Interview failures

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Hi everybody,

I would just like some advice on what to do really regarding interviews.

I left my job in December because I was being bullied by my managers and for other reasons as well such as lack of resources to do my job.

However, I have been applying for teaching assistant roles for the past like 4 months. I am getting interviews but not being offered any jobs.

I have play work experience with special needs children and I have some voluntary school experience with special educational needs students.

I also have two certificates in makaton and I have a degree in creative writing and media studies (2:1 grade)


I went for a TA interview at one of the schools I volunteered at a few weeks ago. I emailed asking for feedback and their reply wasn't very positive. I was told basically that my observation in the classroom was s**t. However, I did explain I was nervous and tried my best.

They should had taken nto account my NLD and I do have a lot of difficulty with verbal information. However, it is much worse when I am anxious and when I am in new situations like interviews.

I don't know what to do. There's so many expectations regarding TA jobs, you need so much experience and so many qualifications for a job which is rewarding but it is very low paid (between £900 and £1200 a month in some schools) and for role which can be very stressful and demanding too with unpaid overtime.

I think I am never going to get a job in this field because of my NLD and other learning difficulties. I really need a job which is at least 20 hours a week because my playwork job is only during half terms and on Saturdays.

I can't think of anything else to do job wise, I am very very dyspraxic so I can't do anything involving my motor skills and I have dyscalculia so nothing STEM related.


Having NLD and learning and mental health difficulties is really frustrating because I'm always forced out of jobs or I am unemployed I also have IBS as well which is triggered when I am nervous/anxious.

I am really depressed at the moment and I don't know what to do. If my wife and I don't move out of my parents house by next year I fear she is going to leave and divorce me (we can't survive on just her wage and my part time wage which is a 0 hour contract).

Thank you to everyone in advance who comments

Alex

Hi Alex,

It sounds as if you are having a tough time but it sounds as if you have some good experience so hopefully there is a way out.

I am in a very similar situation and I have also had similar problems. I have not problems getting interviews for teaching jobs but I am lousy at interviews. I also find teaching full time is really stressful, often linked to issues with my ASD and it is not something I want to do long term.

I am in London and there is a really busy supply market for both teachers and TAs. I think it is the same outside London but I don't know. There is good demand for supply stuff with good experience and qualifications.

The real bonus us that there are no interviews. The agent will telling you they are interviewing you, but in fact they are just signing you up. As long as you can show you have skills they want you on their books.

You will be able to gain some really good experience and if you can get a chance to show your real skills to schools without having to interview. You will also be able to build confidence walking into a class and having to perform which is likely to be good for further interviews.

Feel free to PM if you want to chat offline.

If they were good enough to email you feedback, they probably did not email you saying you were s**t.

However, even I write this I can feel myself tensing up in that really defensive way that automatically makes me feel that any negative feedback is being hypercritical of me as a person. I know it is horrible to be told why you were not suitable for a position.

I suggest that you take you out of the equation. As your wife or someone who knows what classrooms are like to take out the nasty s**t and to give you areas to improve on for your next interview. I know it is so much easier to type this on a forum that it is to do in real life but it is worth biting the bullet. (I have just realised it took my 2 months before I asked my wife to read feedback recently for me and it still hurt).

Someone has taken the time to give you the feedback which actually means that they like you, they think you do have a future in education and they do want you to succeed. It is far easier to say 'sorry there was just another candidate that was better' or something equally useless. If someone gives you genuine feedback it means they like you enough to respond. That is a big positive.

There is such a need for people who can work in special education and relate to children with special needs. So it is certainly a "worthy" career to be working in. I also think you got some very good words of wisdom from the first two responders here. The only thing I can think of to add, besides hugs and support, is for you to try to come up with an "elevator pitch" that you can memorize and rehearse so that it comes off as "real." An elevator pitch is what you can say in a three minute ride in an elevator when someone says, "And what do you do?"
It probably involves some reference to the parts of what you do that are unique to you. I know there is all the standard advice given about what to say, but if you can reach into yourself and state what you are good at and what you really believe, after a while (it takes practice in my experience) it becomes you and others can see it too. So, for example, I could say something like "I am a support coordinator who puts my clients first!" or "We strive to support maximum independence and self direction for each client so he/she can excel to the best of his/her ability." These are statements that could be said by anyone doing a support coordinator job. Although this is much less elegant, it is something that I often say about myself "The main difference between me and other support coordinators is that I am stubborn and do not take no for an answer. I continue to pursue avenues and resources to get what my client needs."

I have also told some guardians from time to time: "You may not find me warm and fuzzy. That is because I turn my time and energy to getting (your ward) the services and supports he or she needs."

So just reading what you have written, and this may be totally off base, but your elevator pitch might include something like, "I know I stutter and waffle in interviews, but with the children I can....whatever. I'd like to show you what I can do in a real classroom setting. Just give me a few minutes with the kids."

That last bit makes me think you might want to try getting videos of your work to demonstrate your capabilities when you are not so nervous.

You surely have something important to give these children. Instead of thinking to yourself (as we always do in these situations - no criticism here) "if I don't get a job, my wife might leave me," Think: "I need to pursue this work because there are children out there who need what I have to offer."

So, just my 2c and if it doesn't apply, ignore it.

I don't know how different schools are in UK, but I have had a difficult time also until I found my current school. I think it is because we communicate so much online, share google docs, and have agendas ahead of time. It is also okay for me to tell the other staff when I don't understand something verbally. We all seem to acknowledge that we have had the same challenges as the students, other schools I've been in had competing staff who tried to project that they were perfect. There are kids out there that will benefit from your learning experiences, don't give up!