Recruitment Doesn’t Wrap Up — It Ripples

Every year, right about now, the same narrative starts circulating, “Recruitment is basically done.” But not only is that story inaccurate, it actively undermines educators who are still searching and schools that will still need to hire.

International school recruitment does not wrap up neatly or end on a predictable date. It behaves more like a line of dominoes. Educators accept positions before winter break, new vacancies open, searches restart, and the market reshapes itself…again and again. This cycle continues quietly, steadily, and often far longer than people expect.

And if you’re looking at Europe, let’s be clear, Europe is not “late.” It’s operating on a different clock. Notice periods, labor protections, and contractual norms mean educators often have more time to decide whether they are staying or leaving. In many European contexts, recruitment isn’t winding down right now, it’s ramping up.

So if you are still searching, you'll be encouraged to know that recruitment is not over. It’s simply moving into another phase. There are great jobs still out there and more still to be posted.  The candidates who remain prepared, responsive, and engaged are the ones most likely to find success.

The Current Job Market

1. There are fewer “desirable” opportunities (and that is not your imagination).

In some contexts, schools appear to be absorbing turnover without replacing roles, quietly reducing staffing rather than naming it as a reduction in force. It’s not always dramatic, but it’s visible in the patterns: fewer postings, narrower role scopes, leaner staffing.

2. Shrinking relocation opportunities. 

3. Everyone wants the same schools.

The result is predictable. A large number of highly qualified candidates are chasing a smaller number of schools they consider “worth it.” This creates a lot of competition for a limited number of positions, especially when those schools may also be posting fewer roles due to budget constraints or staffing redesign.

Candidates’ Next Steps

1. Track opportunities like a pipeline.

• Keep watching the major sites where schools post consistently.
• Identify the schools you’re most interested in and track them intentionally.
• Follow those schools on LinkedIn.
• Monitor school websites directly because many schools post there first, quietly, before roles circulate broadly.

The candidates who are successful in this phase are not the ones who apply to the most jobs. They are the ones who move with purpose.

2. Don’t let recruiting overwhelm you. Plan it.

Teachers are navigating a fractured, siloed recruiting landscape while also teaching full time and trying to live full lives. The answer is not “try harder.” The answer is “plan smarter.”

• Set weekly blocks for recruitment tasks.
• Standardize your materials so you’re not reinventing the wheel for every application.
• Build a shortlist and focus your energy where it can convert into interviews.

Preparation is what prevents burnout.

3. Evidence is your differentiator in a crowded market.

This is the part I will state as strongly as possible: A two-page resume is not a competitive advantage. It is a minimum requirement. In a crowded market, resumes and polished narratives blur together. Schools need to see what you can do.

That’s why at TIE we are so committed to evidence-based practices in recruitment. An evidence-based portfolio allows schools to see proof of your impact, your thinking, and your craft, not just read claims about them. It is portable across any recruiting platform and easily shareable with schools. If you are still looking and you’re struggling, you need more than a cosmetic change. Evidence-based practices are a strategic shift in how you position yourself. And for candidates who don’t want job fairs (a trend we’ve seen growing), evidence becomes even more important as it allows schools to engage with your practice directly, without a job fair mediating that first impression.

You can learn more about TIE’s Evidence-based Portfolio here. If you are actively job seeking for next year, this might be just the differentiator you need in the market. 

Schools Need to Adapt

Schools can do significantly better at demonstrating their value, and in this market they must.

1. Schools need to sell the full value proposition.

If you cannot offer top compensation, then the question becomes:

• What can you offer?
• Why should an excellent educator choose you?
• How do you grow, support, and retain teachers?

Too many schools recruit as if the position sells itself. It doesn’t. Not anymore. Schools need to become far more explicit and far more convincing about:

• mission and values as decision filters (not marketing language),
• evidence of culture and leadership (not glossy photos),
• professional growth structures,
• operational stability and systems thinking,
• coherent implementation (because “we have great ideas” is not the same as “we execute well”).

2. Strong schools are built through known systems, not wishful thinking.

A strong school is not mysterious. The systems are well understood: curriculum coherence, assessment literacy, purposeful professional learning, strong implementation, and leadership practices that build commitment rather than compliance. When recruiting gets harder, schools often assume the problem is “the market.” Sometimes it is. But often, the real issue is internal. If your school cannot clearly demonstrate that it is a great place to grow and do meaningful work, you will lose great candidates, even if you post the job.

If this is an area in which you’re struggling, the Principals’ Training Center offers a Creating an Effective School course that explicitly develops these systems in schools. 

A Shared Solution

This recruiting landscape is not going to get easier. The market is shifting, educator expectations are shifting, and school models are shifting. Both candidates and schools need to level up.

• Candidates need to be clearer about what they’re seeking, more strategic about how they pursue it, and more evidence-driven in how they present their impact.
• Schools need to articulate and demonstrate a compelling value proposition, improve implementation, and modernize how they evaluate candidates beyond narrative and personality.

At TIE, we believe evidence-based recruitment is the future because it improves candidate-school matching, strengthens decisions, and ultimately supports better outcomes for students.

Let TIE Support You

• For candidates: Build an Evidence-Based Portfolio that clearly demonstrates your practice, growth, and impact. Designed to be portable, shareable, and platform-agnostic, it helps schools see more than a résumé. Learn more here.
• For schools: Access recruitment support aligned to the Standards of Practice, helping you strengthen hiring quality, improve consistency, and make more informed decisions. Learn more here. 

Help Us Learn From You

Take our survey and share your experience: what you’re seeing, what’s working, and where the system can better serve educators' needs.

We administer this survey every few years to capture teachers’ perspectives on the current state of school recruitment. Findings will be shared in a future edition of the TIE Newsletter.