International School Community is full of thousands of useful, informative comments, 52693 comments (10 Feb. 2025) to be exact.

Teaching abroad as a couple comes with its own unique set of challenges and rewards. From navigating contract negotiations to balancing work-life dynamics in a foreign country, there’s a lot to consider before making the leap. On our website, members share their firsthand experiences, offering objective insights into what it’s really like to work at international schools as a Teaching Couple. These 365 comments provide a valuable glimpse into both the benefits and potential pitfalls of this lifestyle.

We explored our extensive database of submitted comments and uncovered 12 particularly insightful reflections from teaching couples around the world. Whether you’re considering applying together for your first overseas job or are already working side by side in the classroom, these perspectives highlight key takeaways that could influence your next career move.

12. 

“SWIS is a full-continuum IB school and prioritizes applicants with IB experience. That being said, if equivalent experience is shown, exceptions have been made. Additionally, SWIS looks for applicants with international school experience and is particularly supportive of teaching couples with or without dependents…” – Shen Wai International School (Shenzhen, China) – 99 Comments

11.

“Staying because of the savings potential within a teaching couple dynamic, safe/clean/convenient Singapore. Leaving because of the high cost of living and stressful workplace…” – Singapore American School (Singapore) – 408 Comments

10.

“This school is primarily looking for inquiry-based, experienced teaching couples. IB experience in the PYP or DP is preferred…” – International School of Islamabad (Islamabad, Pakistan) – 44 Comments

9.

“Foreign hire jobs continue to be advertised on TES, and also Linkedin. The format has remained similar, people are often asked to sing, dance, tell jokes, or something. Various teaching couples have been employed recently. The school helps with dependents’ visas. The school offers two children places without fees.” – Colegio Gran Bretana (Bogota, Colombia) – 221 Comments

8.

“The housing allowance has not kept pace with increasing rents in Bangkok. They have recently dropped the amount provided to teaching couples…” KIS International School (Bangkok) (Bangkok, Thailand) – 529 Comments

7. 

“6000 RMB a month housing allowance for a single teacher. Only 7500 RMB a month for a teaching couple with 2 kids. Very hard to find a decent 3 bedroom apartment for this price…” Suzhou Singapore International School (Suzhou, China) – 166 Comments

6. 

“Good potential for singles with no dependents and for teaching couples to save while living quite well…” – American International School Vietnam (AISVN) (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam) – 350 Comments

5.

“The school uses Schrole to post their vacancies and recruit teachers. There are usually multiple interviews before you are offered a contract. Many teaching couples are hired at the school. The school also hires teachers with children…”- International School of Brussels (Brussels, Belgium) – 67 Comments

4. 

“Ample vacation time and they usually match with other international schools since there are many teaching couples who are split between schools. No longer has covid interruptions…” – Western Academy of Beijing (Beijing, China) – 216 Comments

3. 

“If only one-half of a teaching couple accepts a position, the director will very likely offer the other half a job once they have arrived in Vilnius. It must be remembered that once you are in the country, you will be considered a local hire, forfeiting ALL benefits. teaching couples: make sure to inquire about other positions before accepting anything…” – Vilnius International School. (Lithuania , Vilnius) – 98 Comments

2. 

“ISL advertises on the major websites and recruitment sites and has hiring policies as you would expect. The biggest challenge is that they don’t have a “contract deadline” and so jobs are often released one at a time, at random intervals. You can see the effect as most people hired are hired for one job as its unlikely a teaching couple would simultaneously find two openings that match.” – International School of Luxembourg (Luxembourg) – 57 Comments

1. 

“They can do sub teaching, and or tutor. For teaching couples with only one “fit” at this school the city may still work out since there are many international schools in the area. We have several couples working in two different schools. This school also has a Chinese sister school in town which is an option (same salary etc.).” – International School of Nanshan Shenzhen (China, Shenzhen) – 90 Comments

If you have an interesting and useful comment to add related to teaching couples at your school that you would like to share, log in to International School Community and submit your comments. For every 10 submitted comments, you will get one month of free premium membership added to your account!