The International Schools Review Forum

Does anyone work at or have experience with QSI schools? They are having a summer recruitment fair for 2016-17 SY in Seattle.
Thanks!

QSI won't be looking for teachers for QSI Europe - that's just HQ. They will be looking for teachers for Kahzakhstan, Kzyrgystan, Turkmenistan, China, Uzbekistan and more...

Shadowjack speaks the truth. There won't be any European jobs, mostly just the stans and China.

I interviewed with them at the Boston Search fair....got a major creepy vibe when I left...So did the couple who were with me. I could never feel comfortable working for that company.

Thanks for your replies. I edited the original question (taking out Europe). Any experience with any of the QSI schools?

Not first hand but reliable 2nd hand info. (personal friends who work for QSI). My friends have taught for them in one of the stans and now for them in China. They seem pretty happy with them as employers and a place for their kids to go to school. They are not particularly religious either, so I guess the experience will vary from school to school and country to country. I wouldn't totally rule them out as a way to get your foot in the door or if you just need a change.

QSI is a good starter school. If you have previous international school experience, you'd probably find it difficult to work for them. There are lots of threads about QSI, so I'd suggest combing through those to see what has been said. There are many pros and many cons for the organization.

QSI School are small and it is a matter of pure luck who you end up with as a director. A few are really good and a lot are really bad. Read reviews on ISR of any school you are considering. They will be recruiting for the Stans - an experience that most teachers stick for a couple of years. I had a really unpleasant experience with a religious clique of teachers when I worked at QSI. Good luck.

twoteachers wrote:
> I interviewed with them at the Boston Search fair....got a major creepy
> vibe when I left...So did the couple who were with me. I could never feel
> comfortable working for that company.

haha
i also interviewed with them in the past, with a strange, friar-looking little man who told me about 5 times how he and his school frowns upon smoking and cigarettes. my wife and i just looked at each other and laughed. then he talked about the interesting structure of some of the classrooms - almost like a one room schoolhouse with different grades (i thought it was a neat idea). then he started talking about moral teaching and jesus. then my wife and i looked at each other and laughed harder. we then left.

but i hear that not all of them are like that...

good luck!

v.

Third tier IS with serious religious doctrine and philosophy issues. The biggest issues are 1) The religious aspect of their philosophy and doctrine can be fanatical. 2) Their "mastery" curriculum is mediocre at best.

I wouldnt say its a good starter IS, while they have ISs in WE, those positions are reward promotion regions. They start their ITs in China and the Stans, which is what they will be hiring for. You can get better offers in those regions without going through QSI.

The only real advantages to QSI are: 1) They will hire ITs with family logistical issues that other ISs wont touch. 2) They do have an internal hiring sytem and if you do the time you can make a career out of QSI and eventually get to some preferential regions.

I've been with QSI for a while now. On my third school, didn't start in China or a stan (but a lot do). I have not worked for a religious director. we don't teach any religion, we use the same books my teacher friends are using in the states, and the curriculum follows like NCTM for math, and other nationally recoginized ed standards for each subject. I get tired of people, esp those who have never worked for QSI, perpetuating this religious myth. Do you come across religious teachers in QSI-yes, in other intl schools-yes. But nothing compared to the religious fanatics I encountered in the states. QSI is defintely a good place to start and make a career, especially if you have 2+ kids.

mathgym wrote:
> I've been with QSI for a while now. On my third school, didn't start in China or
> a stan (but a lot do). I have not worked for a religious director. we don't teach
> any religion, we use the same books my teacher friends are using in the states,
> and the curriculum follows like NCTM for math, and other nationally recoginized
> ed standards for each subject. I get tired of people, esp those who have never worked
> for QSI, perpetuating this religious myth. Do you come across religious teachers
> in QSI-yes, in other intl schools-yes. But nothing compared to the religious fanatics
> I encountered in the states. QSI is defintely a good place to start and make a career,
> especially if you have 2+ kids.

my apologies to you. i can only relate my experience with this particular QSI recruiter.
as i said, maybe their not all like that. from what i can remember, it seemed pretty
standard talk from him - the leaders' vision and all that. but as always, if the shoe fits, wear it!

v.

Thanks for all of the replies. I read through most of the info on this site and gathered that there are some good experiences and some bad. My husband and I are very experienced teachers yet have zero international experience. My husband's school is part of ISS but I don't think he can claim "international" experience. So, I'm not sure we can be too picky. I think we will go to Seattle just to check it out. On a side note, how on earth can they keep some of the schools open? Most of their schools have enrollments under 200!

@joanveronica

IS experience is valuable, but its not a deal breaker, if you have strong resumes tier 2 is a viable outcome. QSI is for entry class ITs with a couple years domestic experience a degree and certification.
You can get an idea of your marketability using the Assessment tool below:

PsyGuy Applicant Scoring System:
1) 1 pt / 2 years Experience (Max 10 Years)
2) 1 pt - Advance Degree (Masters)
3) 1 pt - Cross Certified (Must be schedule-able)
4) 1 pt - Curriculum Experience (IB, AP, IGCSE)
5) 1pt - Logistical Hire (Single +.5 pt, Couple +1 pt)
6) .5 pt - Previous International School Experience (standard 2 year contract)
7) .5 pt - Leadership Experience/Role (+.25 HOD, +.5 Coordinator)
8) .5 pt - Extra Curricular (Must be schedule-able)
9) .25 pt - Special Populations (Must be qualified)
10) .25 pt - Special Skill Set (Must be documentable AND marketable)

IT CLASSES:
1) INTERN ITs have a score around 0
2) ENTRY ITs have a score around 2
3) CAREER ITs have a score around 4
4) PROFESSIONAL ITs have a score around 6
5) MASTER ITs have a score around 8

There are a lot of small ISs with enrollment less than 200, a number with enrollment in the double digits. ISs arent hard to organize, especially when you are leasing multipurpose space, or have shared/borrowed facilities. QSI had an IS that had 6-12 students enrolled. It was one teacher, an aid and an admin.

@Joanveronica

My husband and I had to IE experience either, but we had 15 years of US teaching each plus Masters degrees. You do not have to settle for QSI....Plug away and get to a fair...You will be picked up.