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SinaloaPaisa
Joined: 27 Sep 2015
Posts: 33
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 Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2015 9:16 pm Post subject: Going to Vietnam Next Year. Need Some Opinions. |
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I am in the USA right now visiting family and finishing up my teaching license (middle grades math). I will be going to teach ESL in Korea in November or December. My plan is to apply to International Schools this Winter / Spring / Summer and try to be in Vietnam by Fall 2016. Now, I am gonna plan for the worse, ie I am unable to secure an International School job for Fall and will just come to Vietnam and teach ESL for a year or so.
My degree is unrelated to English. Have about 3 years experience teaching kids in Korea. No TEFL or CELTA.
Should I bother getting a TEFL cert online or will I be alright without one?
Planning to go to HCMC btw.
Opinions / Advice much appreciated. |
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skarper
Joined: 12 Oct 2006
Posts: 477
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| Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 3:15 am Post subject: |
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You can't get a work permit without a proper CELTA of equiv. The kind of schools that are OK with an online cert do not provide WP AFAIK and are pretty low level places to work for. This is well covered elsewhere on here.
You seem well qualified for international schools so why not apply to places like that in Vietnam? |
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SinaloaPaisa
Joined: 27 Sep 2015
Posts: 33
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| Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 7:14 am Post subject: |
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| skarper wrote: |
You can't get a work permit without a proper CELTA of equiv. The kind of schools that are OK with an online cert do not provide WP AFAIK and are pretty low level places to work for. This is well covered elsewhere on here.
You seem well qualified for international schools so why not apply to places like that in Vietnam? |
I will apply to International Schools this Winter and Spring. However, I am not counting on getting a job as a newb teacher and no connections. Usually, people in my shoes have to apply to many countries and take what they can get. Targeting one country or city is kind of low probability. Also, my license will be very specific. Not as many positions available as someone with a elementary license. Thus, I am just gonna assume I will have to do plan B ie teach ESL for one year.
From my understanding, even having a CELTA or the likes, many schools still do not want to or bother giving work permits as its much easier and less red tape that way. I know some schools def give a work permit, but from what I gathered most teachers in Vietnam are working without one.
Just a little reluctant to shell out any significant money for a cert teaching ESL for only a year more max. Especially, when I could probably get by just fine without it. |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 3:21 pm Post subject: |
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| SinaloaPaisa wrote: |
I am in the USA right now visiting family and finishing up my teaching license (middle grades math). I will be going to teach ESL in Korea in November or December. My plan is to apply to International Schools this Winter / Spring / Summer and try to be in Vietnam by Fall 2016. Now, I am gonna plan for the worse, ie I am unable to secure an International School job for Fall and will just come to Vietnam and teach ESL for a year or so.
My degree is unrelated to English. Have about 3 years experience teaching kids in Korea. No TEFL or CELTA. |
Look into obtaining an ESL endorsement --- check with your state education department. That said, it doesn't make sense to pursue EFL jobs when there's a need worldwide for licensed primary and secondary school math teachers. Assuming your BA is math related, if you add at least a year of teaching in a US public school after securing your license, you especially appeal to international schools that follow American curriculum, including those that English-speaking expats send their children to. |
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SinaloaPaisa
Joined: 27 Sep 2015
Posts: 33
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| Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 3:34 pm Post subject: |
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| nomad soul wrote: |
Look into obtaining an ESL endorsement --- check with your state education department. That said, it doesn't make sense to pursue EFL jobs when there's a need worldwide for licensed primary and secondary school math teachers. Assuming your BA is math related, if you add at least a year of teaching in a US public school after securing your license, you especially appeal to international schools that follow American curriculum, including those that English-speaking expats send their children to. |
I would have to take other tests and pay money for that. Not gonna bother for only teaching ESL 1 more year.
I am not really pursing ESL jobs. I am just pursuing a year in Vietnam. I have always wanted to go and live their for a year or two. ESL will just allow me to do that assuming I do not land an International School position in Vietnam.
After Vietnam ill embark on teaching at International Schools if I havent done so already. |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 4:20 pm Post subject: |
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| SinaloaPaisa wrote: |
| nomad soul wrote: |
Look into obtaining an ESL endorsement --- check with your state education department. That said, it doesn't make sense to pursue EFL jobs when there's a need worldwide for licensed primary and secondary school math teachers. Assuming your BA is math related, if you add at least a year of teaching in a US public school after securing your license, you especially appeal to international schools that follow American curriculum, including those that English-speaking expats send their children to. |
I would have to take other tests and pay money for that. Not gonna bother for only teaching ESL 1 more year.
I am not really pursing ESL jobs. I am just pursuing a year in Vietnam. I have always wanted to go and live their for a year or two. ESL will just allow me to do that assuming I do not land an International School position in Vietnam.
