NEARLY 60 people have applied to teach just seven children on a remote island.
The community on Muck, who launched a desperate appeal on social media, have been inundated with enquiries from around the world.
The hunt was launched after all the previous half-dozen candidates decided life on the windswept Hebridean isle was not for them.
Read more: Student teacher crisis 'getting worse'
There are just seven pupils attending Muck Primary – with one in nursery.
But headteacher Andy Murray has revealed that 58 teachers applied to teach them.
Now nine candidates have been shortlisted and will be invited to travel to the island to see what life on Muck is like.
“We had applications from lots of places – from all over the world. It was a very big response but we have got it down to nine. There are some outstanding candidates,” he said.
Read more: Student teacher crisis 'getting worse'
“None has visited the island yet but will do so in the near future and hopefully we will have somebody in place before the end of the year.”
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