Are you tired of sending endless application forms to international schools? Would you like good schools to contact you about suitable opportunities instead? Our new Explorer service is designed to enable exactly this – schools can connect directly with candidates they are interested in.
We launched this service in October 2017 and twenty international schools signed up in our first week. It is great for them as it saves time and money recruiting. It’s good for us teachers too as it means a broader range of schools using Teacher Horizons – so more job opportunities posted and more chance of finding that perfect position!
However, as with any new and exciting feature, we are aware you might have few questions, so we put together these FAQs which we hope will answer some of them…
What is Teacher Horizons’ Explorer service?
We have developed a candidate search and filter function that allows schools to search and filter teachers profiles and access attachments such as CVs and supporting documents. It allows schools to contact candidates directly saving everyone time and money.
What does this mean for me?
Schools that have signed up for this service are able to search our database and find your profile if you fit their criteria for new staff. They will then be able to contact you directly to ask you if you are interested in interviewing for their vacancies.
Will I still have contact with Recruitment Advisers at Teacher Horizons?
Very much so – the number of ‘supported positions’ on Teacher Horizons is increasing all the time. These are the positions that our Recruitment Advisers (RAs) can support with and, if you are the right fit, they can fast-track your application. Your RA will be in touch about vacancies that suit you, and will still be available for Skype conversations about suitable positions. However, with this new service, schools may be in touch with you directly as well – meaning you will get more attention.
Find out more about who our Recruitment Advisers are: Read their stories here.
Who will be my main point of contact?
As before, the Recruitment Adviser in charge of your subject area should be your first point of contact for ‘supported’ positions. If in doubt, have a look at the job adverts (for ‘supported positions’) in your subject and your RA’s email will appear at the bottom.
Will I get lots of emails?
You may do if you are a strong candidate. However, to avoid too many emails, schools do have a maximum number of candidates they can contact in a day, so you will only receive an email from a school if they are particularly interested in you. If you are getting too many emails, you can switch your profile to ‘yellow’ in your settings.
Will my current school see I am on Teacher Horizons?
If your profile is set to ‘green’ (available) and your current school uses Teacher Horizons’ Explorer service, then yes, your profile could be visible to them. So if you are looking, we always recommend informing your school early – even if you are just seeing what’s out there. Most schools recognise that teachers like to keep an idea of what’s out there.
If you would rather your school didn’t know, then switch your profile to ‘yellow’ and you will be invisible to schools but still be able to view job opportunities. Then you can speak to one of our Recruitment Advisers who can recommend you to the particular school that you want to apply for.
Please note, we believe it’s best to inform your school if you are looking for positions – be completely transparent, they really appreciate it.
Here is some info about how to obtain references from your current school – it’s really important!
I like Teacher Horizons because of the personal touch. Will Recruitment Advisers still get to know me?
Yes – the contact that you have with schools will be additional to the contact with us, rather than ‘instead of’. As we grow, we are hiring more Recruitment Advisers so that we can keep our personal touch which we know is what both schools and teachers like about our services.
Will this give me many more opportunities?
Yes – we will now have schools using Teacher Horizons to actively search for candidates as well as schools using our recruitment service. This means we have time and space for more schools to sign up and lots more job opportunities being posted.
What if a school contacts me but I am not interested?
Feel absolutely free to say ‘thanks but no thanks’ but please always be polite and professional in your communication with schools. Remember – the international school community is still a small one. If you can, try to give an honest reason as to why you are not interested – schools will appreciate the feedback (as we all do!).
Will schools contact me from locations I am not interested in?
Perhaps occasionally. Schools can filter candidates based on ‘locations of interest’ which you have put on your profile (so make sure it is accurate). A school from Africa won’t contact you if they can see you are only interested in Asia, as it would be a waste of their time. We appreciate that Asia is a big and varied continent, so it might happen that sometimes schools in countries you are not interested in contact you from time-to-time. If it gets too much, you can easily switch your profile to ‘yellow’.
What background checks are there?
Before candidates’ profiles are activated, our team check candidates’ profiles, CVs, supporting documentation and confidential references. Our team are experienced recruiters who have been trained in safer recruitment and safeguarding children and young people. You may be asked to do a Skype interview if you are applying for a ‘supported position’. Schools should also be doing their own thorough background checks. If your profile is ‘green’, schools will be able to access your documents and references directly themselves. For this reason, it is important that you have your profile complete and documentation up-to-date as early as possible.
Key tip: When you request your references, we strongly recommend using your referees’ school email addresses as this gives recruiters initial confidence in your profile. If a reference is written from a Hotmail or Gmail account, the reference is usually treated with more caution which immediately reduces your chances of success.
You can read our full Safeguarding policy here.
Does it help if I login to Teacher Horizons regularly?
We always recommend having a look at the latest job opportunities on the Teacher Horizons website at least once a week. Not only will this ensure you see the latest vacancies, it will also increase your chances of being seen by a school: Teachers who are recently active will appear higher on the candidate listings.
What happens if I sign a contract and then withdraw before it is completed?
This is very costly and damaging to both the school and Teacher Horizons. For this reason, we charge candidates £500 if they break a contract they have signed. This is because finding a suitable alternative at a late stage is extremely expensive and time-consuming for both Teacher Horizons and the school. You can read more our T&Cs for teachers here.
What if I want to be ‘green’ (actively looking) but not to be contacted directly by schools?
That’s not possible, but you can switch to ‘yellow’ (invisible), which means you can still see job opportunities, but your profile is not accessible to schools. Speak to your Recruitment Adviser to let them know you have done this.
If my status is set to ‘yellow’, can any of my details be seen by schools?
When a candidate is set to ‘yellow’ schools using the Explorer service are not able to see that candidate’s profile. ‘Red’ candidates are also invisible. Only ‘green’ teachers will appear when schools search and filter candidates.