After Vietnam ill embark on teaching at International Schools if I havent done so already. |
You missed my point. An ESL endorsement is for teaching content to bilingual/ESL public school students in the US. I was suggesting that you forget about teaching ESL abroad and instead, gain crucial experience to teach math overseas. In other words, once you finish your license, stay in the US and get a position teaching math in a public school, especially since there's a teacher shortage. This would establish you as a licensed, US experienced math teacher, and you'd be in high demand in schools worldwide to teach math, not EFL. Don't end up being another one of those forum posters lamenting about they coulda, shoulda gained teaching experience from their home country. |
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SinaloaPaisa
Joined: 27 Sep 2015
Posts: 33
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| Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 8:55 pm Post subject: |
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| nomad soul wrote: |
You missed my point. An ESL endorsement is for teaching content to bilingual/ESL public school students in the US. I was suggesting that you forget about teaching ESL abroad and instead, gain crucial experience to teach math overseas. In other words, once you finish your license, stay in the US and get a position teaching math in a public school, especially since there's a teacher shortage. This would establish you as a licensed, US experienced math teacher, and you'd be in high demand in schools worldwide to teach math, not EFL. Don't end up being another one of those forum posters lamenting about they coulda, shoulda gained teaching experience from their home country. |
No, I understood your point. However, that is just not an option for me. I have zero interest in living in the USA anytime soon. There are always International Schools that will hire newb teachers. You just cant be picky about location or school starting out. I am not really concerned about getting a job in my field after taking a 6-12 month gap period to come and live in Vietnam.
There will def be no coulda shoulda with me. I do what I want and take the good with the bad.
If I finish my contract in Korea it will end next Dec/Jan. Which will give me half the year to just chill in Vietnam waiting for Fall and the new school year to roll around. Wouldnt even have to work if I didnt want to. Then maybe take a job in China at an International School in August. Who knows. |
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TRH
Joined: 27 Oct 2011
Posts: 340
Location: Hawaii
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| Posted: Thu Oct 01, 2015 9:13 pm Post subject: |
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| nomad soul wrote: |
| Look into obtaining an ESL endorsement --- check with your state education department. |
Sounds like a good idea but a) it might involve an extra semester or even full year at the University, both longer and more expensive than a CELTA in Vietnam or even in the US, b) employers in VN might might not recognize its value, both for hiring and for eligibility for a work permit. The lawyer who filed for my WP initially said that I would not need my TEFL cert because I have a BEd then had second thoughts and said we should include it anyway. Anything out of the ordinary can upset the bureaucracy.
| nomad soul wrote: |
| In other words, once you finish your license, stay in the US and get a position teaching math in a public school, especially since there's a teacher shortage. This would establish you as a licensed, US experienced math teacher, and you'd be in high demand in schools worldwide to teach math, not EFL. Don't end up being another one of those forum posters lamenting about they coulda, shoulda gained teaching experience from their home country. |
This is good advice, even if the OP decides that he still wants to take a stab at EFL in VN instead of Math. As I have posted elsewhere, the best EFL teachers that I knew in VN were former regular teachers. This was true in language school but especially in public school deployment.
(Deployment sounds like the military, but maybe its the right word in this case.  ) |
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skarper
Joined: 12 Oct 2006
Posts: 477
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| Posted: Fri Oct 02, 2015 5:51 am Post subject: |
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The OP seems to have a good plan. People spending a few months in Vietnam and doing a bit of teaching to cover their expenses don't really need a WP or TEFL qualifications.
All the usual caveats apply of course. There are some decent employers at the level the OP will be finding work but mostly they are crooks. I would advise several employers with a few hours each to spread the risk. |
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SinaloaPaisa
Joined: 27 Sep 2015
Posts: 33
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| Posted: Fri Oct 02, 2015 9:54 pm Post subject: |
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| skarper wrote: |
The OP seems to have a good plan. People spending a few months in Vietnam and doing a bit of teaching to cover their expenses don't really need a WP or TEFL qualifications.
All the usual caveats apply of course. There are some decent employers at the level the OP will be finding work but mostly they are crooks. I would advise several employers with a few hours each to spread the risk. |
Yea I am actually leaning towards just staying in Korea for a year and going to Vietnam next Dec/Jan. I'll have enough money saved up to just chill in Vietnam for 6 months and not even work if I choose. Thinking I will prob get a part time job though for a ittle extra money. Then head out after the summer for an International School job somewhere. |
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ExpatLuke
Joined: 11 Feb 2012
Posts: 744
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| Posted: Sat Oct 03, 2015 4:08 pm Post subject: |
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Yeah, landing a specific job at an international school can be pretty tough. There aren't that many real international schools in Vietnam. I know Danang really only has 1 option, and while the pay and benefits are beyond great, I've heard the Singaporean owner of the SIS brand is a real nut case. Like he came in one day and fired a teacher on the spot for not wearing a tie.  |
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