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How feasible is TEFL for me right now?
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coledavis



Joined: 21 Jun 2003
Posts: 1838

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 6:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nuance. Trinity generally is considered equivalent to CELTA. SIT nowhere near universally so.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 9:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

coledavis wrote:
I do not think I have seen an eastern European employer specify (a SIT TESOL)...

That's understandable if most, if not all, entry-level TEFL jobs in Eastern Europe are gotten through in country, face-to-face contact with employers. That is, since the CELTA course is offered throughout E. Europe, it makes sense that job seekers would favor it as their teaching qualification of choice while in country.

Interestingly, the SIT Graduate Institute (formerly the School of International Training) is a fully-accredited, US institute of higher learning. It's also affiliated with the US Peace Corps program. Although the Corps hasn't been active in most of E. Europe for some time, those countries in the region and worldwide where the program still has a strong presence are very likely to be familiar with both the SIT TESOL and SIT's MA in TESOL.

I've met about a half dozen teachers with either the SIT cert or MA from the SIT Graduate Institute working in university foundation year programs in the Middle East. So SIT TESOL isn't as unknown as some may think. And frankly, an entry-level qualification (i.e., CELTA, SIT TESOL, Trinity certTESOL, or one of the better generic TEFL certs) is only part of the equation when job hunting. What counts is how well one presents him/herself in a cover letter and CV and in person.
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spiral78



Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 10:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
frankly, an entry-level qualification (i.e., CELTA, SIT TESOL, Trinity certTESOL, or one of the better generic TEFL certs) is only part of the equation when job hunting. What counts is how well one presents him/herself in a cover letter and CV and in person



Good point. We often seem to forget about the other necessary components of a successful job search in our discussions here. The cert is necessary in most places to get an employer to give you a first look, but given the cert, the other stuff makes one stand out (or not) in the competition.
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coledavis



Joined: 21 Jun 2003
Posts: 1838

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 10:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

nomad soul wrote:
coledavis wrote:
I do not think I have seen an eastern European employer specify (a SIT TESOL)...

That's understandable if most, if not all, entry-level TEFL jobs in Eastern Europe are gotten through in country, face-to-face contact with employers. That is, since the CELTA course is offered throughout E. Europe, it makes sense that job seekers would favor it as their teaching qualification of choice while in country.




Sorry Nomad Soul, but I do not agree. Firstly, I rather think that most entry-level Eastern European jobs are not applied for face-to-face. Most teachers do not have the money to cross from England, Ireland or worse, America or the Antipodes in the hope of finding work. In my personal experience, employers in Eastern Europe are usually open to decent cv/resumes from people in their home countries.
Secondly, many CELTA/Trinity holders did their training in their home countries.
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spiral78



Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 10:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is a difference between Western and Central Europe, where most jobs are not found from abroad, and where many (possibly in some cities even most) candidates took a course in the country where they want to start working.
Eastern Europe is different, probably mostly due to visa issues.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 10:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

coledavis wrote:
Sorry Nomad Soul, but I do not agree. Firstly, I rather think that most entry-level Eastern European jobs are not applied for face-to-face. Most teachers do not have the money to cross from England, Ireland or worse, America or the Antipodes in the hope of finding work. In my personal experience, employers in Eastern Europe are usually open to decent cv/resumes from people in their home countries.
Secondly, many CELTA/Trinity holders did their training in their home countries.

Point taken. However, my comments were from an American perspective since the SIT TESOL is a US brand. Considering Trinity courses are nonexistent in the US and the CELTA is offered in just 13 out of the 50 states, the options for home-based CELTA and Trinity teacher training are limited for Americans interested in teaching in Europe---that is, restricted to Eastern Europe. As such, taking the CELTA course in their target European country is very appealing.
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coledavis



Joined: 21 Jun 2003
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 12:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Point taken from your perspective.
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Xie Lin



Joined: 21 Oct 2011
Posts: 731

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 3:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

coledavis wrote:
Nuance. Trinity generally is considered equivalent to CELTA. SIT nowhere near universally so.



Not so in the Americas. The three are considered equivalents. SIT is, in fact, BETTER known here than is Trinity, and only slightly less so than CELTA. Recognition is probably highest amongst employers with the most desirable jobs to offer.

But in this oft repeated CELTA-is-the-cert-employers-want conversation, we frequently seem to overlook an important point. The CELTA may be the cert most often specified by name in job ads; however, "CELTA or equivalent" is the intention more often than not. Sure, some clueless employers won't budge (simply because they don't know enough,) but more often than not, they just want to know the candidate has a decent teacher training course under his belt.

A noticeable exception is the school that is actively engaged in trying to enhance the CELTA brand--IH affiliates who offer CELTA courses, for example.

.
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Xie Lin



Joined: 21 Oct 2011
Posts: 731

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 3:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Oops--sorry! I see the American perspective was already adequately covered above. Very Happy

.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
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Location: The real world

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 3:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

None of this applies to the OP since he's a Brit.
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Xie Lin



Joined: 21 Oct 2011
Posts: 731

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 3:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

nomad soul wrote:
None of this applies to the OP since he's a Brit.



I cordially disagree. Plenty of Brits working in Mexico and South America. And Cole's wider topic of "universal" name recognition certainly applies to anyone who holds a particular brand of cert, without regard for the holder's nationality.

But, yes, drifting away from the OP's questions and interests.

.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
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Location: The real world

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 3:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I was referring to the American perspective per my comments.
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Sashadroogie



Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise

PostPosted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 6:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Tsk tsk! None of these comments reflect international brotherhood and peace. An end to such 'splitter' sentiments, thank you!
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coledavis



Joined: 21 Jun 2003
Posts: 1838

PostPosted: Sat Jul 20, 2013 12:54 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yes, we should either be Soviet or White, and know whether or not we are kulaks when the Party decides.
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Sashadroogie



Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise

PostPosted: Sat Jul 20, 2013 7:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Is that the whiff of a Menshevik that I detect there, eh?
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