Yes, I lived there and worked there. It takes a real love of Italy to enjoy it, as most of the schools in the country are retched and pay and benefits are even worse. Currently, each of the big international schools in each big city has its own idiosyncratic problems. My favorite - sort of like my favorite illness to get is a cold and not flu, bronchitis, or pneumonia - is St. Stephen's School in Rome. Most intellectual (owing to the fact that it is upper school only and draws from very cosmopolitan families, as it is right next to the UN building in Rome) for sure. Otherwise, go ready to enjoy Italy but not get too emotionally involved in how horrible your school is or co-workers are or the fact that you are paid so little. I love Italy, I mean LOVE. But even I could not last long working there. TASIS Switzerland is the one to aim for if you want Italy. It is in Switzerland (!), right across the lake from Italy. The Italy of your dreams is actually in Switzerland. Ciao.

I think this will be my last contract in Europe. I want to wrap things up closer to home in America. I am thinking South America, particularly, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, or Brazil.

Do we have any South America experts on here who can comment not on the tiers of schools in these countries, but rather the personalities of schools in these countries? I know this is a completely subjective question as each school has its good and bad points and I am not looking for the Stanford of South America here. I just want to get a lay of the land in terms of the major players, some hidden gems, and the populations these schools do or don't attract. Are some more sporty? Others more academic? Some have a lot of turn-over compared to competitors? Too few locals? Too many locals? This flavor of content is what I am looking for. My context is mainly Europe since that is where I have been for so long. I look forward to your thoughts. Thanks!

I had the chance over the last two weeks to visit all of the schools that I mentioned in my initial post. They all had pros and cons, as do all schools. I recommend that all international teachers visit schools they are interested in before they accept jobs at those schools, though this is expensive of not possible for most. While I have learned a great amount, and all individuals commenting on this thread have given additional valuable insight, I would like to state just one thing for the public record: I worked for nearly a decade in an actual Ivy League university; ASM is not an international school "ivy" in any way. Having now visited over forty-five international schools in Europe alone and spoken with most of their admins and staff, I would not classify any of them as an international school "ivy." Their staffs and students just don't come close. Some are very good. Many are very overrated. In the US there are a good number of such "ivy" private schools, particularly in NY, NJ, PA, MD, DC, VA, CA, and a few other states. This is a result of deeply-embedded communities of hyper-competitive/hyper-intelligent and hyper-educated populations that live in these areas and institutions that have markedly lower turn-over than even the best Euro school. In our interconnected and progressive world it is easy to forget that culture matters and people of different cultures are different. Even the most international of Euro schools still has too few American students/parents/staff members to hold a candle to America's finest private schools. The end.

Do any strong and respected English-language international schools maintain a bespoke curriculum that does not include the IB, AP, or British Curriculum? Back in the day most international schools had their own curricula but clearly one-size fits all is the trend these days for a variety of good and not so good reasons. I am just trying to find out if there are any independent hold-outs that have enough faith and confidence in their home-grown curricula that they don't feel the need to offer the IB, AP, etc.

Best and Worst of London Fair 2015:

Best Looking Recruiter Male: Head of School, Esbjerg International School
Best Looking Recruiter Female: Dean of Students, American School of Madrid
Worst Food: Anything in the fair hotel
Best School with Worst Presentation: TASIS Switzerland - M. Crist Fleming was rolling in her grave
Worst Experience: Waiting for an elevator next to recruiter who just rejected you
Best Experience: Leaving the fair
Best Associate: Diana Kerry
Worst Associate: Oh, there are so many possibilities...
Best Interview locations: Swiss schools dominating the mezzanine level conference rooms
Worst Feeling: Going into a hotel room alone to converse to a head of school from Asia
Best No-Show: American School of Milan; I might as well work at an average public school on LI or in NJ
Worst Behavior: Recruiters talking smack about candidates in the hotel restaurant
Best Moment: Gez saying, "let's say you have always dreamed of living in Tashkent..."

All of the associates are eh. Some are sub-eh. Bridget is somewhat more awake than the others. The junior Magagna reminds me of Anthony Soprano, Jr. or Meadow Soprano depending on the day or episode.

If you got no leads after a Search Fair, honestly, I think that is bad news. It's also true what PsyGuy is saying about the associates. Mine years ago dropped me like I had gonorrhea when I got an offer and said no to it - I clearly was not in the business of giving her money; I was in the business of finding the right fit for myself - something the associates don't benefit from at all.

I would love to hear from others about the recruiters they were most disgusted by at this fair. Or unimpressed by. I honestly find it sad that so many talented professionals have to go like beggars to some pretty shady characters asking for jobs at this and other fairs. Just because you are a head or recruiter does not make you that special, and having seen my fair share I believe that often heads simply are the ones who are the last men standing not the best of the best like one would hope. It reminds me of something else I have read on this site previously: namely that a lot of these schools must really suck with heads like these. It makes even those leaving fairs with a job have to feel somewhat sleazy. If not, it probably indicates that far too many educators are simply not that bright these days.

How would you tier the Madrid area schools of King's College, International School of Madrid, American School of Madrid, SEK International School El Castillo, and International College Spain? For instance, are any of these tier one in terms of quality programming for students and professional development for teachers?

Also, beyond tiers, what about pay? Which of these pays the most and does anyone have any inside knowledge as to how they are managed? With the economy still weak, are some of these losing students or others gaining? Do some attract better students than others, or are they more nationality-based (i.e. the American school is just for Americans, no matter their academic skills). Thanks in advance for the down and dirty on some or all of these schools.