markhaggis

Can anyone tell me how easy it is for me to gain employment, in the US, as an English Teacher. I have just qualified to teach English at secondary school level. I'm aware I have to get my qualifications recognized by the state I wish to work, but does anyone know if there is anything else I need to do or have already moved to the US as a Teacher?

christmasoompa

Hi Mark and welcome to the forum,

Short answer is not a hope in hell!

Long answer is do a search of the forums and you'll find lot of other people have posted the same question before and been told just how difficult it is. Unfortunately, very few schools would be prepared to sponsor somebody for a visa (at a cost of thousands of dollars) and wait 6 months for them to start work. Plus, even if you could find a sponsor, the only visa you'd be eligible for wouldn't allow you to start until October, a month after term starts.

Have a read of this to understand the various visa categories and to see just how difficult it is to get a working visa for the US........................http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Pulaski's_Ways:_How_to_Live_and_Work_in_the_USA

Have you considered another country? The US is notoriously hard to get in to, but there are other options. Oz or NZ maybe?

Best of luck.

caleyjag

Pretty much your only real chance of working in the US, aside from marrying an American, is to find a teacher exchange program. This would let your work somewhere in the US for a year, although you have limited ability to select where - it'll just be wherever the exchange is to.

I do not really have a feeling for how competitive these programs are to get on, but I do know a few people that have successfully found a place (usually to New York).

penguinsix

As others have said, it's not likely to happen short of marriage. However, if you continue your studies and get a PhD and start to teach at the college level then some doors may open.

another bloody yank

We already speak English.




No smartass comments needed.

Rete

hehe then I can't say: "Or a version thereof?"

Duncan Roberts

Get a visa. Unless you marry an American I say your chances of getting one are 0.

meauxna

Dammit, you owe me a coffee!
(to make up for the one I just spit all over the monitor)

ddavies73

I managed to get a H1B visa, and worked for the full 6 years. However, I encountered a huge issue with getting a green card.

The rules for the school district was so restrictive, and not to mention costly, the district could not justify sponsoring me. They felt it would be easier, and cheaper, to hire an USC and pay for my flight back! This was also before the economic crisis, so I can imagine it is worse now.

There are the exchange programs which give you the experience of working and living in the US. However, the majority offer J1 visas and so you will have to leave at the end of the "exchange".

celticgrid

Everything else aside, if NY state is anything to go by then there are soon to be quite a few teachers out of work, so the job market for you is about to take a serious dive. It's getting tough everywhere.

We're busy fighting to get the school district not to cut some of their enrichment programs - which will suffer because they are due to reduce the teacher headcount and won't have the staff to support the program.

Bluegrass Lass

There are no shortages of English teachers Mark. You have a slim to none chance unless you have a US sweetheart to marry.

newcomer

I know British Schools of America recruit teachers from the UK.

artisanvip

I was just about to post the same thing, one of my friends has a job teaching children of primary school age in Chicago. I think they look at where you train for suitability, my friend was teaching in inner city London and I think that helped him in his application.

Octang Frye

Spat.

If only there were people who could come over here and teach the native Americans to talk properly...

meauxna

If you insist... ok, put up your dukes.



Or is it handbags at dawn?