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Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice?
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senseitabu



Joined: 03 Oct 2016
Posts: 8

PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 3:38 am    Post subject: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

I'm thinking about teaching traditional college aged or up in private language school or community college in the United States (Washington state). Currently have an M.Ed. in Interdisciplinary Studies (no language study, though) and wondering if that combined with TESOL certification would qualify me for work. (Note that as a student I achieved a decent level of fluency in Spanish, though that's currently rusted over.)

From what I'm seeing, M.Ed. plus certification is a minimum requirement at most places, but seems like the M.Ed. should be in TESOL or English. (Naturally, I'd prefer to pay only for certification, and not spend the time, energy and money for a full-on, second Master's degree if necessary.) Will value and appreciate guidance on what path I should consider taking. Note this is for a career change in which I want to do stimulating work, but don't need to be chasing high dollars. Thanks!

ETA: I've been in the field of education for 30 years, mostly working at the university level as a freelance guest speaker in an unrelated field. No experience teaching an actual class over any duration of time, but lots of experience doing one-shot classes and even teacher training, so extensive comfort in the teaching role and especially doing interactive activities.


Last edited by senseitabu on Fri Oct 07, 2016 3:35 pm; edited 3 times in total
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nomad soul



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

PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 4:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You didn't state if you have any teaching experience, even if it's not in ESL.

Anyway, to see what TESOL qualifications and years of experience employers expect, start by looking at actual job ads in your area and use that as a guide.

Additionally, volunteering is a good way to network and get some classroom experience; check out your local refugee/ESL literacy organizations for opportunities as a classroom assistant. It's how some teachers (myself included) got that first taste of teaching ESL.

Another option that might interest you is teaching in an Adult Basic Education (ABE) and/or General Equivalency Diploma (GED) program. (See http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=114123. Again, take a look at current job opportunities for the qualifications you'd need.
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senseitabu



Joined: 03 Oct 2016
Posts: 8

PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 5:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

nomad soul wrote:
You didn't state if you have any teaching experience, even if it's not in ESL.


nomad soul, thanks for pointing this out. I edited the original post to further explain my background.
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spiral78



Joined: 05 Apr 2004
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Location: On a Short Leash

PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 5:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Assuming you are a US citizen or otherwise already have right to work in the country?
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rtm



Joined: 13 Apr 2007
Posts: 1003
Location: US

PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 2:27 pm    Post subject: Re: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

senseitabu wrote:
I'm thinking about teaching college age and up in private language school or community college in the United States (Washington state). Currently have an M.Ed. in Interdisciplinary Studies (no language study) and wondering if that combined with TESOL certification would qualify me for work.

From what I'm seeing, M.Ed. plus certification is a minimum requirement at most places, but seems like the M.Ed. should be in TESOL or English. (Naturally, I'd prefer to pay only for certification, and not spend the time, energy and money for a full-on, second Master's degree if necessary.) Will value and appreciate guidance on what path I should consider taking. Note this is for a career change in which I want to do stimulating work, but don't need to be chasing high dollars. Thanks!


When you say "TESOL certification," what do you mean? If you mean a short, online TEFL/TESOL certificate, then it won't help much. ESL endorsement on a K-12 teaching certification could help, but without ESL teaching experience would probably not help a lot.

If you also have extensive experience teaching EFL, your qualifications might get you a shot at a full-time position teaching ESL at a community college somewhere. If not, I'd say it's unlikely, especially if you are only looking in a specific area of the US, rather than willing to move anywhere in the country. You may be competitive for part-time, no-benefit positions.

I'd second nomad soul's suggestions of looking at job ads. For example, one of the main sites for jobs in higher ed is HigherEdJobs.com. On that site, if you search for ESL jobs, it shows that there are currently 134 jobs posted. If you restrict that to community college ESL jobs, there are 71. Then, if you restrict that to community college ESL jobs in Washington, there are 2. Of these, one is part time and not for an actual opening (recruiting for a pool of part-time instructors for them to contact in the future) and the other requires a master's degree in TESOL or closely related field (non-language related interdisciplinary studies would likely not count) as well as at least a year of full-time experience teaching ESL in higher education in the US (and they prefer at least 4 years in the US and at least 1 year abroad), along with other minimum and preferred requirements. Right now isn't even close to prime hiring season, so there are much fewer jobs posted than there will be, say, next spring and summer. However, the percentages do tell you something.

I don't know about private language education companies. Your qualifications may be more competitive there. You could contact schools to see what their requirements are.
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senseitabu



Joined: 03 Oct 2016
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 2:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

spiral78 wrote:
Assuming you are a US citizen or otherwise already have right to work in the country?


Yes, US citizen.
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senseitabu



Joined: 03 Oct 2016
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 5:46 pm    Post subject: Re: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

rtm wrote:
When you say "TESOL certification," what do you mean? If you mean a short, online TEFL/TESOL certificate, then it won't help much. ESL endorsement on a K-12 teaching certification could help, but without ESL teaching experience would probably not help a lot.

If you also have extensive experience teaching EFL, your qualifications might get you a shot at a full-time position teaching ESL at a community college somewhere.


Thanks, rtm. Yes, by "TESOL certification," I mean one of those intensive 4-week certification classes. (They offer 12 credits transferable to a Master's program.)

