If able, are you willing to apply out of your home district or relocate? I have noticed some discouraged job seekers here. I have also noticed some people who seem unwilling to apply outside of the district they currently work in. Just curious to see various peoples' feelings about applying out of your current district or relocating.
I am super close to my parents so I set up a 6-8 hour radius from where they live. I'm in OH and that gave me quite a range in terms of states though I mostly looked in OH and KY. I got hired in NW Ohio, which is only 2 hours from my parents! And 2 1/2 from the boyfriend
I apply to all the districts within an hour from my house. It's just not worth it to go further since I can't move.
I have no plans to leave my current position, but even if I did it wouldn't be easy for me to move outside the district. We bought a house a year ago using the new homebuyer tax credit, so we have to stay in the house for at least two more years in order to avoid having to pay that back.
One should definitely expand the search beyond 'current district'! Putting all your hopes on one district severely limits your chances. As far as relocating, some teachers are limited in how far they could move based on spouse employment, kids, other family obligations, also may be financially bound to an area with owning a home etc...but DEFINITELY apply everywhere within commuting distance if you aren't relocating: private, public, charter...even if no openings are posted.
Yes...I did... I currently live in PA...NO JOBS! I have been working as a LTS, which is nice because it pays teacher salary. But, with budget cuts I know there will be no permanent jobs for years. I looked at Florida ( I know...not the ideal state for teachers) and was hired. My husbands company was willing to relocate him, so we are moving in three weeks!
Yes. I'll be applying next year (graduating in December), but I'm planning on applying throughout my state (which could mean 10 hours away!), but not out of state, yet. If I lived in a smaller state, things would be different. There are NO elementary jobs in my immediate area.
I guess it's different where I live but our districts are mostly small and usually cover one town/city. There are MANY districts within my county and neighboring counties so the idea of only applying within one's own district just seems strange to me. I guess I'm not familar with districts covering so much area that you'd have to actually move to teach outside of one district.
My home district probably won't post jobs until at least September through November, and that's way too late for me. If I wanted a position before the school year starts, I would have to relocate at least two hours away. (Which is what I'm currently doing). I'm actually thankful it's only two hours and not as much as five to six.
Ditto. Although our districts are mostly large and still only cover one or two cities. Or part of one city, in the case of larger cities. I'm in So Cal though - lots of large (or at least large-ish) cities all right next to each other!
I've applied to every opening I can find in my state and am looking at other states now. If I do find something out of state I will move (either alone or with my DD) and DH will look for a job and follow later. If I find something in state that's a few hours away I will get an apartment and stay there M-F. Hard to make a decision like this but I need a teaching job.
I moved for my job and it was the best decision I have made. Not only did I find a great school but I was really forced to create new friends and I have really met some wonderful people. That being said. I'm younger, single, and it only take less than 2 hours to get home to my parents house.
I applied to 100 districts across Texas and ended up getting hired in a district 4.5 hours from home. I'm trying desperately to get a job back home now that I have a year of experience. It seems to be working since I have had 8 interviews within 45 of home this year and only had 2 last year (I had 8 others around the state- the furthest was 5 hours and was offered an interview 8 hours away after being hired).
I moved halfway across the country for my first job, then a bit closer to home later, and then back to my hometown.
I relocated from Ohio to Virginia. My DH and I were long distance for 2.5 years, which was REALLY hard. We were lucky to have family members helping us out, supporting us during that time. The separation sucked, but really was worth it. I know that had I stayed in Ohio, I very likely would still be searching for a job.
If I had the money to relocate, it absolutely would have been an option. That is the only thing that stopped me from looking outside of my tri-county area. The county I live in is unstable, at best. Even if I could find a job here, there is no guarantee I would have a job next year, based on the budget. The county south of me had massive layoffs, and even though they had positions open on their website, I never got one call from them. I just landed a job last week at a charter school about 35-40 minutes away. I was willing to drive even farther, but I am so glad I am in this school. The drive time is a perfect amount of time for daily reflections and relaxation before getting home to the rest of my family.
I would have been, if it weren't for the fact that I have a boyfriend who has a kid. So now I'm not willing to move. If I were single, then yes!
I'm more willing to relocate now than I have been in the past. When I first graduated, everyone told me that I can relocate because I don't have a boyfriend. (Clearly the rest of my family and life meant nothing.... ) So now I've saved for a year, subbing and living at home, and have about half of grad school saved up. And ever since my grandfather passed on, I am much more willing to move farther away from home. Right now I'm looking at around up to 4 to 5 hours away from home. Get back to me next year after another year of subbing and I'll probably say I'll go anywhere....
...I know that I am not supposed to admit this. But I HATED subbing. I hated going into a school and not knowing the procedures, not knowing anyone, and not having my own class. I did it because I wanted a job. I would not have relocated early on in my career and would not have relocated ever if I was not forced to because my hubby had to relocate for his job. But it was a good move. Who knew?
I'm glad I'm not the only one that doesn't like subbing! I don't mind going to the teacher I student taught with because she emails me the lesson plans. I hate being unprepared!
When I first graduated, the furthest I was willing to move away from home was about 3.5 hours. I was too scared to go much further. Well, after many years of searching and working in private school, I took a job in the States. I then moved back home and got hired for a job 3.5 hours away. I took that job, bought a house and now I'm pretty well stuck. I presently live about 30 minutes away from my school, but in the winter, my drive could take up to 90 minutes, so right now I will not be willing to work further than I presently do.
