To be unemployed in France...

Sorry for the radio silence everybody...I don't feel like I have that much to update. But here's what's going on!

Now that I have finished my course and am officially certified to teach English as a Foreign Language, the job hunt has begun.

I finished my course a little over a week ago. Since then, I have spent hours updating my CV in both English and French (there is a HUGE difference between what a CV looks like in America, and what is expected in France). Thanks to Florent, my amazing friend who took hours out of several days to debate the differences and help me assemble mine in both a professional and aesthetically pleasing way.

In terms of long-time employment in France goes...I have applied to Universities and language schools. I have also read on several applications "will not sponsor visa" and have been told outright "no", usually followed by a little chuckle. Hiring an American is a bureaucratic mess, apparently. But I am assured by the bartender at a local English pub that there are several Americans who come into the pub who work here legally teaching English, who are not married to a European, and who are not students themselves. I forgot to ask if their parents are both American or not. Oh well. He has encouraged me to hang around more in order to meet them and get their stories. Just what an unemployed person needs: to hang out in a pub.

As far as short-term employment: I have applied to several teaching online positions, and I have papered the city of Montpellier with flyers for English lessons. I have one client so far, but there was a screw-up on timing, and I won't actually get to meet him until next week. I've seen several of my flyers with my phone number ripped off, but no actual calls yet. It's a good thing I like to read. I've also been doing odd jobs for my landlady and her husband, which provides me a tiny bit of extra pocket money.

English teaching positions in France are in fairly low-demand, poorly paid, and because it is such a desirable place to live, the competition is pretty fierce. I am not discouraged though. If I am unable to find a job here, I will be setting my sights on other countries where the demand is high, competition is low, and the jobs are better paid. These exist in countries like Japan, Thailand, Vietname, China, Saudi Arabia, and the U.A.E., all of which I would not mind spending a year or two teaching in. And it is this kind of experience that can lead to a better position in the long run. Because the demand for teachers is higher, they tend to pay for things like visa, housing, airfare, vacations, and insurance, as well as a decent salary on top of all that. There are very few, if any, teaching positions available to someone with my little experience that would pay for even half of that. So that is my backup plan. Either way, I will most likely be returning to the States on the 2nd of July, as previously planned.

I have been putting my photos on facebook because uploading is about 200X faster than loading them onto my blog, so sorry to anyone who doesn't have facebook! I will show you pictures at some point, I promise!