Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Been here nearly 18 months, 12 of those as a Permanent Resident and I have just been hired by a local School District:D.

So, if anyone tells you that you it is impossible to get a job as a teacher in BC on the Lower Mainland, they are mistaken.

I am not saying it is easy or quick, but it isn't impossible and I have been hired faster than some Canadians who have been applying for significantly longer.

I won't deny that it is expensive, long-winded and you should expect to have to study again to get a Professional Certificate eventually, but the benefits are well worth it IMHO.

I will be working in my proper profession again after Spring Break and that is a very important milestone for me in feeling settled and at home here in Canada.

(Thanks to P for her support and advice:thumbup:.)

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Congratulations. Persistence pays off!

Permanent or Term teaching position?

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Way to go. I am so proud of you. Keep up the good work. Perserverance and hard work pays off.

Ruby(P)

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Congrats
Well done , can't have been easy for sure

Maybe you could write a summary post or wiki thingy to tell others exactly how you did it :thumbsup:

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Well done!

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

TOC to begin with, which will suit me perfectly.
There are a lot of opportunities coming up I could apply for but, as I am still doing courses until September (with an exam coming up in May), I don't want to commit to a regular post before then.

I also don't know many schools here, so I want to get to see some of them as TOC before I wade in!

There is a shortage of TOC at the moment in my district. One girl I met got hired in October and has been called for work every day since, so I am expecting to be fairly busy, but time will tell.

I only got hired two days before the Spring Break and was called for work both days after, which was a surprise, so I am glad to have the holiday to get myself sorted out:).

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Congratulations!! All your perseverance appears to have paid off!

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Thanks for the congrats, everybody.
:o

No, it wasn't easy and I still have a load of courses to do before they give me a Professional Certificate, but I don't mind that.
I expected to have to jump through hoops and the courses aren't hard if you have a good level of education already.

Getting the BC Teaching Certificate was the longest wait, but getting hired by the School District was the hardest part, in my experience.

The Ministry give you your certificate (eventually) and tell you what you have to study to make it firm, then you think, "Great, I can go get a job now!"

Then you begin to find out that the online application system is the most impenetrable barrier of them all and it is very dispiriting.:thumbdown:

Everyone is different and my way won't work for everyone, I am sure, but I am happy to correspond with anyone who wants some practical advice which worked for me and might work for others.

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

which district?

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Which school district?

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Congratulations.

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Well done,

My OH has her eligibility letter for a permanent teaching certificate, issued by Manitoba, she is going to be interviewed in October for the sub list, with possible permanent jobs next year. MB provincial government's policy on reducing class sizes for Kindergarten are starting to take effect, so looking more positive for teachers in Canada;)

Regards

Andrew

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

My warm congratulations too. I was only thinking of you the other day Hellcat, as I thought that we hadn't heard anything of you for so long. I am glad your time spent away from BE has been put to good use! Well done you!

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Thanks, MillieF and Miss Clinique.
I have been putting everything I can into it and so I am relieved. Hoping and trying is very draining, especially just after emigrating with all the hoping and waiting that entails.

Great that they gave her a Professional Certificate straight away! :starsmile:
Unfortunately, it seems BC has been reducing the number of teachers, compared to other provinces who have been recruiting, and is really lagging behind in reducing class sizes if the figures are to be believed.

My understanding of it here in BC is that they are VERY unlikely to give a Professional Certificate now to those with foreign credentials.
They will issue a Conditional Certificate and expect you to do a load of courses in the first five years to convert it to a Professional Certificate, which is why I am doing the courses now.
That is expensive and with no guarantee of a job, not something everyone can afford to do.

If you can get hired by a School District, you can work in the meantime and the courses do elevate you to the next pay level when they are all done, so the rewards do come eventually.

It is getting hired by the School District which is the major hurdle here.
There are lots of graduates coming out all the time and they seem to fill nearly all the spaces.