Part of why I ask is that one certification school is telling me that my non-language-related M.Ed. combined with 4-week TESOL certification should make me highly competitive for a teaching job at a private language school, or even at a community college. I have been scouring job listings and am skeptical about that school's advice, starting to think it was part of a "sell job" to get me to enroll. (And to clarify, I do not yet have any experience teaching EFL.)
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 6:05 pm    Post subject: Re: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

senseitabu wrote:
By "TESOL certification," I mean one of those intensive 4-week certification classes. (They offer 12 credits transferable to a Master's program.)
....

I have been scouring job listings and am skeptical about that school's advice, starting to think it was part of a "sell job" to get me to enroll. (And to clarify, I do not yet have any experience teaching EFL.)

Yes, your M.Ed. + TESOL cert will be fine for TESL positions.

I suggest enrolling in an in-person, 4-week TESOL cert course that includes a teaching practicum component of at least 6 hours of supervised/assessed teaching with real students. That would help you compete for positions indicating a CELTA or SIT TESOL or an equivalent cert. Anything less is likely to get your resume ignored.
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rtm



Joined: 13 Apr 2007
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 6:10 pm    Post subject: Re: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

senseitabu wrote:
Yes, by "TESOL certification," I mean one of those intensive 4-week certification classes. (They offer 12 credits transferable to a Master's program.)

Is the organization that is offering the course a non-profit institution of higher education that offers courses at graduate level? If not, I can't imagine how they would be able to say anything about credits being transferrable. 12 credits is about 1/3 of a master's degree, and I can't imagine, no matter how intensive the course is, completing 1/3 of a master's degree in 4 weeks.

Also, be wary of for-profit companies (like Oxford Seminars) that offer courses on campuses of legitimate universities. Such companies only pay the university to rent space on the campus, and they have no formal, academic relationship with the university.
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senseitabu



Joined: 03 Oct 2016
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 7:32 pm    Post subject: Re: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

rtm wrote:
senseitabu wrote:
Yes, by "TESOL certification," I mean one of those intensive 4-week certification classes. (They offer 12 credits transferable to a Master's program.)

Is the organization that is offering the course a non-profit institution of higher education that offers courses at graduate level? If not, I can't imagine how they would be able to say anything about credits being transferrable. 12 credits is about 1/3 of a master's degree, and I can't imagine, no matter how intensive the course is, completing 1/3 of a master's degree in 4 weeks.

Also, be wary of for-profit companies (like Oxford Seminars) that offer courses on campuses of legitimate universities. Such companies only pay the university to rent space on the campus, and they have no formal, academic relationship with the university.


I believe non-profit, and affiliated with an accredited university. There's also another program that has a similar arrangement, but with more uncertainty for me. Not sure of the protocol here...can I posted the names of the two institutions to get your feedback?
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rtm



Joined: 13 Apr 2007
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 7:55 pm    Post subject: Re: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

senseitabu wrote:

I believe non-profit, and affiliated with an accredited university. There's also another program that has a similar arrangement, but with more uncertainty for me. Not sure of the protocol here...can I posted the names of the two institutions to get your feedback?

I believe posting publicly is allowed. Or you can send by PM if you'd rather.
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senseitabu



Joined: 03 Oct 2016
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 8:51 pm    Post subject: Re: Do I have enough qualifications to find work? Advice? Reply with quote

rtm wrote:
senseitabu wrote:

I believe non-profit, and affiliated with an accredited university. There's also another program that has a similar arrangement, but with more uncertainty for me. Not sure of the protocol here...can I posted the names of the two institutions to get your feedback?

I believe posting publicly is allowed. Or you can send by PM if you'd rather.


Info sent via PM, but can share publicly if interest from others.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 9:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

rtm wrote:
senseitabu wrote:
Yes, by "TESOL certification," I mean one of those intensive 4-week certification classes. (They offer 12 credits transferable to a Master's program.)

Is the organization that is offering the course a non-profit institution of higher education that offers courses at graduate level? If not, I can't imagine how they would be able to say anything about credits being transferrable. 12 credits is about 1/3 of a master's degree, and I can't imagine, no matter how intensive the course is, completing 1/3 of a master's degree in 4 weeks.

I agree. In fact, that sounds more like a graduate certificate program that entails at least a couple of semesters or quarters of study as opposed to a 4-week, 120-hour TESOL course.

It might be best to pursue either the CELTA or SIT TESOL course since both are widely recognized by US employers.
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senseitabu



Joined: 03 Oct 2016
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 10:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

nomad soul wrote:
rtm wrote:
senseitabu wrote:
Yes, by "TESOL certification," I mean one of those intensive 4-week certification classes. (They offer 12 credits transferable to a Master's program.)

Is the organization that is offering the course a non-profit institution of higher education that offers courses at graduate level? If not, I can't imagine how they would be able to say anything about credits being transferrable. 12 credits is about 1/3 of a master's degree, and I can't imagine, no matter how intensive the course is, completing 1/3 of a master's degree in 4 weeks.

I agree. In fact, that sounds more like a graduate certificate program that entails at least a couple of semesters or quarters of study as opposed to a 4-week, 120-hour TESOL course.

It might be best to pursue either the CELTA or SIT TESOL course since both are widely recognized by US employers.


nomad soul, a couple of people have put their eyes on the programs and told me that at least one of them looks legit. I'd be happy to PM you the information if you'd like a look.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 07, 2016 10:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

senseitabu wrote:
A couple of people have put their eyes on the programs and told me that at least one of them looks legit. I'd be happy to PM you the information if you'd like a look.

Sure, send me a PM. Or you can post the links to the programs here.
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