Hello all,

First of all, I'd like to say how much I appreciate the insights this site's community offers. Navigating the world of international education is tricky, but this forum has made it much more manageable. My boyfriend and I are both teaching in China and are beginning the arduous process of thinking about the 2015-2016 school year. Any advice from experienced teachers and/or administrators would be very helpful. Here goes...

The situation:
We have been working at an international division of a prominent local school in Shanghai. Both of us are certified teachers in the US (him secondary SS and me K-6) and have quickly worked our way up the ranks earning department head titles. We are very comfortable here, but would like to work at a higher quality school. Both of us will have 5 years teaching experience after this year (all of his experience has been at this school, and I taught 1 year in the States). He has his MAT, but I only have a bachelors degree. We intend to make a career out of international education.

There are a few avenues that we are thinking of exploring. One would be joining ISS or Search and attending one of the fairs in Boston. Another option is returning to the States for a few years to teach in my home state and then returning abroad. This would allow me to pay back a university loan through service by teaching in the public school system. I would also use this time to beef up my credentials by getting my masters degree and adding on another licensure like SPED (both could be done fairly cheaply and locally).

My questions:
1) If we were to go ISS/Search route, how would we compare with the typical candidate at the Boston fair? Would we garner any attention from quality schools?
2) Of course masters + experience makes for the ideal teaching candidate, but, in the opinion of others, how valuable is one over the other?
3) If we were to go back to the States for a few years, would this look strange on a resume to an administrator? How hard is it to get back into the international school scene after teaching in the US?
4) Would experience in the States carry the same weight as experience abroad? Or does it depend on the quality of the school?
5) For someone in her 20s, what is the ROI of getting a masters degree at a brick and mortar school vs. online?

Thanks for reading (I know it's long). Feel free to comment on any/all of the above points. I appreciate your help!

To clarify, if I went the TA route for the next school year, my boyfriend would stay in his current position.

Hello all,

My boyfriend and I are both trained teachers with 4 years teaching experience each. For the last few years (4 for him/3 for me), we have been teaching at an international division of a local Chinese high school here in Shanghai, each of us earning leadership roles in our departments (him - history, me - elementary). While we've enjoyed our time here, and the school improves each year, there is still a lack of resources, accountability, etc. Our long-term goal is to teach internationally, and we've realized that we are not longer being pushed professionally where we are. Through some unfortunate circumstances, we missed several of the big fairs and can't afford to go to London or the ones in the US. We've sent out dozens of applications, but the offers we received were from less reputable schools for less pay. The best opportunity I've received, career-wise, is a potential TA position at a top-tier school in Shanghai (much lower pay, but great benefits & could eventually lead to a teaching position). Though several friends have turned their noses up at being a TA, I recognize that, at this point in my career, humility and hard work can only lead to good things, and, hey, everyone's gotta start somewhere.

As the end of the school year draws closer, I'm afraid our standards are getting lower and our options are becoming fewer. So, my question is this: do we stay in Shanghai and hope that me starting out at the very bottom will translate into positions at this school for both of us in the future? Or, do we go back to teach in the US for a few years, beef up our credentials a bit more, and try our hand at the job fairs again in a few years? Any advice is appreciated!