Personally, I would not call this a Tier 1 school - but what I think a Tier 1 school is different than the next person.

So is it a good school? Yes it is.

Can you save money? Definitely. But with an increase in taxes and lowering of the Yen, international savings have taken a hit.

Would I personally work at this school? Yes I would.

Note that quite a few embassy kids go here - but there is also a sizeable Japanese population. However, this is true of ALL international schools in Japan (apart from the embassy kids).

The best schools in Japan are probably ASIJ and YIS. This is closely followed in no particular order by: St Mary's, Seisen, Canadian Academy, Osaka Senri, Nishimashi and St Maur's.

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

I've managed to have a few conversations with some recruiters at my current fair before the interview signups. I'm starting to think this is the best time to speak to them before the fun and games of interviews starts.....

Hi All,

I'll be attending my second job fair soon and I'm quite confident about approaching schools about getting interviews and such. However - I also like to network a little with some of the schools which are of interest to me but currently do not have any jobs which will be suitable for me this year.

If anyone is a recruiter here - do you think it is a good thing or an annoyance if a person comes up quickly and introduces themselves, say they would like to work for your school someday and then leaves you along? I would only approach if there was not a line of course....

Any thoughts??

It's really up to you. If it's a good school and your happy with the job - then I'd seriously consider it. Many of the better schools are starting to employ heavily before the job fairs so they get the best of who is available.

On waiting for a fair - it really depends on the fair. I've attended a major fair and was a bit underwhelmed as it was very much a meat market. For myself personally - I prefer trying to get employed before the job fair and use the fair as a backup in case I don't get what I want....

Building on what shadow jack mentioned, it is quite hard to save money in Europe which may become more important as you get closer to retirement. Some of the major Asian cities are fantastic places to live and have great savings potential.

Do however note that some schools in Asia have even more people applying for them then those in Europe, but there are many more tier 2 schools where you can get a start. I guess it's important to realise that you probably won't get into the best schools from the beginning - but it is possible.

Sorry PGrass,

I have to disagree with you on some things. Most schools charge fees in local currencies which means if the local currencies fluctuate that they don't have an extra 30% just lying around to pay their staff extra.

My last school (in a first world country) was a well respected non-profit school and pays the majority of their income (80+%) of teacher wages. They also charge in their local currency which means that if their currency devalues there is not much they can do about it.

As such - demanding extra money from the school will not get you far. However, making the board aware of the financial pressures and many staff not renewing their contract often does make a difference at many of the better schools. I also mentioned it in a previous post - we agreed to a contract and have to take the good with the bad.

Also remember that we truly are a commodity in international teaching - which sounds callous but is true. There is a excess of teachers out there which means schools can choose who they want, but lower paying schools tend to get what their pay packets dictate...

Unfortunately this is something that happens in International teaching. I used to live in a country where I was paid in the local currency and was lucky for 2 of my three years as my home currency was weak but the currency of my school's country was strong. Then the US dollar strengthened and my school's country decided to devaluate (basically cutting my wage by 40% from the highs 18 months previously).

Unfortunately - this is just something that happens and we need to take this under consideration when deciding to sign a new contract....

Others may know more - but I can definitely say that 50 IS NOT TOO LATE to start teaching overseas. As mentioned before, schools like a good mix of experience from older teachers and enthusiasm from younger teachers.

I will say that there is starting to be quite a lot of competition for Elementary positions and your experience will be a hinderance and advantage. It will be a hinderance as you will be more expensive than employing a younger teacher, but you will more likely be picked up by a non-profit school which looks more for the right fit and experience than for-profit schools "might do".

Non-profit schools are normally seen as the better schools to work for - but it really depends on the school. As such - it's important to do your research when making your final decision. Also - if your husband has some experience in counselling then this may make you much more employable as a couple. Some jobs like Physics, Mathematics, Special Ed, Tech Integration and to some degree Counselling are in demand so some schools will employ these positions first and not even advertise jobs such as Elementary, English or Humanities to get that specialist teacher.

Joining up to Search Associates or the like is a good idea - but I'd do it soon as schools are employing now!

Also remember that what I mentioned above is just my opinion - so some people may disagree so take it as a grain of salt.

As the whole point of a job fair is to interview for positions, I'd say it's pivotal that you both attend if you both want job. If your partner is not after a job, it will not be as much of a problem but would still be helpful.

Also note that many schools have high startup costs such as setting up an apartment which should be considered when applying for positions....

This is a 'for profit' school from memory. I interviewed with them last year in person and the HOS did not contact me to say if I was successful or not which was a little disappointing even after emailing politely to confirm that I had not been successful. It's just something to think about.....

I don't know that much about the school - but I do know that it does take it's "Christian Values" to heart when employing people. As such, they highly prefer to employ practicing christians to the best of my knowledge....

I've heard back from a couple of schools, along with being contacted by a couple. However, most schools have not responded and unfortunately this is common. The past few weeks are also often the most busy time of the semester as the school winds down for winter holidays. Schools are writing reports and the such so most schools are focussed on getting a list of jobs ready and do not focus on employing until a little later.

Some schools have contacted me because I'm in an area of high need (Science/Math), but there has been a big difference in quality in the schools that have contacted me....

It's possible - but it does not have to be. My last school had 3 Science and 2 Math positions which is roughly have of both departments together last year, but ISM is a larger school. My old school will probably have no movements in these departments for 2/3 years....

Are you going to the Melbourne fair??

The only reason I ask is that I have noticed that a couple of the schools are not presenting, but the timetable has not been updated since ISB and SAS pulled out.

There are a couple of reasons why schools don't present. One is a lack of time (only certain places) as only a limited number of schools can present, or the school may only have one person visiting the fair. I'm guessing this is common for smaller schools and smaller fairs like Melbourne.

If you want to chat about the Melbourne Fair feel free to PM me....

Thanks for the feedback guys.

I currently teach a subject which has some demand (Science/Math) plus I have a little bit of experience (5 years internationally). I've already dealt with the reference and I know that there are not bad (I got my current job and some interviews with top schools with the same references!) so I'm not too worried about it.

I guess I was just interested in peoples experiences as I also got my current job through a school contacting me. My current school is interesting - plus the job is not a great fit thus the reason looking for another job (even though the school wants me to stay longer)....