Where would you go?

GTE

Hello,

I am looking for some advice on some job applications I have made.

Just to be clear, I have received no shortlist or interview confirmations as all applications are still open.

I am a newly qualified FE teacher with a first class honours Master of Science degree who is open to teaching in FE and HE in my subject area. I do not have a PhD, so any HE posts I apply for have to not mind that, and I have a few posts which are causing me some reason to think long and hard, so I was wondering what people here think.

FE opportunities in Ireland: Approx. 28,000 euro per year if full time
4 hours in one college in my subject area
17 hours in another college in my subject area
Both colleges nearby so can double job, if that is doable.
A third option, which is only a maybe would probably be around 8 hours (ish) in my subject area.

HE opportunities in Ireland: Approx. 35,000 euro per year if full time
Assistant lectureship in my subject area in an Institute of Technology, with no hours listed in the application.
It is most likely part time, and I would love to be able to balance that with one of the Dublin based FE options, especially the big IF one if that did come to a reality.

HE opportunities elsewhere:
Instructor position in my subject area in the USA - $49k/€43k a year
40 hours per week with no Summer off (full three semester workload). 25 hours of teaching per week with the balance for grading, prep and other duties. Health and pension benefits.

Assistant lectureship or Professor of Practice at a USA university in my subject area which is based in the UAE
Full time position for three years with a Summer break and UAE-esque benefits. No salary has been quoted, at least yet, so I dont know what to expect.

My thoughts
I want to be in FE to teach my subject area as there are some excellent colleges which deliver my subject. I just love teaching the subject. I am also open to HE options as there area also some great HE options in Ireland.

HE options would give me more money, and with respect to the UAE option, the fact that I could progress up the Professor of Practice grade without a PhD would be something which I think I could benefit from greatly in the future. I am open to a PhD in the future. I may also be taken on directly as a Professor of Practice, they are open to employing someone across the scales.

The USA based option is a nice chunk of money but works out at around 23 euro an hour and seems to have 10 more working hours per week than in Ireland as well as no Summer off. It is not a University, but is a private institution which is very well known in the subject.

The Irish options would be less money, certainly FE would be. The Institute of Tech. option is better money, but there is no indication of how many hours they need.

I am open to moving around, so perhaps the issues surrounding a move can be left out of this discussion. I guess I am looking for more clarity on money and progression options.

In terms of money, I guess UAE, Institute of Tech, USA and FE would be the order of preference, though the Institute of Tech and FE are not full time.

Would anyone have any general comments? Which would you go for in terms of money and progression to allow for the option to move into FE or HE in Ireland or anywhere else in the world.

Thanks, I really appreciate any discussion

Dave0301

The HE opportunities abroad seem really appealing; full time, new experiences, career progression and the chance to travel.

That is what I would look.

GTE

Thanks for the reply. Indeed, the options abroad are appealing. Full time, career progression and travelling are pluses (in order of significance(, from what you pointed out.

Especially as I have family in the UAE so that would make that much easier, if that became an option for me. I would say the UAE option is the least likely, however. I am sure the position is very competitive.

In correspondence, I have gotten on well with the USA option but the lack of a Summer holiday would be problematic, just in terms of being able to go back home. That said, as educators we are very fortunate to be able to have that as an option.

Trying to work out some numbers, on the basis that an FE teacher is being paid for approx. two semesters of work, if the USA was just two semesters, it would be 28,000 vs 33,000 for Irish FE vs USA and at least, I would have a job in the Summer to keep me kicking over if I were in the states and give me extra money to around 43,000 euro.

If the IT option could become Full Time, its more or less the same as the states on the two semester calculation, so what I need to think about is whether the USA giving me extra work during the Summer would make up for the fact that I may not be able to get home as much as I would like if it were the UAE.

The USA job is the Los Angeles, so I would need to look at cost of living too.