Viewing topic: Visas and other stuff

Hi folks,

It's been a while since there was any optimism-inspiring information about the visa situation.

This post isn't meant to be optimism-inspiring, just inspiring

Good news for anyone already teaching here and worrying about their visas - there will be a good number of schools offering work visas before most of you have to leave for a new one, and your physical presence here will make your chances of getting a job much higher.

There will be less competition as I have it on good authority from several sources that teachers are gradually calling it a day and heading off for pastures greener.

There is no sign of wages increasing though - schools that didn't already issue work visas and are going through the process of getting registered will be shelling out a bit and are unlikely to offer a wage rise. Schools that already have most or all of their teachers on work visas are not going to face any real disruption, but they may be able to hike their prices a bit. Unlikely to result in a wage rise though.

The real area for gain will be in private teaching. Some private teachers I know are already seeing an increase in enquiries and are talking about making pretty big price increases (if they haven't already made them), as the freelance and private teacher pool is already starting to drain.

However, teaching privately is now going to get a lot more complicated & expensive. Two main options still remain: work visas from an agency (dubious legality and expensive) and student visas by signing up for a cheapo course (dubious legality and expensive). Both these options potentially leave you out on a limb a bit.

I'm hopeful that I will have some more optimistic news within the next month. In the meantime, please report any *reliable* news about visas in the forum.

In the next two weeks, time permitting, I plan to make some enquiries about schools offering work visas and I intend to make the info available to anyone who has purchased the TEFL guide using a credit card (not unfair - it's not really info that can be made freely available to all who saunter by, plus it's going to take considerable time to collect).

Don't just rush out to buy the guide in order to get this info - wait until I collect the first batch and announce it here.

ah cool looking forward to that, would be extremely helpful to have a little list of visa offering schools!

'dubious legality '
Like, it was all above board before...

Haha, of course it was everything is better in hindsight. Past perfect, future tense, etc. etc.

Thanks for the *overwhelming* response to the technical tranlsator vacancy I posted this morning. I'm just SWAMPED with responses from a total of NIL RESPONDENTS Am I not paying enough?

VisaRus, it seems, is finally going to start living up to its name in some way

After speaking to two school directors about the idea to provide a restricted-access list of schools providing work visas, they are all for it and it looks like it will go ahead.

Both agree that access to such a list should be restricted, and that they would prefer that measures be taken to keep it confidential from other schools, i.e. a school in the process of getting permission to issue work visas wouldn't really want other schools to know what stage they are at, etc. and from other 'prying eyes'.

After a lot of thinking, I've decided to use Google Groups to provide the service. It's basically just an ordinary mailing group & it deals with access issues which would be an arseache to implement on VisaRus, plus it seems to do everything I need. And it's more secure (Google knows waaay more about internet security than I do).

The plan remains as mentioned before - very restricted access, based on using a credit card purchase to verify your address. Sounds cloak-and-dagger? It is :8 Sounds like I'm exploiting my poor members? I am

Again, don't go out and buy the guide or anything else until I've had some guinea pigs test the system. It should be ready early next week.

If you've already bought the guide, please proceed with the instructions below:

How it will work:

1.

You will need a Google Account (i.e. Gmail)

In the application form on http://groups.google.com/group/visarus, enter an order number from 'Interlingua Publications'.

The order must have been paid for using a credit card, NOT PayPal (PayPal does not provide address details).

Your address information is used by me and only me to identify you.

You will receive email confirmation when your account has been activated, then you will be able to view group messages and download files.

Depending on settings you choose for your account, you will receive email notifications of new messages (file updates) submitted to the group.