The International Schools Review Forum

It’s now October and my husband and I are preparing our 3 children for a dramatic lifestyle change, putting our house up for sale, and slowly weeding out the “stuffâ€

I don't see a problem starting now. I'm also in the States. I'm not giving notice until the Spring (have to give 90 days). I'm looking at starting to contact schools in Oct/Nov and/or going to Search at Boston. I'm a specialist so can't gamble on giving up job now.

We also have a house and that's a worry. Neighbors sold theirs in about 2 months (they priced it right). We'll cross that bridge in the Winter. That's my biggest worry. Haven't told the kids yet. We'll probably let them know we're going to job fair sometime in December, and low key it.

I consider myself lucky in that I don't have to resign to go to job fair and can be selective. Plus my field is narrow, so I'm not competing with everyone.

Already targeting schools; got sites bookmarked, contacts listed, online resume up, working on Youtube video, completing Admin certificate, wondering what the hell to do with the dog. Usual stuff :)

Hi martijem, I understand your worries, but I think making preparations is good, just not taking them so far that if it doesn't work out that you will be stuck in a bad situation.

It always makes me feel very fortunate that I am single with no house, dependents, etc. and parents who are willing to let me leave all my junk with them.

Planning ahead never hurts and the more you know the easier it is to make decisions if they come at the last minute. The first time I moved abroad I had only about one month's notice, but because I had researched so much before the move I felt much better than if I hadn't been slowly preparing physically (weeding out things I wouldn't need/want after a year or two) and mentally for a move.

Good luck!

[quote="jessd82"]Hi martijem, I understand your worries, but I think making preparations is good, just not taking them so far that if it doesn't work out that you will be stuck in a bad situation.

It always makes me feel very fortunate that I am single with no house, dependents, etc. and parents who are willing to let me leave all my junk with them.

Planning ahead never hurts and the more you know the easier it is to make decisions if they come at the last minute. The first time I moved abroad I had only about one month's notice, but because I had researched so much before the move I felt much better than if I hadn't been slowly preparing physically (weeding out things I wouldn't need/want after a year or two) and mentally for a move.

Good luck![/quote]

We got our first job offer June 19th. We were in country four weeks later. Didn't have kids, dog, house or car though. Those were the days....

GO for it.
If possible you may want to ask your district for a 2 or 3 year leave of absence. You can always resign fully if it feels like the right thing to do at the time.

The first time we went overseas we sold our "dream" house a full 10 months before we even attended the job fair. We knew we wanted to go and we didn't want the house to be an albatross around our neck. I don't think there is any harm in people knowing you are looking but I certainly wouldn't take any undoable steps regarding your jobs until you find that "perfect" overseas position.

puka that is a great idea! I always forget a lot of places allow leaves if you've been there long enough.

We are plunging in as well. (One non-teaching husband, two kids, one dog, two cats) and starting now. We would like to keep our house, however, and just either have someone stay in it/rent/or check on it while we are gone. Has anyone else tried to keep their house? How about bring a pet?

Thanks!

Hi Nicole - pets will depend on the country and what they want you to do to prove your pet isn't ill. Most will need a certificate from the vet and some may need to sit in quarantine in the new country for a while, each place is different. I'm not sure about what housing in foreign countries may be like or their rules on pets, I know in England having a pet while renting was almost impossible in many cases.

Our top choices are Prague, Budapest, Brussels, and Amsterdam. We are looking at ALL European countries though. I know some are more pet-friendly than others as far as renting goes. Anyone know of pet-friendly countries? (may need to make this a different post!)

Thanks.

The Slovaks love their dogs and take them everywhere with them. I never got up the courage to take mine to the mall, I couldn't bear the embarrassment of him watering a fake plant :)