tynajon

Hi, Im a young primary school teacher & in my 2nd year of teaching. Im in the middle of applying for a state sponsored visa for Victoria, Australia & expect to be out there by Sept 2008. Im currently in the research stage of deciding where to live and working out how to get a job. Is there anyone out there who is from England & teaches in Victoria? How realistic is it to secure a teaching job before getting to Oz? Any advice would be much appreciated.
Kind regards
Tyna

NickyP

Hi there I am teaching in NSW but am living in Victoria (on the border) I completed by Grad Dip in Victoria and would suggest that you register with this site http://www.eduweb.vic.gov.au/hrweb/c.../advacsSCH.htm and they will email you jobs as they come up. Not all of these jobs are really available as some are rollovers of temporary positions but don't be put off by that just keep plugging away. It is worth making contact with any schools that you are interested in before submitting an application as it is often a case of them being able to remember something about the application when they come to it (especially out here in the country). It is a lovely place to work here and it is well worth putting in the groundwork and perhaps looking outside of Melbourne a little as the work becomes more easy to get and often the smaller communities are more friendly.
You might also want to check out http://www.independentschools.com.au...dbdc4c0b945cac for private schools and catholic schools are usually advertised through their respective catholic education authorities.
Good luck and if you want any specific info on country Vic then give me a PM.
Nicky

quoll

It is always going to be easier to find teaching jobs in places that other people dont want to teach in - smaller towns are going to be in less demand than the more popular suburbs of Melbourne for example. As a fairly new teacher you will have a bit of an advantage because you wont cost as much (salary) to the school as will a teacher with more years experience. School based management means that the schools will get the best they can for the money they have. This may equate to you only getting short term contracts (I have a feeling they cost the school less too) because making you permanent may be more expensive for them. My SIL and an ex colleague, both very experienced (ie top of the pay scale) and very good teachers with a range of specialist skills are finding it hard to get jobs in Ballarat for example - one of the bigger towns with plenty of people prepared to live there. Smaller towns than that will be a better option - places like Orbost down in the east of Gippsland really appeal to me but you may not mind drier, dustier places like Wedderburn in the Golden Triangle. Places like Bendigo, Geelong, Wodonga are all going to be similar to Ballarat and have more teachers than vacancies I would think.

If you can show on your cv that you have training in a particular specialization - special ed, behaviour management, reading recovery etc etc then you will be more marketable too.

Remember that you will be coming over at the beginning of the last term for the year so all the staffing will have been done for this year - the best you could hope for would be a term's contract with the hope of finding something for next year when you arrive (school year Jan - Dec).

tynajon

Thank you to both sets of advice. I am looking at heading to the north east & dont mind the more rural set up. I will be looking for work to commence in the new school year & use the time before that to gain some general supply/volunteer work just for experience. I am obviuosly prepared to compete for jobs but have no idea if the interview process is similar to the UK? Any ideas?

sniffydog

Looking to move to Vic - when are the main jobs for Jan 09 advertised?
Thanks