What kind of jobs can I get in Italy without being fluent in Italian?

You might make it as a streetwalker.

You have to have a visa and work permit to get a legal job.

The U.S. Government has several bases in Italy and occasionally advertises for positions, but you usually, not always need some government experience.
Check opm.gov and check overseas listings or worldwide. They pay moving costs, etc.

I read an article in the San Jose Mercury News a couple of months ago about teaching English in foreign countries. Seems there is a real demand for English teachers. They find an apartment, etc. for you. If you are serious, perhaps you could do a search for the article on the SJ Merc web site.
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/

If you are a teachers, the military hires teaches as well.

Found the article. It is from August 10, 2003 Mercury News however, unable to pull it up on their site. It is in the travel section entitled "Teaching English Abroad is a Ticket to In-Depth Travel". It says that the better English language schools in Europe hire only native speakers who have earned a certificate in teaching English as a second language. Cal Berkeley (www.unex.berkeley.edu) has a certificate program as does Transworld Schools (www.transworldschools.com) in SF. Asian countries have a higher demand and don't require so many credentials.

Suggested reading: "Teaching English Overseas: A Job Guide for Americans and Canadians," by Jeff Mohamed (English International Publications, $14.95).

Job sites: www.daveseslcafe.com, www.tefl.com

thegreatalex

ARE YOU MY GARDIAN ANGLE?... great thread. I am heading over next week just for a week but it would be interesting to check out options like this. Possibly drop of resume.


Whenever I have read about this though all the books say Italy is the toughest nut to crack. Teach English jobs are hard to find here. I recently read most couples that set out and do this never return. CAN YOU BLAME THEM!

IRA that can be sidestep for illegal positions like Aupair, Nanny. I did that in London for a year. Not something I would do now but a fun experience if you are just out from college. I think ski resort jobs are also available on a seasonal basis of course. Also people do teach English there. I had a friend who did this for a catholic school in Barcelona for ten years.

Do remember that the law throughout the EU, while varying in detail between countries, requires potential employers to demonstrate that someone with appropriate qualifications for a job cannot be found within the EEA (EU plus a couple of neighbours)

For potential English teachers with only a US or Canadian passport that hurdle is almost insurmountable legally: you're not just competing with the 60 million native English speakers who live in the EU, but with the hordes of travellers whose mother tongue is English and who had the good sense to get themselves a British parent or an Italian or Irish grandparent(so qualifying for EU passports).

So your strategies have to be:
- find an employer prepared to employ you illegally, lie or bribe. But do remember that there are tens of thousands of much cheaper illegal workers, from Africa and Eastern Europe. Many also native English speakers: most with reasonable Italian.
- get yourself a marketable skill. The combination of English and expertise in New York law, for example, is scarce in the EU.
- Get an organisation at home to transfer you
- other than one of these three (or a US base), your opportunities for employment in Italy are exactly the same as the opportunities for an illegal, non English-speaking, immigrant in your home country. Ira's list can be extended: drug-dealing or subsistence crop-picking are also options.
Otherwise, you have to do something like getting an advance to write a book.