Interested in teaching abroad but worried about being so far away?

By Kelly Blackwell

Teaching abroad is a fantastic opportunity to explore the world, teach well-behaved students and earn a generous and often tax-free salary. But it is not all a bed of roses, there are some drawbacks. One major drawback is being so far away from family if something goes wrong. However, this concern should not stop you from moving your teaching career abroad. There are some steps you can take to manage the distance.

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Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, you can manage the distance by choosing where to work. By this, I mean you should look into cities where you can get to and from on direct flights that are scheduled at least several days each week. You can use any internet travel website to find this information, I usually use Expedia.com. With direct flights you will get home more quickly and not have to worry about making connecting flights. If you cannot get a direct flight to the city/town where your family is located, make sure you can get a direct flight to a city in your home country that has regular connecting flights to your hometown or ultimate destination.

Secondly you can look into the details of your teaching contract. Many international schools recognise that teachers working abroad may have to rush home when family members become ill, and build flights and/or time off into their employment contracts. When hunting for a teaching job abroad you can add this to the criteria you test teaching contracts against to aid your decision making process. This is not something you would ask about up front at the interview, but once you are offered a teaching position you can request a copy of the employment contract to examine.

Thirdly, you can establish an emergency fund. I have had an emergency fund since I started travelling and working abroad more than 12 years ago. My emergency fund has enough money in it to fly me home from wherever I am on a full fare flight and back again when the crisis that sent me home is resolved. The money is in a bank account that does not earn a lot of interest but it is immediately available, which is the whole reason for its existence.

In the 12 years I have been abroad I have never had to touch my emergency fund, and I hope it stays that way, but it gives me great peace of mind to know that should anything happen that would cause me to rush home I do not have to worry about whether I can afford it, or how I will pay off my credit card later, the money is already there.

Having money to get home by myself also means that I am not limited to only going home under the circumstances under which my employer will fund the trip. For example, the international school for which I currently work only covers emergencies involving immediate family members, so problems with grandparents, cousins or best friends are not covered. However, most employers will give you unpaid leave for emergencies with more distant relatives even if they will not pay for the flights. Funding your own flights is not a problem if you have planned ahead.

I know that having an emergency fund to get home has also given my parents peace of mind as well. They know that if anything should happen to a member of our family, they can call me home without putting any stress on my finances.

With modern technology and transportation it is not hard to stay in touch with loved ones at home, do not use that as an excuse to hold yourself back from a teaching career abroad!

About the Author

Learn more techniques and strategies to successfully land your own teaching job abroad with Kelly’s Complete Guide to Securing a Job at an International School!