Currently in negotiations with an International school in a large city. I’d appreciate any advice / opinions people can share about the possibility of future progression I’m hoping for.
I’m a secondary Business & Econ teacher in Australia, Bachelor of Finance & Econ, Masters in Teaching, with Australian teaching licence and experience. The offer is for IB DP Business and Econ, with the following key information;
* 3 year contract, possibility of renewal
* 5m pre-tax salary, “当該契約期間において䛿給与䛾増額䛿行われない”
* 10 days personal/sick leave, +1 per year
* total 11 weeks school holiday, confirmed in interview and in writing that “teachers do not need to be on site” during those dates
My main questions/concerns are:
1. Is the salary decent, considering no salary increase during contract period? (not taking into account rent, which I will have covered outside my salary)I’m unsure if it is possible to re-negotiate a ‘new’ contract in the 2nd/3rd year for a higher salary, or alternatively:
2. Likeliness of career progression through other International schools in the future, and what is the usual salary “ceiling” for International IB teachers?I am happy to take the current ‘pay cut’ in comparison to Australian pay (esp as cost of living is cheaper than where I am currently), but am wondering if it’s realistic to build up to \~8m pay after years of relevant experience teaching in Japan.
If there are other areas I should focus on, please let me know too. I am still combing through the draft contract again, and also getting a local friend to check through the Japanese version as well.
EDIT: P.S. I doubt I will like to pursue University teaching as I prefer classroom teaching. Also I am not inclined to do research/publish which I’ve seen is a common requirement/expectation for University teachers.
3 comments
Not bad for a first contract, not amazing either. What happens at the end of the contract is a complete mystery. Legally they have to decide to make you permanent or let you go. Most likely they will let you go at the end so they don’t have to pay more for the position and to prevent you from getting full protections. From there you are rolling the dice. Maybe the next position you find will pay more, maybe it will pay less. IB schools are a new thing here and the quality is all over the place. Many are just in it for the money which means they will always be looking for cheap labor.
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Most qualified Australian teachers return home for better jobs.
Aussie working in finance in Tokyo here but spent a year teaching English. Is the salary for experienced teachers at international schools only 5M? Seems like a significant pay cut to Australia :/
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