Jonas 12/04 2014 11:38
Hej.
Jeg står og vil gerne afsted til enten Canada eller USA til næste sæson(2014/2015) som skilærer, og vil i den anledning høre hvad mulighederne er? Jeg har den østrigske skilæreruddannelse, Antwärter. Hvad har folk af erfaringer med dette? Er det noget som kan lade sig gøre?
Vh. Jonas
S 12/04 2014 12:33
Sv: Skilærer i Canada.
Jonas,
You will need excellent English to work in Canada, so I'll write this in English.
1) You need a Working Holiday Visa to do any work in Canada. http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/denmark-danemark/experience_canada_experience/index.aspx?lang=eng
There are 350 Visas in total, but only 127 left as of 3. April, so you need to be quick. You do not need to already have a job when you apply - the Visa allows you to travel to Canada and find work when you get there. You can get any job with a Working Holiday Visa, and you can have more than one job.
It is very, very difficult to get a Work Visa for USA, so my advice is do not waste your time.
2) Ski Schools in Canada prefer instructors with Canadian qualifications or higher foreign qualifications, so for the Austria system, this would be minimum Landes 1 or even Landes 2. But, if you have your Antwärter plus one season experience instructing, then you can easily pass the CSIA Level 1 when you get to Canada. The local ski schools hold these courses, starting in October/November - see http://www.snowpro.com/index.php/en/ The course takes one week.
The CSIA website also has information regarding jobs. The courses and jobs lists start to fill up in June.
3) The ski schools begin to recruit in the summer. Usually they will want to interview the instructors, but of course there is also Skype. Make sure that you have a paper (in English) from your Austrian ski school which describes the work you did and the period you worked, and a CV resume in English. You will also need a clean police record. (You will need a CV in English for all jobs in Canada).
4) In most resorts in Canada, there is only one ski school, owned by the company that also owns the lifts and the infrastructure. For example, Whistler ski school has 1500 instructors. You are not permitted to instruct outside of the ski school, and the piste patrol will take you off the mountain and take your lift pass if you do.
So if you have an idea of where you want to work, go to the website for the resort and look at the ski school information and recruiting information. Some resorts hold Job Fairs in the autumn where they interview for workers, but these are always in Canada. Some large resorts also have interviews in Europe, usually through an approved agency. For example, Whistler Blackcomb works with The Working Holiday Club and have interviews in Copenhagen (last year in July).
Beware: there are companies offering to help you to get work for a fee - only go to the companies that have been approved by the resorts, usually linked from their website. The best way to ask for information is to email the ski schools yourself.
5) Accommodation is often in Staff Housing (like the mitarbeiterhaus system in Austria) or you find an apartment to share with others. In many places, you only get paid when you work, so no work = no money (or a small weekly retainer). Remember this when making your plans.
6) If you cannot find a job as a ski instructor, there are hundreds of other jobs in ski resorts. In Canada, the pay is good and you should get plenty of time to ski.
7) Alcohol - probably not an issue for you, but in many places in Canada you cannot buy alcohol under 19. Bars, restaurants and supermarkets are very strict about this. When I worked in Whistler we were not allowed to drink alcohol or to smoke when wearing our uniforms, so if you want to go to après ski, you get changed into ordinary clothes after work and meet your guests and friends in the bar afterwards.
Jonas 13/04 2014 11:31
Sv: Skilærer i Canada.
Mange tak for svaret.
Det var helt sikkert brugbart. Hvis du har nogle tilføjelser, må du meget gerne skrive dem.
Vh. Jonas
S 05/05 2014 17:42
Sv: Skilærer i Canada.
Now only 84 Working Holiday Visas available - as of 1. May 2014 - so don't wait too long! http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/denmark-danemark/experience_canada_experience/index.aspx?lang=eng
