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2000 zloty in Katowice as a teacher - worth moving there? [33]
Oh come on, if it really like that.no.one would ever step.foot to teach English in Poland.
It really is like that, with some exceptions that probably do not apply to you.
The golden age for English teachers from outside of the EU was before 2004. It's gone steadily downhill since then, even for teachers from inside the EU.
in 2004, Poland joined the EU. This meant that teachers from the UK and Ireland no longer needed work and residency permits, while those from outside the EU still do. Schools became shy about going through the hassle and expense of hiring teachers from outside the EU.
Two things aggravated the process. Brits and Irishmen started coming to Poland in droves for cheap beer and easy poontang. As time went by, more followed their girlfriends whom they had met in the UK and Ireland and who wanted to return to be close to their families. Soon, there was a glut of native speakers in Poland, and they were desperate enough to be willing to work for peanuts on "garbage contracts". This was especially true in the large, more popular cities, especially Kraków, Wrocław and Warsaw. This drove wages down a lot in terms of purchasing power. You will see plenty of ads from "native speakers" offering lessons for 30 PLN an hour, or less.
These cheap British and Irish slackers also gave native speakers in general a poor reputation, while at the same time, the number of qualified native Polish teachers was increasing, so schools were less likely to hire native speakers in general.
Then the economic crisis came in 2007, and it hit schools hard because they relied on lucrative business contracts for much of their profit. Businesses did not renew their contracts for in-house teaching, the cash cow ran dry, and schools cut back. The market was over-saturated with schools as it was, especially in the larger popular cities, so a lot of schools either closed or drastically reduced their activities.
Even established teachers from both inside and outside of the EU found that schools were no longer willing to offer full-time contracts, forcing teachers to establish their own businesses and work part-time as independent contractors, for substantially less money overall. Saving money became an obsession in schools in the larger, popular cities, and even in the smaller, less popular cities.
The exceptions I mentioned are twofold. First of all, there are still occasional opportunities to be found off the beaten track in very small towns, especially in eastern Poland, where few native speakers ever go. The cost of living is also lower in these towns is substantially lower than in the larger, popular cities, so if you do land a contract there for 3500 net, you can pay your way.
Meanwhile, the cost of living skyrocketed in the larger popular cities, while wages for English teachers remained stagnant at best, or decreased. So it is extremely unlikely that you, as a newbie, will find a job in those cities that pays well enough so that you can enjoy what the city has to offer. Gone are the days when a newbie could expect a full-time contract for 4000 PLN a month net.
The other exception is for very highly qualified teachers with backgrounds in medicine, science or law, or with real business or management experience.
Besides private language schools, there are three other possibilities.
Private day schools, especially high schools, pay well, but they hire only real teachers with masters degrees and substantial experience. Furthermore, there are very few of these schools in the whole country, so finding an opening in one is quite a challenge.
Then there are public schools. These pay very low, even for native speakers.
The same for universities. Unless you happen to be paid by a grant, which isn't as likely as it once was.
Overall, the golden age for English teachers in Poland is long past. Like I said, there might still be a few opportunities off the beaten track, but you have to look for them, and they entail a certain amount of risk.
Last of all, beware of any Callan Method, Direct Method, Avalon or Berlitz schools. They generally pay very low, or often enough, not at all. The school that offered you 2000 PLN net a month is probably one of these. Teaching in these schools is tiring, boring and not very rewarding, financially or otherwise.
As for doing private lessons, it will take you quite some time to build up a good word-of-mouth reputation, which you will need to build up a quality clientele. Otherwise, you will end up with slackers who flake on every other lesson without warning, or clients who strongly desire deeply reduced rates.
Very tiring is that you will probably work between 7 or 8 to 9 or 10 in the morning, and then from 4 to 9 pm, with little, if anything, in between. If that entails a long commute, it can be very tiring indeed.
