The International Schools Review Forum

Many schools prefer not to hire ITs with kids. Saudi Arabia has recently introduced a 'tax' on expat workers' dependents. If you have a trailing spouse and 2 or more kids where can you reasonsbly hope to get hired in the current employment climate? QSI seem family friendly but seem to have a bad rep. Any suggestions?

You need to primarily focus on elite/1st tier ISs, they are the ones that will be the most flexible about cost. You are otherwise a logistically challenged hire, youre just too expensive. You best option is getting your spouse credentialed in something so that you can reduce your traveler ratio.

Neither option is really open for us. To stay in IT for the few more years we need financially I will have to leave the family 'at home' ☹

This is an appalling scenario faced by far too many highly qualified educators. Admins, I hope you are seeing this thread and hanging your heads in shame at the fact that you don't go to your board or ownership and explain to them/it the benefits of employing ITs who have families/dependents. Otherwise, as others have pointed out on this board elsewhere, you may have lower costs in the short-term but will have an underwhelming monoculture staff-wise in the long term,which I would tend to argue also reduces the quality of the school long term because margins end up being so small that families can never be hired after being phased out (unless of course a smart head cuts costs elsewhere, but how few really do this?).

As for Nomad's particular situation, I would look to some countries in South America and some countries in Asia (but I don't know which) for your best bet at overcoming the discrimination that you are unfortunately facing.

@reisgio

What benefits are dependents that justify doubling (or more) the cost of an IT?
Most leadership are on a revolving door, the same as ITs, long term effects arent really relevant.

Nomad68 wrote:
> Many schools prefer not to hire ITs with kids. Saudi Arabia has recently
> introduced a 'tax' on expat workers' dependents. If you have a trailing
> spouse and 2 or more kids where can you reasonsbly hope to get hired in the
> current employment climate? QSI seem family friendly but seem to have a bad
> rep. Any suggestions?

the saudi tax, from what i understand, isn't that much compared to what you get paid as a teacher.
an added expense but not an income tax or anything crazy.

i would think qsi would be a good bet but hit or miss it seems re: their rep. my friend in ukraine loves their school in kyiv, but we interviewed for one in vietnam with this curly haired little hobbit guy who told me couldn't smoke, preferred if i didn't drink, and asked me about christ....so...it was a laugh and a see ya later!

good luck!

v.

Any contributors have a more in-depth understanding of this "expat dependents" tax?

@Nomad68

How is obtaining a credential for your spouse not feasible? Its two days effort and a few hundred USD in the US.

I think it's really hard to say. Anecdotally (and what does that count for, really) this year I was hired in October at one of the first places I interviewed - a high 2nd tier school in Thailand. I have a trailing spouse and one school aged dependent. The school didn't seem to think twice. I'm not really anything special - a classroom teacher with a decade of international experience and a recently gotten M.Ed.

I say look for places that interest you and go for it. I really think that all schools are different.

We are in Korea right now - two teachers and two dependents...but working at a school that has many staff members currently (and some coming in) with a trailing spouse and school-age kids. Doesn't seem to be a deal-breaker here, and actually having school-age kids is a great benefit as they contribute to the diversity in our student body.

The trailing spouse and dependents issue is not going to disappear. Very few elite schools in W.Europe and a select few established ones in SE and E.Asia are willing to put their money where their school-mission mouth is. I know of elite schools, where there are departments full of single folks, including heads.

I'd strongly recommend to stay put, develop strong networks, become workshop leaders, enroll in an advanced degree (PhD/EdD, am not kidding) if you want to scale the Mt. Everest of international teaching. Venting and waiting to get lucky doesn't get results. Extraordinary times require extraordinary measures, especially if you have another 20-25 years before retirement. I'm sure people will counter this post citing anecdotal evidence, but it's up to you how far you want to go to earn the big bucks, have fully-paid health insurance, annual flights, generous housing in a safe and vibrant city.

Thanks for the replies. True the Saudi dependents tax is only peanuts compared to real income tax so that would not put me off the Kingdom IF schools would take a trailing spouse and kids.

Korea is closed to me because I don't have transcripts - not issued when I graduated and not available now. That rules out China, Malaysia, and Indonesia from my experience.

Thailand seems family friendly.
Family packages in the EU are taxed. That would be a lifestyle move not a savings move.

Spouse credentials I will look into. What would you suggest?

@Nomad68

Why cant you get transcripts? Thats going to be an issue with an IS that requests them. It doersnt rule those regions out, there are ITs who got visas with just their degree (absent submission of transcripts).

LOS isnt any more (or less) accepting of large families than anywhere else, its not a region issue, its an IS issue.

UT (Utah) and MA (Massachusetts are the best options). Both offer a credential upon submission of an application and completion of exam(s). UT is a three year renewable credential that requires only one exam, but requires PD to renew. MA requires more exams (at least 2) and is non renewable, but if you never work in MA it will be an effective lifetime credential. Neither will get you QTS however.

Nomad68 wrote:
> Thanks for the replies. True the Saudi dependents tax is only peanuts
> compared to real income tax so that would not put me off the Kingdom IF
> schools would take a trailing spouse and kids.
>
> Korea is closed to me because I don't have transcripts - not issued when I
> graduated and not available now. That rules out China, Malaysia, and
> Indonesia from my experience.
>
> Thailand seems family friendly.
> Family packages in the EU are taxed. That would be a lifestyle move not a
> savings move.
>
> Spouse credentials I will look into. What would you suggest?


China did not request my transcripts. Just my degree.

My UK uni did not issue transcripts back when I graduated 30 years ago. It no longer exists and the uni which replaced it scrapped the old records back in the late 90s. The best I have is an official letter explaining this.

@Nomad68

Have that letter legalized by the home office and you will be fine in any of those regions.