, would that be easier? Just a thought - can't imagine that the state can dicatate within the private sector.

Good luck

Blossom

vikk

Thanks very much for your replies. I had considered the private sector & would like to do supply in a few private schools if this is possible to get a feel for the different sorts of schools out there as they tend to be very different in different areas. It was a relief to hear that I will be able to refuse some locations, I wasn't aware of this. I am sorry that I seem to have offended you jad n rich it wasn't my intention. I have many private & personal reasons for wanting to go to Australia but never once said or even considered going for the wide open spaces, such a pity that those people who are seeking that don't go & take up all the remote jobs! You also appear to have misunderstood me slightly. I said I was aware 'country service' was the rule & specifically stated that I didn't expect to be treated any differently from anyone else.

The reason I wrote the post was because I know how home sick I will be & simply wanted someone out there to give me a little bit of advice & reassurance beforehand & maybe to share their experiences on the subject, not to find ways in which to queue jump in front of the Australian teachers.

Dawn I have sent you a PM.

dawn kirbyshire

yes that was a bit harsh! i've re read the initial post and can not see how you would get the impression that the poster wanted special treatment, unless you were particularly anxious to find fault. as far as i can see vikk, like me and several others i've noted over the months, is concerned about just how 'country', country is. there doesn't seem to be an info about just what kind of areas this refers to. so i would have thought that a much more helpful reply, particularly from someone who knows so much, would have been along these lines.

dawn kirbyshire

this is a bit sad, i'm replying to myself. just found this posted by ushas on 25/11/04

3) If you wish to teach in the state system and you wish to teach in Bunbury area you may experience some difficulties. Bunbury is NOT Perth and is a country posting. Unfortunately it is also one of the most saought after areas for country postings. If you wish to be granted Permanency you need to do 2 years country service. Yes this can be got around if you can show why you need to be posted in Perth. You do not get to 'choose' your country posting. You nominate various areas on a preferred choice basis and they then delegate postings. You can refuse postings but then you will be put at the bottom of the pile again. Perhaps getting registered you can then offer to do relief (supply) work in the area. You should find this gives quite a good income so long as you're good.

it was a good thread but about perth.

vikk

Thank you so much Dawn. I have done a search on here for 'country service' but there isn't much information at all. So if there are any teachers out there who have some - or any knowledge or experience on 'country service' then please get in touch. Just how 'country' is country & what are the standards like?

steandleigh

Hi Vikk,

a member on here called 'leejo' is a teacher in QLD ( Cairns actually, but it's QLD all the same! ) and I'm sure if you PM her ( Jo, not Lee!!! ) she'll reply and give you the lowdown on what it all entails. I do know that it took Jo quite a while to sort out all the necessary paperwork when she got here, so she's probably the best one to talk to.

( And shes a good gal too - have had a beer with her!!! So don't worry, she won't bite!!! ).

Best wishes, Leigh. x

teach

Hiya Vikk,
Don't get yourself in tangle chick. I know what you have been going through as I have panicked over this too. I am now registered and ready to go, just have the slight (yeah right) problem of the house to sell. From the info that I have been given, which is not much, anywhere out of CBD can be classed as country, apparently it depends on the school. Which seems a bit odd to me and have been told to contact the schools in the area in which I want to live and they will let me know if they are country or not. I got this info from the QLD board. Just hang on in there, don't get yourself stressed out, I'm sure it will all become clear once you are there. That's the thought I'm hanging onto anyway. Good luck.
Sarah

vikk

Thank you so much again.

Sarah that is absolutely fantastic news! I thought I'd be sent to the outback! Miles from anywhere. :scared: Do you have the website address of where you got that info from? I have searched the education Queensland site but I don't seem to be able to find anything tangible. Please keep in touch and let me know how the whole process unfolds I'm desperate to find out the in's and out's of it all.

Leigh thanks for your info I will PM Jo (Leejo) now & see what she can tell me. I'm hoping to have received all of my references from my past schools by this Friday as it is our half term so I can spend my week sorting the paperwork out for my teacher registration. So hopefully at least some of my paperwork should be in order by the time I get over there. (If those lovely DIMIA people ever grant my visa that is.)

Thanks for taking the time to reply Vikk

teach

Hiya Vikk,
I got the info from the kind people on the phone at the Qld Board of Registration. They were a little vague but still put my mind at ease.
Best of luck getting registration sorted, all I sent was all my NOOSR stuff and it came back a few weeks later.
Best Wishes
Sarah

jad n rich

It wasnt ment to be harsh, its just being australian, and part and parcel of that is we have a large outback to service too. Country service can be anwhere in the state you choose, qld for example you could get sent 12 hours inland, 20 hour north or even off the coast to islanders, most teachers here have done a few years in remote locations, same with promotions, want one it may involve moving outwards once again. Its just all part of life in australia and our graduates and professionals have to accept that.

Brissiegirl

as has been mentioned, you can say where you'd prefer to go.. but some areas are far more preferable, and therefore harder to get permanent jobs in. E.g. Tamborine are would be rather nice, as would Samford etc, and areas along the coast, but inland you'd get a job pretty quick, and it'd be an experience. Some research into different country towns/regions of Qld would be good, as you may find somewhere that would be nice to experience Australian 'country' lifestyle, but wouldn't be too scary.

I was keen to do my country service straight after I qualified (I was doing teacher training at Queensland Uni of Technology).. but I left Qld for the UK before finishing my degree...

vikk

Thanks Teach, How long did your registration take to come through? & didn't you need a permanent add in Oz to register? The paperwork looks that way, but maybe I'm wrong?

Jad n Rich, I thought your reply was a little bit harsh too but then i had, had a particularly bad day when I first read your reply & I am very grateful that you actually took the time to give your opinion 7 insight on the matter. There are a lot of things that are part & parcel of life which we all must accept, but sometimes it just helps if you know what to expect & that really is all that i'm trying to find out.

Brissie girl, I think you are 100% correct I do need to begin researching towns/regions of Qld, with the idea of finding somewhere that wouldn't be too scary. :scared: BUT when Teach contacted the QLD board of teacher registration she was told that "anywhere out of CBD can be classed as country, apparently it depends on the school." & she was told to contact schools in the area in which she wanted to live and they would let her know if they are country or not. Surely there has to be some logic to this though doesn't there? Does anyone have a list or something?

The more I try to research, the more confussed I'm becoming? Has anyone got any answers?????