SLOVAKIA
EASTERN SLOVAKIA
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and is situated just a few kilometres
from Vienna. It is a city that has a booming economy and is quickly becoming
a major player in the new European Union. It is experiencing major changes
as businesses flood here to take up the opportunities that the new markets
of Eastern and Central Europe offer. There are countless opportunities
for teachers to work with locals seeking careers in these new companies
and language schools are opening up all over the city to meet this demand.
Eastern Slovakia is much more regional and there are fewer opportunities
for the locals in terms of employment. However,
for Australians wanting to live and work overseas
there are many reasons to go here. The region
offers wonderful natural beauty, tourists from all over Europe come here
for the skiing, trekking, historical tours, and the world famous Tokai
wine region. Kosice is the main town and your best bet for securing a
teaching position, but there are many smaller towns that have a need
for native-speaking teachers at the schools. The locals are very open
and friendly to foreigners and have a genuine interest in helping people.
English is widely spoken among the young and educated but relatively
few people in this region are fluent speakers of the language compared
to other parts of Europe. I met a lady in a bookshop who had taught herself
English by listening to Beatles records!
There are several language schools in Kosice.
Rates of pay and conditions vary enormously so
it is always worth shopping around a little if
you are interested in working here. Generally
speaking, however, you will be in high demand
because there are only a few native English speaking teachers in this
area of Europe. Krakow, Prague, Budapest, Vienna are much more popular
and jobs in these cities will be harder to come by. The demand for effective
English language teaching is strong with many of the locals seeking out
private tutors, summer schools, crash courses and online services to
improve their English ability. Your students are likely to be young and
diligent with experience at learning foreign languages. You will find
people who can speak German, Italian, Hungarian, and Russian, and
it is not uncommon for people to speak four or
even five languages fluently.