For those who want to know which district I am employed in, forgive me if I prefer not to be that precise. Suffice to say it is fairly local, so most of you (the Vancouverites) can relax - I wont be teaching any of your kids:p.

It all kicks off properly tomorrow when school is back in session!:thumbsup:

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Good news helcat12.

I know you are a teacher, but how easy is it to get a job in childcare, like Nursery nurse or social out reach worker??

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Can't help you with any information on that, I'm afraid.I know that you do need to be PR to work with children, but that's all I know about those professions.

Someone on here will know for sure.;)

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Hi, I am new to this so please forgive me, which subject do you teach and what do you mean by courses? Isnt your teaching qualification sufficient enough? I am a senco and autism specialist teacher, do they have council based support services over there? I am really concerned that I will find it very hard to get a job.

Well done on getting employment, it must have been very hard! I hope the term is going well!

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

:lol: welcome to the world of Canadian immigration. You could be a street sweeper and you'd still need to take courses and sit exams to prove you can do it in Canada. :lol:

But no, your UK qualifications wouldn't be enough - it took Helcat 6 months to get her credentials to teach in Canada I believe. Have a look at her past posts for more info.

Best of luck.

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Same with health workers. I have been a nurse and midwife for 30 years in the UK, working in fetal medicine......counts for nothing in Canada! By the time I got back to anywhere near where I was I'll be retiring anyway, so it's minimum wage in Chapter's for me. It keeps me busy :)

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

No, your UK qualification isn't enough.

Being a SENCO also won't count for anything here.
If you say you have a specialism, you need to have studied a separate course equivalent to a Canadian to be able to claim credit for that.

I was a Primary teacher in the UK for ten years. I had passed Threshold, so had proved I was capable of far more than just being a successful classroom teacher but that doesn't count for anything here.

Basically, in the UK, you get promoted for being a good teacher.

Here, in BC at least, you get promoted for being a good student. So, to progress, you need a Masters or additional courses to get onto the higher pay levels.

I am having to do 3 credits of maths, 6 of Lit and Comp, 3 Canadian Geography and 18 credits of teaching methodology.
(Bearing in mind the first 12 credits cost over $3K and 12 credits is a full time course load, you can see how challenging this is.)

Since jobs are also mainly allocated on seniority, for which your UK experience does not count, you will find you are at the back of the queue when you get hired by a School District.
Any fresh grad who was hired the week before you will get a job over you if they apply for it.

You are welcome to PM me if you are thinking of coming to BC and I will give you the full details of what you should expect.:)

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

^^^^____ Exactly the same the other side of the country too.

My wife is Canadian. She graduated with a B.Ed. in Primary & Elementary and moved to the UK where she taught for 5 years. On moving back, she did a second degree in Special Education which is what she has specialised in ever since. (She works primarily with kids who have autism). To progress up the paygrade beyond the mid-point that you get too after n years, she needs a Masters & has recently applied for a Masters programme in Literacy. Once she has the Masters she gets paid more, irrespective of whether she is using it or not. Come to think of it, the same with the Special Ed degree - she could teach in the regular classroom and still get paid extra.

It took her 6 years after moving back to get a full time, permanent, tenured job. Even now, although she teaches at a school 5 mins down the road, as the Provincial Govt recently announced the amalgamation of all the four school boards in Nfld, she could get bumped out of that position by someone with more seniority who wants to move in from somewhere else. As a tenured teacher she's guaranteed a 100% job in the St. John's area just not the one she has now. In teaching, as in all unionised professions, seniority is everything.

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

i
It actually took just over a year from getting PR and putting in my application with the Min of Ed to getting hired by a School District.

I met a girl in the garage who was a Canadian and who had been working in another job for three years while applying to the School District. She had only just been hired:(
I feel quite fortunate to only have been waiting one year compared to that!

Re: Getting in to teaching - it can be done!
 

Ho hellcat,
Can you private message me please as I have tried and can't do it. I would like to know more about teaching in BC.

Thanks
Karen