Native English looking for a teaching job in Poland

My college roomie taught in S. Korea after college for like a year or two. He got offered something like 50k usd but Poland won't pay nearly as much. He told me that Koreans don't wear deodorant there but idk if that's really true or not. A lot of people who are serious about teaching English in PL for a career will teach for a while, make contacts, give tutoring lessons on the side for extra money, and before long a lot of them do that full time. I've thought about doing business English lessons too.

Idk how you guys could teach 6 year olds. They make everything sticky and are a walking petri dish of colds, flu, and God knows what else.

No comp. problem, roz. merely read the message too quickly, that's all:-)

A lot of institutions here in the States will accept either CELTA or TESOL.

Quite big in Poland, though most young learner teachers in PL are local. If you work for a language school that runs scheduled classes it's very likely you'll get teenage kids. There is certainly also work teaching younger ones.

One interesting area is private primary and secondary schools in PL - it's a day job obviously, but relatively stable.

hmmmmm thats ok....i have a polish passport and can speak the language...does that up my attractiveness for these positions, or are you saying they are local and that means they don't pay well ( a sad true story of local teachers vs foreign ones i have seen a lot of that scenario here in SEA)


that's what i want! that's what i want! haha day time, stable sounds PERFECT.....private primary schools sounds like exactly what i would be looking for :) :)

@jon357 @atch @dirkdiggler @Lyzko dream scenario - teaching children in the day time steady work + some privates on the side in my own neighborhood no commute.....(also children ideal but for privates adults would be ok too) but mainly i want to teach children that is my vibe and what i know best....

my new question (because you guys give me so many great answers but also lots to think about) if i want to teach children am i making a mistake to show up in dec/jan, should i change my plans and come to poland in august in order to find work for the school year? if i want to try to find a job when i'm already there (vs online from asia) coming in august, would that give me enough time? I really want to come to poland around dec but i can be flexible if i start planning now.....you guys are awesome!! :) also if anyone knows any names of these private primary schools feel free ;)

It won't really matter as far as salary. It will help you get a job and be a more attractive candidate but it's not like they'll give you an extra $1k a month because you're a native speaker that's also fluent in Polish. You could have a PhD and teach at the best uni in Katowice and you'll still receive a salary that's at best average by Polish standards. Teachers simply don't get paid much in Poland. It's not like Germany or even Kazakhstan where native English teachers can make $80k a year with only 10% income tax taken out if they land at one of the elite schools that politicians, business people, etc. send their kids to.

Since you have experience, focus on private British and American schools. These tend to have the best salaries and since you already have experience, are a native speaker, speak Polish, and have certification you'll be able to land a job at one of these schools. The pay is going to be way better than some local public school.

As far as when to come, idk how hiring goes in the middle of a semester. I'd imagine though like most schools they'd fill positions a few months before the start of a semester though.

No. The opposite even.


Yes. This is sadly true everywhere.


I think that I would too - it helps to have a stable income at the start - you can go fgreelance later if that suits. One way forward is to get hold of contact details (most are available online, in various searchable business directories) and email them your CV. Say you're planning on moving to PL and suggest a skype chat. Don't expect a response every time (school directors get more CVs than they've time to look at) however keep plugging on, and stress your young learner experience.

@jon357
thanks so much for your advice (and everyone else too) i feel a lot more confident going forward and knowing what i am looking for. i think i will start making connections soon and if i can set something good up i will come for the new school year. a little earlier than i planned but life has a way of shaping the natural path! :)

@jon357
HI its me again...just wondering if Poland usually requires a background/police check? its a bit annoying to get that here, wondering if i should start the process or not worry about it....if you know anything about it? thanks!

Does Canada keep national police records? When I was applying for a residence permit at one point they wanted 'oświadczenie o niekaralności' (official statement that I don't have a police record) for both the time I had spent in Poland (this was easy enough to get) and for my home country (USA) I went to the local consular office and they gave me a letter that said that the federal government doesn't keep those kinds of records...

You might check with the Canadian Embassy about what you'll need (and what they can and can't give you)

Most employers don't ever ask for them for ELT jobs in Poland, even for Young Learners work.

I can say that in the UK, a Police check (it does have a specific name) for any work associated with children or vulnerable people is mandatory. However, as the check only looks at all previous convictions, (and some may even be counted as 'spent') once the paper is obtained, it is valid for a specified period. It used to be 3 years, may have changed now.

For work with young and vulnerable, it's generally an enhanced DBS (most people in the UK use DBS Scotland which is cheaper, easier and quicker than the England & Wales service) which includes spent convictions as well as cautions. It can even include matters (specifically formal allegations of certain serious crimes that have been made to the police) that didn't ever lead to charges as well as criminal cases that led to acquittals providing the police think it significant enough to include in the record.

In Poland, it's just the oświadczenie o niekaralności and in my experience this is rarely if ever required in Poland for ELT jobs of any sort.

The same with me,but I just went to the local Police department and got one and got it translated by a sworn translator.Also I think it depends where have you been living and for how long at the same residence,i had no probs as we are living at same residence for last 28 years.

For Poland it was easy, just went to the courthouse (around the corner from the migration office) applied and had it in a couple of days.

But they also wanted a national one for the US (where I hadn't been for a few years). When I went to the consular agency they had a form letter already prepared saying there is no such thing available and they accepted that.