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afsjesse
Joined: 30 Apr 2008
Posts: 6
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 Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2015 5:58 am Post subject: Doing a CELTA after an MA TESL |
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Hi Everyone,
Is it just me or does it seem like many jobs here in the Gulf want both an MA degree with a CELTA? I hold an MA in TESL and am considering doing a CELTA course over Ramadan. Seems dumb, I know, but it would appear that this would be a valuable tick to have on the resume. Thoughts? |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2015 6:24 am Post subject: |
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It depends on your particular MA program and the employer's requirements. For example, I don't have a TEFL cert because my MAT program entailed a semester-long ESOL practicum, which I indicate on my CV. However, not all TEFL-related master's programs include a practical component, which is why some employers also want to see a CELTA or equivalent. The majority of my teaching colleagues in KSA---native and non-native holders of Applied Linguistics or TESOL master's degrees---had either a Trinity CertTESOL or CELTA.
That said, if your MA in TESL didn't include a practical component, then definitely get a CELTA, SIT TESOL, Trinity TESOL, or even a PCELT (http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?p=1178445) so that employers don't pass you up. Having experience post-TEFL cert is also a plus. |
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hash
Joined: 17 Dec 2014
Posts: 456
Location: Wadi Jinn
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| Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2015 7:16 am Post subject: |
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Many will disagree with me, but....
1. What they (employers) want and what they get are nearly always very far apart. I know very few teachers who have an MA plus a credible certificate. In fact, even today, I know more current teacher who have an in-credible TESL/TEFL certificate and no MA at all and are happily employed in the Gulf. (BA plus certificate is much more common).
2. Don't hesitate to apply to a job simply because you don't have the credentials that an employer advertizes for. Again, I currently know several who were hired on the flimsiest of excuses for a teacher qualification.
3. Chances are you could get hired in KSA with just a BA, period. In fact, I've known "teachers" hired without a BA.....just high school diploma and a certificate obtained in Outer Mongolia and the like.
It's not called the Magic Kingdom for nothing. |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2015 7:44 am Post subject: |
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| hash wrote: |
1. What they (employers) want and what they get are nearly always very far apart. I know very few teachers who have an MA plus a credible certificate. In fact, even today, I know more current teacher who have an in-credible TESL/TEFL certificate and no MA at all and are happily employed in the Gulf. (BA plus certificate is much more common).
2. Don't hesitate to apply to a job simply because you don't have the credentials that an employer advertizes for. Again, I currently know several who were hired on the flimsiest of excuses for a teacher qualification.
3. Chances are you could get hired in KSA with just a BA, period. In fact, I've known "teachers" hired without a BA.....just high school diploma and a certificate obtained in Outer Mongolia and the like. |
That may be the case where you work, but that doesn't describe every teaching situation in KSA. Besides, why would someone with an MA in TESL want to work for an employer that allegedly hires teachers without degrees or credible teaching qualifications? The OP is likely setting his/her sights on direct-hire opportunities and not those with sketchy contracting companies, which is why having a CELTA or one of the other branded qualifications on one's CV is a plus. |
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hash
Joined: 17 Dec 2014
Posts: 456
Location: Wadi Jinn
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| Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2015 7:53 pm Post subject: |
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| nomad soul wrote: |
.......Besides, why would someone with an MA in TESL want to work for an employer that allegedly hires teachers without degrees or credible teaching qualifications? |
The OP may not "want" to work for a certain employer, but very often you're forced to take what's available. We don't often have the luxury of being able to sit around waiting for an "appropriate" job to pop up. Had I worked ONLY for employers I wanted to during my career, it's almost certain I never would have worked anywhere....ever.
| nomad soul wrote: |
| .....an employer that allegedly hires teachers without degrees or credible teaching qualifications..... |
Granted it doesn't happen all that much anymore, but in fact, in the early days in KSA and the Gulf, it used to be the norm. And it still does happen.
| nomad soul wrote: |
| The OP is likely setting his/her sights on direct-hire opportunities and not those with sketchy contracting companies, which is why having a CELTA or one of the other branded qualifications on one's CV is a plus. |
Oh, no doubt, no doubt. I wasn't suggesting one shouldn't get as many "credentials" as possible. I was simply saying one shouldn't be so naive as to suppose you have no chance at all for a job with a company that requires certain qualifications that you may not possess. I've seen too many cases in which people apply with nearly none of the "required" credentials at all and nevertheless get hired. It's happened to me on a couple of occasions.
That's just the way the world works. |
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plumpy nut
Joined: 12 Mar 2011
Posts: 1652
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| Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 1:07 am Post subject: |
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| It would be nothing more than a review of the same stuff, and more observed teaching hours. You might get a little bit of additional stuff. All of this for a couple thousand US. When you teach in Asia you typically don't use ESL anyway. You use whatever crap system the students or the school demands. After an advanced degree, it's pretty much experience that will get you the good paying jobs. |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 10:02 am Post subject: |
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| hash wrote: |
| Granted it doesn't happen all that much anymore, but in fact, in the early days in KSA and the Gulf, it used to be the norm. And it still does happen. |
Since you're maintaining that there are teachers who openly admit to others that they obtained legal employment without having a degree, why not name those flexible contracting companies that hired them? You'd be doing a service for those degree-less job seekers looking to come to KSA.
| and wrote: |
| I've seen too many cases in which people apply with nearly none of the "required" credentials at all and nevertheless get hired. It's happened to me on a couple of occasions. |
However, the OP is interested in adding to his/her MA in TESL in order to become more marketable to the better employers rather than hoping to get hired with less than the minimal requirements.
By the way, you sound like a recruiter; you claim to have a lot of personal knowledge about the qualifications of others and the hiring practices of contracting companies. |
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hash
Joined: 17 Dec 2014
Posts: 456
Location: Wadi Jinn
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| Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 5:09 pm Post subject: |
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| nomad soul wrote: |
However, the OP is interested in adding to his/her MA in TESL in order to become more marketable to the better employers rather than hoping to get hired with less than the minimal requirements. |
This seems to be your central theme....and I've never contradicted what you're saying. So I don't know why you keep emphasizing this. It's a no-brainer. It's something that has applied to all teachers eveywhere since time immemorial.
| nomad soul wrote: |
| By the way, you sound like a recruiter; |
In a way, I am. Every US job application we get lands on my desk first for vetting. You can't get in less I say so.
(Anybody notice a kinda "echo" chamber effect in here? Seems I have to keep repeating and clarifying my points over and over. Is it just me? Am I no longer a font of clarity and unimpeachability?) |
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Dorry
Joined: 05 Aug 2009
Posts: 12
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| Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2015 11:22 pm Post subject: CELTA in addition to MA TESOL |
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I have a PhD in TESOL, but I still get work and 'brownie points' for the fact that I have a CELTA.
It's well worth doing (particularly if you can get an A grade pass. Just do every single thing they tell you to, even if it makes no linguistic or pedagogical sense). |
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