The International Schools Review Forum

What do you think about attending the ISS fair for investigational purposes and practice?

I want to attend the ISS fair in San Fran in Feb. 2009 for investigation and "practice" purposes. I want to teach abroad, but I am not ready to move until 2010. I want to attend this fair to see what is out there and check out the offers, practice interviewing, etc. to know what I am getting myself into for the following year. Do you think this would be wise to do so I could make connections and put names with faces, etc. and find out about the schools in advance? Do you think I be ruining my chances of finding a job the following year if I were perhaps offered a job I really wasn't ready to take?

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I would say no. They end up costing you quite a bit of money and one of the first things the principals et al ask you is when you can arrive/show up etc. Most want a 2 year commitment when they DO hire so, the people you see this year may not need your field the following year.

Your best bet is read up on everything you can from www.tieonline.com, join their service and get automatic email announcements for jobs in your field. Keep a close eye on who hires what field the year you are investigating. If there is a HUGE list of hires going on, RUN AWAY from that school. Also I believe you should concentrate on a continent. You CANNOT fall in love with any one school, you only set yourself up for a disappointment.

In addition, my second posting overseas came to me AFTER the job fair circuit was over. The recruiter never found a Computer Teaching candidate (or something came up with someone they did have) and he interviewed me at the Fort Lauderdale airport on his way back to Malaysia via California in April or even May 1995. If you are NOT ready until 2010, I suggest you do research on schools, study this forum for schools to avoid, start making a notebook of all kinds of info you can find and basically start a police profile on each school that interests you. At home, you should (1) think about giving your pets away (if you have any) at least temporarily - bringing pets adds extra stress for a first post (2) consolidating all bills (3) pay OFF all credit cards (4) sifting through your own belongings and having a garage sale etc. There is alot that needs to be done to begin your adventure!

Good luck!

Wendy Powell
Monterrey American School (Monterrey, Mexico) (1991-1993)
Mont' Kiara International School, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (1995-1997)