| Useful Tips | What to Bring
• Copies of your CV (Curriculum Vitae) and Cover Letter in English. If you want you can translate all the documents in French; make sure your CV is in French format. French CVs require having a passport-sized photo in the upper-right corner of the first page. Don’t use attached photo, it looks not better, so try to avoid it. (Most French do not smile for passport photos.) Try to do you cover letter in writing; it will be easier to make copies of it.
• A Cell Phone. If you have a mobile phone that is sure to accept cover phone net in France take it with you. Otherwise, pick up one when you arrive. If you don’t, you can get at Mobicarte stores that are common and very popular in France. Check out www.pagesjaunes.fr (the Yellow Pages in France) to find the address closest to you. Most simple one will cost you just 120 euros; recharge device is also needed, but it’s cheap, nearly 15 euros. Make sure to write your new phone number on your CV so that employers can call you.
• Important Documents. Here are necessary: birth certificate and passport copies, all copies and originals of ever obtained certificates (including your TEFL or CELTA course), and main photos for the passport. Employers may want all or none of these things, but you’ll want to have them on hand just in case.
Final Preparations
• Buy a 3-week roundtrip ticket to France in September or January. At this time schools hire most of teachers. Three weeks is plenty, because if you haven’t found a job by then, you’re not going to. The paper work is inevitable even when you have got your contract; you need to return to your residence place to complete a number of documents. You cannot get your work visa while in France.
• Go to a big city. It is advisable to go to the huge city, in Paris for example. The more English schools there are, the better your chances will be.
• Book a place to stay in advance. If you’re trying to save funds, stay in a budget hotel. A good place to look for cheap hotels and hostels is at www.hostelworld.com or www.hostels.com. Youth hostels also work, although you will have to deal with curfews and noise problems at night.
French: Oui or non?
Oui! It’s not necessary to have very good command of French, but if you learn some at least most simple French words, it will tell employers you that you take it very seriously to work and live in France.
Where Are the Schools?
First, ask your TEFL or CELTA program for a list of schools. There are special lists of employers where you may find the most suitable one according to the employment conditions and other. The British Council may have a list of schools as well, you can check out its web page at www.britishcouncil.org. You may also visit them if you want to go to the capital of France – in Paris.
What worked best in my case was the French Yellow Pages. Paper listings have more complete and fulfilling information than the ones on Internet sites. Hunt down a paper copy when you arrive.
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