gozzy

Hi guys
Has anyone on the forum Managed to move to the south island and get a job in teaching. We have been applying for jobs but have been told that nz experience is needed . The agent we are using wants us to move to auckland but we really want to be in the south island close to family. Also as a farmer there will be more work for myself. My wife is getting more and more worried about finding a job the closer it gets to the end of the nz academic year as the job market will shut. any advice in job hunting in nz would be appeciated.
thanks gozzy

j19fmm

Hi gozzy, does your wife have to have a full time permanent job straight off? If not have you tried contacting the Principal in charge of the Relieving List - think its normally one of the Principals in the area. It is frustrating but kind of understandable. Hopefully she can get some Long Term Relieving experience and then get picked up full time from the list. Good luck and let us know how it goes - I'm a teacher wanting a job on the North Island!

gozzy

The agents tell us we need a permanent contract to get residency. so i don't think working on a temporary basis is enough. Good luck with your job hunt in the north island we are looking up there too . But will only stay for the minimum time " If we have too" before moving south.

j19fmm

Can you not get in as a farmer Gozzy?

gozzy

Its not on the skills shortage list. having worked on th efamily farm for the last 20 years i have no references and i messed around when i was at college Wiser now i hind sight. hopeing the agents will pull some thing out of the bag. How are you trying to get ajob. Have you had any feed back?
Gozzy

j19fmm

Just got back from a 10 day visit to Cambridge, Waikato area. Met with nearly all the Principals in the area. They all said the same thing. 'Get on the Relieving List and then if you're any good you'll be lifted off it by one of the schools for a permanent job'. I have applied for one job (took the forms with me) but more as an exercise than anything else, hoping for feedback as not yet in a position to move as need to go through Court for permission to take my children.

southerner

Don't forget you can take the work visa to residency route too. Depending on your circumstances it might be slightly riskier, but might also avoid the need to work in Auckland and the extra costs that would require.


As a matter of interest have the agents explained why exactly NZ experience is needed? Is it the curriculum?

j19fmm

Hi Southerner, do you know if you have to have a permanent job to get a work to residency visa?

southerner

Its not a WTR visa as such, but rather you get a standard working visa, enter the country, get employment (of any sort) and once you have got the offer that gives you enough points, put in your residency application.

Everyone's circumstances (points) are different obviously - but for some it is also possible to get residency without a job offer.

j19fmm

Thank you

cally49

Hey just a thougth and it may be totally useless info for you but on trademe theres a community forum with different sections one of them is farming it might be handy if you wanted to ask questions re farming and some on there are also sometimes looking for skilled workers (theres also a jobs section on trademe) Its like your ebay....As i said might be totally useless information I used to be a dairy farmer by the way (well me and my ex hubby owned a dairy farm) ANd hey who didnt muck around at school lol i was exactly the same.............
www.trademe.co.nz
All the best
Cheers
Cally

Wiz'n'Ton

Hi Gozzy,

Is your partner looking for primary or secondary teaching? If secondary then it shouldn't be too tricky, but from our experience primary is another matter - especially in the highly populated areas. Away from the cities life is a little easier, but perm jobs are still like hens teeth.

We were in exactly the same situation as you guys. Wife a primary teacher, and using an agency to help get us here. Turned out the best bet in their view was for wife to get a perm job, and we apply for residency on that. Of course, we thought that would be easy but it has not been. We came out on working hol visas ,and started applying. Over 60 applications later, she got her first short-term contract through who she knew - not what she knew. On the back of that she has slowly gained a network and the all important 'kiwi-experience' but it has been hard graft. Now, coming up to 2 years in, my missus is still on temp contracts and is close to giving up on it and going back to supply teaching whilst starting her own business.

In the end, we gave up on the agency (who were pretty useless by the way) and I went to immigration myself who told me the job I had got (a recruitment consultant) was enough to get us in on. The agency never even thought of that! Caused us months of stress that did! 6 months on, we have PR all off our own bat.

Good luck, and if we can help in any way or offer more info on finding primary work then drop us a PM.

BEVS

Eh?

Farming is on the shortages lists. Both lists.
What type of farmer are you? It it not necessarily the case that one has a formal qualification . Experience may well hold good. I'm very surprised your 'agent' hasn't told you this.

Do you wish to remain in farming? what type?

What I do feel is that full-time , contracted jobs for primary teachers are few and far between.

Don't settle for Auckland if your heart is not in it. I cannot understand why your agent would try and shoehorn you there.

Without looking back over your posts, what is it you are both hoping for?

i.e. jobs and location

gozzy

Thanks everyone for your advice. I am looking for primary, teaching experience with ages 4 - 9. Agent told us no probs now seems only ok really if we go to Auckland. Want south island. Had a bit of feedback via agent stating want nz experience, want nz teacher. Getting really stressful as am in limbo. Work in school in UK in an area with v challenging children so drained. More annoyed with employment agents than anything, have started emailing schools myself. Actually had 1 good and 1 negative feedback on own, so fingers crossed.

If not got job by Xmas will have to do a major rethink. Wish visa agents could be more helpful, I agree have seen farming on skills shortage list too, but we are not paying them to get us a farming job just a teaching job hence no advice/help in that direction.

Ta Linda

Wiz'n'Ton

Hey Linda,

So if it's primary then I will say right now: Don't wait for Xmas, start your rethink right now.

*In my opinion* the odds of getting a perm teaching job anywhere in the S Island whilst still in the UK, are minimal. Like >5% chance minimal. In our experience the agency will not be able to help you in any real way in finding a perm teaching job. Have you had your teaching qualifications ratified by NZQA, and do you have a teaching number, as in our experience without either of these no school will employ you on a perm basis?

Depending on your answer to the above, you can go one of 2 ways:

1) If you have been NZQA approved, and hold a teaching number, then get over here for a few weeks and start door knocking the schools. Arrange appointments with the head of target area schools in advance whilst in the UK, and whilst on the phone ask them if they know of anywhere you could apply to or if they could reccommend you on. Personal networks and reccommendations are absolutely key here, as adverts don't tell the whole story. As all teaching roles must be advertised by law, even if a school has an internal candidate they know they will put in the role, an advertised vacancy isn't necessarily a 'real' vacancy. To give you an idea - during our 18 months here in ChCh my wife has applied to well over 60 positions and recieved a whole 4 interviews!

2) If you are awaiting the NZQA decision, and have yet to get a teaching number then I would strongly suggest you chase the farming/ dairy route to get over here and get settled, all the while establishing yourself as a strong & talented relief/ supply teacher within the local schools. You can then manoevre yourself to be next in line for a perm job as and when it comes along. The benefit you have is that the schools most in need are rural schools which fits well with the farming side of things.

Sorry to be so negative, but we came out here expecting to get a teaching job within 2 weeks or so - it took over 8 months. We were relying on that job to get us residency - it never happened. In the end we used my job to do that. Looking back I would do things differently, and I would have spoken directly to NZ immigration a LOT more. In my experience agents - whilst handy for busy people - sometimes agents are too fixed in their outlook on the 'best' way into NZ and may not consider all the options.

Feel free to PM us if you want advice on putting together a teaching CV etc. They are SO different here it's untrue!

All the best of luck