We are keen on moving to Melbourne.
We are both primary school teachers and are concerned that we may struggle to get jobs, although there seems to be plenty of vacancies in Victoria state. Has anyone got any personal experiences they could share? I notice that on the Victoria Immigration website Primary teachers are listed as a state wide shortage and we could get a sponsored visa possibly. Would this help me to get an actual job, or would it just restrict us to living in Victoria with no real benefits?
We are keen on moving to Melbourne.
We are both primary school teachers and are concerned that we may struggle to get jobs, although there seems to be plenty of vacancies in Victoria state. Has anyone got any personal experiences they could share? I notice that on the Victoria Immigration website Primary teachers are listed as a state wide shortage and we could get a sponsored visa possibly. Would this help me to get an actual job, or would it just restrict us to living in Victoria with no real benefits?
Dazed and confused,
Will(33), Mary(34) and Ben(2)
Hi there
I think like most of all Aussie states cite a shortage of teachers (usually secondary but we wont quibble). However, when you look at it, the vacancies tend to be in places you probably would rather not live in. I have a friend who is a very experienced and top class primary teacher who had no end of trouble finding a permanent job in Ballarat for example (rural Vic) AFAIK she is still on a contract after 2 years. Discussing this with my SIL who is also a teacher in that area the situation seems to be that with school based management the principals like to go with the cheaper option ie less experienced in the first instance. They are also prepared to go with short term contracts but try and avoid the longer term permanent arrangements so experienced teachers who have had a couple of longish term contracts are terminated and replaced by cheaper options before they get to the stage of having to be offered permanence. The first challenge is to get your foot in the door and then hope they like you I guess.
I am a teacher here in Victoria. I currently teach in a catholic primary school in Frankston East. When we were preparing to arrive there seemed to be a lot of posts available but many of them were short term contracts (some just for a term or 2) or they were for graduate teachers. Once here, I was getting quite frustrated at the fact I was applying for jobs and not hearing anything, not even a thank you but no thank you and was beginning to get used to the fact that I would have to continue supply teaching. This however was the best thing I did - I was offered a job in one of the schools that I did a couple of days teaching for. I loved the school when I was there on supply and for the first time in a long time I had gone home enthusiastic about teaching so there was no question as to whether I would take the post. However, I had to settle for a years contract working 3 days a week. Due to a change in circumstances I am currently working full time but this will stop in 4 weeks.
I don't know anything about the sponsorship side of things, I came over on an independent skilled visa. But if I can answer any more of your questions feel free to fire away.
Felicity
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Felicity + Michael - We're 'Pozzies' - Happy and Lovin' it!
Melbourne since September 07
Thanks Felicity, your insight is helpful. We feel we have a better chance of securing jobs in Victoria. I am an assistant head at the moment but I don't expect to be able to get a position like that in OZ - i'd be happy with regular supply initially. How long did it take you to complete the Victoria induction so that you could actually begin teaching?
I got my skilled independent visa and got registration with the Victorian Institute of Teaching (all teachers have to be registered with the state they live in) before we arrived here. I started working about a month after we got here and have been working full time since the end of January. I didn't have to complete any induction process.
Felicity
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Felicity + Michael - We're 'Pozzies' - Happy and Lovin' it!
Melbourne since September 07
Sorry I meant how long does it take to gain registration with the Victoria Institute of teaching - is it a long process. I read this excerpt on theor website:
'Before a teacher presenting with interstate or overseas qualifications can gain registration in Victoria, the Institute must have assessed the teacher is appropriately qualified. For teachers with overseas qualifications the Institute will also undertake an equivalence assessment of all qualifications presented. In instances where such qualifications are assessed as not equivalent to the requirements for teachers in Victoria, the applicant will be advised which areas (eg. practicum time and/or teaching methods) may need further study, and how to access appropriate courses or course units.'
The Victoria institue website also suggest I would need to take an English test - did you have to and how long did gaining your registration take.
