Work /
Advice on Teaching English in Poland [709]
Hi everyone! Was wondering if someone more experienced than me could give me some pointers and enlighten me on this
I'm moving to Katowice this week. Last month, I've sent my CV to several Language schools in the area (Katowice, Chorzow, Bytom), and got 4 replies so far: 1 of them already booked an interview, and the others asked me to contact them once I arrive in town.
I chose Katowice because it doesn't seem to be saturated with foreigners like Krakow, Warsaw, Wroclaw, etc, and also because I have a few friends in that area, who will help me out in the first couple of weeks.
Here are a few facts about me:
- 28 years old, Portuguese, but due to a multicultural education and social circle since childhood, it's safe to say that my english level is pretty much on par with a native's. In fact, I've been selling myself as a native in both languages, to increase my perceived value.
- I have a BA in Multimedia Design
- In terms of teaching experience and education, I lectured several workshops at my local university (total of aprox 80h). I also have a CCP certification which is a 2 month intensive course covering teaching in general, for what in Portugal they call "Professional Courses". This course dealt with topics like managing student's motivation and attention, teaching methods, tools and techniques (passive and active), lesson preparation, establishing learning goals, evaluation, and course planning. This certification is not specific to language teaching, I'm not sure if I should see this as a positive or negative, frankly.
- I have a varied work experience (much more than most people with the same age as me), and acquired lots of different skills that I feel will be very useful in a classroom:
--- Tech support callcenter (communication skills; communicating ideas and concepts to people from widely different backgrounds and education; problem solving and research on the spot;)
--- Workshop lecturing (to university students; theory and practical)
--- Freelancing for the illustration and 3d modelling fields (dealing with a variety of clients; time management; organization)
--- Spent 1 year collaborating with a small team on a AR entrepreneur project (team work, tackling different challenges not connected with my main occupation, conflict resolution)
In a way, I feel cautiously optimistic regarding those 4 replies. However, despite researching online quite a bit, I'm still a bit unsure regarding what would be a reasonable expectation for someone like me, when it comes to income.
I'm thinking of only considering a salary of at least 2500zl\3000zl net, for 20h\25h schedule. Is this unrealistic from my part? Am I selling myself short and should ask for more?
Finally, any particulars I should be aware of?
Thanks!
