Organizers Senior Associate Barry Drake and Veronica Drake were thrilled with this year’s turnout for the 2018 Hong Kong Fair, January 12th-14th. In the nine years that Barry and Veronica have been running Search Hong Kong, this was the largest, with 178 candidates and 54 schools, a significant proportion of which were new schools. Recruiters consistently commented on the high quality of candidates, and candidates were very pleased with the range of the 460 jobs available. Candidate Danielle Arveson commented:
“I am thrilled to be joining the BASIS Team. My husband and I have attended two Hong Kong job fairs, and both times we found terrific positions.”
Senior Associate Bill Turner was on hand to help things run smoothly—at least until the final day when the Bangkok flu caught up with him in Hong Kong. Veronica, leaning on a crutch, said to Barry, “No problem. We’re Search Associates. We can DO this!”
Search Hong Kong is designed for the comfort and ease of both recruiters and candidates working in international schools in Asia, not solely Hong Kong or China. Since the fair is held over a weekend, expenses are low and recruiter charges are kept to a minimum. By making sure the ratio of candidates to schools doesn’t exceed 4:1, Barry and Veronica create a friendly, less competitive atmosphere at this early-in-the-season fair. Candidate Cecile Karrer said,
“Thank you very much indeed for your kind wishes. I will most definitely recommend Search Associates to people I know are looking for work in international schools.”
Search Hong Kong is the place to be for recruiters who want to emulate international-mindedness by diversifying their staff. Twenty percent of all candidates are ethnically Chinese and educated in an English-speaking country, and Search Hong Kong is THE fair to secure Mandarin teachers. It is common that around 30% of the candidates originate from outside the usual big five suppliers of international school teachers. Only one quarter of the teachers come from the U.S. and another 20% come from the U.K. Barry further describes the candidate profile:
“A very good blend of teachers attend Search Hong Kong who have International Baccalaureate (IB) experience and understanding of other inquiry-based educational systems, including the British National Curriculum, Australian / NZ, Canadian and U.S. programs. . . Most of the candidates already have substantial international education experience and growing numbers have taught in one or other of the IB programmes.”
In the days following Search Hong Kong, Barry and Veronica anticipate about one-third of the attending candidates will have been placed at one of the 54 participating international schools. To see so many lives changed is never short of exciting! Candidate Iman Khan was very pleased:
“I'm happy that I chose one of the best schools in Beijing and this was only possible because of Search Associates. I walked out with six job offers and chose the best one which worked great for me. I can't thank Search Associates enough for this opportunity. Attending the job fair not only gave me confidence but made me brush up my interview skills as well. Thank you!”
For more about our 12 unique, annual job fairs around the globe, click here.
