How to Get Hired at an International School: Requirements, Tips, and Timeline

9/10/2025

My lovely living room apartment in Poland - when I taught in Krakow

I need to be honest with you about what it’s like to be an international school teacher. Let’s be as clear as possible. It’s an experience, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many educators, and I’m living that dream at present. Currently in my third stint overseas, year five (but not continuous), I’ve lived in three different countries and experienced the highs and lows of not being home for holidays and being away from family for extended periods. My family jokes that it’s like I’m back in the service, and these are two-year postings from one location to the next. In a way that summarizes life succinctly.

So You Want to Teach Abroad? Here’s What Schools Expect

I could write quite a bit on that topic alone, but for today, to serve my fellow educators, it would be more beneficial to share how the recruitment process works. This isn’t like the public school world, and it’s certainly not like boarding schools either. The hiring process is different, the timeline is different, and there are specific requirements you need to meet to get your foot in the door.

This isn’t going to focus on teaching English as a second language, peeps. There’s plenty of content for that crew, and, for that matter, numerous resources are available for educators, far different from what I first experienced in 2008 when I was figuring out how this all works. I want to stipulate that much of this is in the vein that you likely have a dream school that is one of the top schools in Europe or Asia. Before you take any action, temper your expectations with the understanding that there are only a limited number of openings and you’re not the only one applying. With that stated, and knowing that not everyone’s CV is going to check the boxes, but they might still get their dream position, here are some general guidelines to help you on your quest. Let’s do this.

Education Requirements for International School Teachers

If you want to teach overseas, you typically need a four-year degree, ideally in the subject you plan to teach or in education. You can be the exception to the rule and have a degree in history with a certification in mathematics. I know someone who falls into that category (this guy), but there won’t be as many countries open to you simply because the visa rules stipulate what educators must have. Trust me on this one; I had an interview for a school in Albania years ago, and we couldn’t take it any further because my certification didn’t match the degree requirements. My experience meant nothing; the diploma did.

Teaching Certifications That Open Doors Overseas

You need your certification. Especially if you are coming in as a foreign hire, don’t make your life more complicated than it needs to be. Having a full teaching certificate opens up numerous potential opportunities. Heck, go crazy, also apply for your QTS, which is the English equivalent, and open even more doors. It’s true that if you hold an experienced teaching license, you can, for the most part, apply online and within a short time frame be awarded a QTS in England. From what I gather, this never expires, and you can teach anywhere in England or, more importantly, at overseas British schools. Didn’t consider that route, did you, now.

Why Classroom Experience Matters (More Than You Think)

Experience — I’m not trying to bring you down a notch or two, but if you want to be considered seriously for your dream scenario, a minimum of two years is key. I would say if you have three years of experience, ideally at one school, you’ll have more opportunities than someone who simply wants to teach overseas and is marketing their summer camp and intern teaching experience as enough to deal with their first posting. Let’s be real here, as real as possible. Those first few years of teaching at a boarding school or a public school are a safe proving ground for you to learn your craft better, understand and experience the full cycle of the school year, and acquire some classroom management skills.

When you don’t have that experience, you were likely hired because it’s late in the hiring cycle, you’re a warm body, and that’s better than nothing. This doesn’t mean you won’t do a good job, but it’s also going to be an uphill battle for many. I must say that this happens more often than you think, because the more qualified candidates receive better job offers.
Your employers might not tell you this, but let’s be frank, if I have a teacher with five to ten years of experience or someone who has none, I’m not hiring the new guy to learn their craft and get used to an entirely new living environment overseas if I can avoid this scenario. That’s a way to set yourself up for failure. Then again, if you have a teaching spouse, who is in math or science, that's an entirely different scenario. Let's just pretend you are a single teacher with less than two years experience. :)

Location: Where First-Time Teachers Can Actually Land Jobs

Location matters. Well, it does, right? I mean, I’m sure you want Europe for your first posting. You can teach in Paris, roam the tree-lined streets, and have a morning croissant on your way to work. Just imagine the ambiance — oh, how amazing! But it’s not going to happen for the majority of applicants, if any. If you don’t have experience, don’t even bother looking in Western Europe.

Even if you are a candidate for a position, just realize the benefits are not the same compared to other parts of the world, and with the cost of living, your potential savings are going to be nil. I’m not trying to be negative, but again, this is reality. Without a substantial number three and a degree that sets you apart, maybe in math or science, better yet with experience in middle school ages or IB, you might have a long road trying to find a suitable place for your first overseas gig.

It’s doable, for sure. I don’t want you to think it’s not, but you will have to be open to Asia, Africa, South America, and everywhere else in between. Then you have to decide what’s more important: the experience, the money, the overall cost of living, or the dream you have concocted for yourself. Should you have your heart set on a single location and it’s incredibly competitive, all I can say is good luck, and maybe next year or the year after that.

International Hiring Season Explained

This one caught me off guard the first time around. I expected it to be like the boarding school world, where most jobs would be posted in the spring. Nope, not so much, at least not the schools you dream of going to. I will add a caveat here: this doesn’t mean there aren’t good schools with jobs available in the spring, but these are the equivalent of a good luck dragon that shows up unexpectedly. The bulk of the hiring season begins in late fall and early winter.

At one school where I worked, we had to submit our intentions for the upcoming school year by the end of September. I’m not kidding. I had been teaching there for a month, and already I had to decide whether I wanted to return for year two. Other schools do it later, in November or December, or even in January, but for the most part, it’s commonplace to share your plans in the fall so that they can start interviewing and finding candidates.

This is really important to keep in mind, because if you don’t know this part of the process, you miss out on the fact that candidates interview for these open positions in October, November, and into January. Two of my three teaching positions overseas were done by the middle of January. The third one was the unexpected gift horse in March.

To put things in greater perspective, on my last hiring cycle, I started interviews the first week of October. This also means that you should prepare your CV, resume, teaching philosophy, and reference contacts by September if you want to be ready for the hiring season. If you want to consider more options and be a candidate, this is the way to go.

Final Thoughts

A big fan of five things, that’s where we will stop for today. This is just the proverbial tip of the iceberg. We haven’t discussed where to look for a job or what to expect in your first year teaching overseas. This will be later, I promise. We also didn’t dive into the entire transition going from the USA to wherever you are calling your new home. I’ll cover it in a series of future posts.

In the meantime, if you can’t wait and are interested in learning more about my experience teaching overseas and indoctrinating myself to life in Italy, Brindisi and Me might be worth a look.