Except 1x & that was for a temporary job that lasted 3 mos where I drove 45-50 min, I've never in my life drove more than 30 min 1-way for any job I've had, so I guess I've become picky & spoiled when it comes to the distance I'll go. I know people move to other states, etc., but I never see myself doing that. In my area, we have the Metrolink public transportation & I guess if I really, really had to, I guess I'd take the Metrolink to a city an hr away if I couldn't drive for some reason.
I live in Chicago and my first year searching I kept to about a 2 hour radius. This year, I started applying in March, I looked throughout any area I would be happy with in IL and then I picked 5 states I would be happy to move to. I have applied to over 200 jobs and heard not one thing in IL, but was just offered a job in CO right after applying. I am lucky tho because I have family in CO and my boyfriend hates IL and is excited to move. I don't think I would have ever found something in IL this year if it wasn't for searching out of state.
I relocated to CO last year. It worked out well for me. Like you, I can guarantee you I would not have found a job if I didn't apply out of state. My home state is just flooded beyond belief with candidates. Every district is laying off anywhere from 50-300 teachers (depending on the size of the district) every year. There literally aren't even subbing opportunities...the districts around my home city had waiting lists of more than 1,000 to get on their sub lists. I went to a wonderful program where we started doing field experiences our freshman year, and from that point taught in actual classrooms at least 8-12 hours a week up until our full time student teaching which was one full year. I taught in 9 different schools and hit every grade in my licensure, as well as every type of school (suburban, urban, and rural). My program graduated 18 and 3 of us got jobs. We were all dual certified in speical ed and elementary ed. All 3 of us that got jobs got them out of state. As far as I've heard, no one else that is still insisting on looking in our home state has been able to find a job for this coming school year either. I guess it just comes down to where your priorities are. To me, I am a teacher. That is literally how I identify who I am. To not be able to teach would kill me! So when I had the choice to teach in another state or stay close to home but use my 4 year college degree to lifeguard at the local Y, the choice was easy. I have friends that are so attached to their famlies that I don't think they'll ever be able to move. Sadly, I don't know if they'll ever be able to find jobs. I think moving is at least worth a shot. Remember it's only for a year. That's what I kept telling myself. If I absolutely hated it, I could easily search closer to home the next year, this time with a year of experience on my resume. Since I could just say I wanted to be closer to home or something like that, I also wouldn't have to say anything negative about my job/school for reasons for leaving. I am staying on for next year and probably the year after that as well. After that, I may look into moving closer to home (although probably not in my exact home state). This time I'll have some experience so the search should be easier. I got an afterschool job for a few hours a week at a youth center so I could afford plane tickets home. I went home for thanksgiving, 2 weeks for christmas, spring break, and will be going for a week this summer. So I do still keep in touch with family and friends from home. My best friend (spanish major- the one job thats easier to come by) got a job 2 hours from where we grew up. However, it's an extremely rural area and she has nothing to do and no friends to hang out with. Everyone is older and married with kids, so there isn't anyone her age to hang around with on weekends, and there is literally nowhere to go. Her admin drives her nuts and since it's such a rural area, the kids have no use for or interest in Spanish. She was miserable this year. She may have gotten to stay close to home, but I think I got the better deal!
I also apply within an hour. I can't even afford to move out my parent's house let alone another town, although I would love to someday.
I am going this week to find a place to live and see my classroom and whatnot and then I move in August 1st. I can not wait!
My first job I relocated 4.5 hrs north. Before landing this job I had been applying within an hr radius of home.
I am willing but hesitant to apply because I'm not yet certified in other states and the cost is so high that right now it is difficult to even consider.
This is the first year that I haven't been willing to relocate. My husband recently got a wonderful job that has a great future and it's best for our family to stay where he can work at that job. If we didn't have a child I might consider living separate for a year if I got a job somewhere too far to commute. Previous years I applied all over my current state and even in some different states. I did relocate once, it was only 3 hours away though. Though I'm not able to relocate this year, I'm still willing to drive up to an hour.
My state is so flooded with applicants and after two years of searching in my state and others in the northeast, I decided to look internationally. These positions come with a lot of benefits, including paid round trip airfare, housing, health insurance, furniture allowances... So because I had only been working as a sub and para the previous couple of years and had no money saved for a move, it worked out perfectly. My contract here is two years and I am finishing the first year this week. After that, I may try another country, stay here, or see how things are looking at home. We'll see. I was lucky that I was able to do this. Surprisingly enough, a TON of families came out here too, almost more than the single people.
I know it seems expensive...but weigh the costs of getting a full time job this year vs. not gettiong one. When you're getting a full time salary, 60 or 80 or even 100 bucks is nothing to sacrifice. If you even pick one other state to apply for licensure in, you've literally just doubled (or tripled, if that state has more openings than your home state) your search field. I think that was the one mistake I made in my job search. I was willing to apply out of state, but it seemed silly to me to go ahead and apply/pay for licensure in that state when I didn't even have any interviews yet. I assumed I could simply apply once I was closer to getting a job. I found that there are so many applicants that people who don't have the license in hand aren't even given a second glance most of the time. I did end up getting a job out of state, but my P apparently actually thought I already had the license when she hired me, so really I just lucked out. I do love my school, but this is definitely not the location I would have picked if I had any choice in where to relocate. Had I been more proactive about it, I could have gotten the license for 1 or 2 other states that I really wanted to live in and then applied in those places.
