Considering a move to Istanbul with my wife and 14 year old son. Would appreciate any information on international schools, expat teen life etc. that might help out with the decision.

Thanks

why not wait a couple of years and let your son finish school, where he is?

but if he is in the IB programme then it would not be such a big deal to move.
Best schools are IICS and the British school.

even so, if he's settled there and has been there for many years then it will be a change that may affect his schooling.

Thanks gbshane and starman.

my son has one more year before IB. we have already been living in China for 3 years and are looking for a change.

anyone here teach at the British School? i have been offered a position there and would like to know working/housing conditions.

BS is supposed to be one of the better schools to teach at. Have heard good things about it, but they all came from TEFLers, who might have different expectations from a school.
A friend of mine was offered a position for this semester. He was asked to substitute as Head of Department and was offered a normal teaching position in the very same department for next year. I found this quite outrageous, even more when you think it was offered to a person who has years and years of experience as HoD.

At the British school there are always issues regarding housing: One teacher arrived and had to find her own place to rent with no Turkish and a 500 dollar allowance.She was walking the streets around the school trying to find something - they gave her no help.

What campus did they offer you a position at? that may determine where you want to live, but if i was in your position i would insist that a furnished apartment comes with the deal. at that school there are many unfair practices regarding housing - if you get married to a Turk you immediately lose your housing allowance, and one poor teacher whose husband -he was an expat too died (in Iraq) wasnt event giving a housing allowance afterwards - . I know of many of these kind of stories. Do not let the school tell you otherwise.

It seems a good place to work the teachers are friendly and children nice but there are problems with the administration. they pay you cash in hand for example and do not declare your whole income. most people seem quite happy there but many teachers are long timers in istanbul and the job suits them.

Dear Bukka,
I've worked at IICS for nearly 7 years now and find it to be an excellent place to work and the students' success speaks for itself. I can answer any questions you have. feel free to email me at: jgokmen (at) iics.k12.tr

here's an article about one of our recent grads now at Harvard (about IB diploma)...
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detay ... ink=101119


best,
jennifer