Job Discussion Forums

[Rice Paddy Daddy]

[ambernz]

no one has pointed out that ESL/EFL is a fantastic job to have when you have kids.

I've always earned enough money to live comfortably on (even as a single parent) and have never had to work for more than 19 hours per week!

I have enough time to spend with my son, do a job I love, meet the (generally) awesome people that ESL teachers tend to be, and travel around the world.

It's a darn sight better than what most people in the 9-5 world have to deal with, so I'm happy that I made my career change to ESL (Although almost anything is better than being a chef!).

[High Plains Drifter]

I find your claims extremely hard to believe. In fact, I don�t believe them. Would you please tell the rest of us how you could �live comfortably� working 19 hours a week as an ESL teacher? Either that or tell us what you�re smoking and where we can get some.

[ambernz]

I live in New Zealand where you can actually get paid well for what you do. I'm now working 20 hours (10 teaching hours 10 prep) and can live without any problems, but I've never needed to live a particularly expensive lifestyle.

[ambernz]

I also forgot to mention that it helps to have an MA, as most places in NZ that pay well and have decent conditions don't give a toss about a CELTA or the like.

[Chris_Crossley]

ambernz wrote:

[High Plains Drifter]

New Zealand?!?! A cool country where I'd love to live and you can actually make a living teaching ESL? And I've got an M.A.! Two questions:

Any sites for New Zealand ESL?
Can you pick me up at the airport?

[Rice Paddy Daddy]

It'll be seasonal just like in Australia.

I don't think you'd do well enough.

TESOL isn't as lucrative or consistent in English speaking countries - for to be financially rewarding you need to go oveseas.

The competition for jobs in Brisbane and other parts of Australia is quite fierce with M.A. TESOL and CELTA not so unusual.

[ambernz]

I did my MA on campus at Victoria University, but they also do it online. It should be legit, if you were interested check out the website www.vuw.ac.nz or email the course co-ordinator Paul Nation (of worldwide vocabulary fame, and all round good guy). We've got people from all over the show on a course that i'm doing at the moment, with quite a few from China and Japan.

I work at a university here, and jobs can be scarce, but there is much more security than at a private school. In Wellington about 75% of language schools have closed over the last year. An MA in Applied Linguistics (which I have) or an MA TESOL are a minimum for a decent job. The competition doesn't seem to be too bad here yet, as not many people have MA's (lots of DipTESOL's), and most people myself included, are leaving the country. I'm only leaving because i've never really travelled, but I hate the idea of leaving my job because it's awesome!

[Hondo 2.0]

If I may throw in my two cents...
I got a taste of ESL in Japan, working for a conversational English school. The company blew, but the job was ok, and I really did like the teaching part. I stayed for a couple years, and then came back to Canada to do a B.Ed., which enables me to teach in the public school system. My plan is to work here for awhile, pay off my debt, do some additional qualifications courses, get a M.Ed TESOL, and then try my luck on the international school circuit.
My advice for newbies is this: Find a goal, make a plan, achieve the goal.
My goal is to travel to live and work in different countries while avoiding the distateful aspects of working in a language school.

[amberrollins]

I know everyone is not the same, and everyone is not looking for the same things in life, but my advice for anyone thinking of teaching EFL in a foreign country is do it. Do it as fast as you can.

I'm not someone who has never had any work experience - I've worked as a teacher in the US and at a variety of corporate jobs.

I am not a spoiled, unattached 22-year old with an Asian fetish who was always supported my mommy and daddy. I'm in my 30's and married. When I was 18, my family moved away and left me on my own. I received $50 and an offer to stay with a friend for a while. That's all. I didn't get a dime from my parents all through college.

I got jobs and worked my way through college. After I graduated, I taught at a Head Start school where the children were mostly from immigrant families. Then I taught English at public and private schools.

Teaching in the US increasingly meant being a cop and not being a teacher. I got a job working for a dot com travel company, and for two years, I had a good job and made fairly good money.

Then the economy tanked and I got laid off. I could not find a job anywhere, so I had to take temp jobs. I was hired permanently at a demeaning office job that laid me off before the holidays, and then hired me back - and then told me that to keep working there, I had to go back to being a temp. I said no thanks.

I wanted to go back to teaching, but the lag time in my teaching experience and the fact that the standards had changed to get a certificate made this difficult. I either had to go to grad school or go through an alternative certification program, both of which cost money that I didn't have. I even tried to work at pre-schools and day cares, but was now considered over-qualified.

Then my wonderful husband encouraged me to look for EFL jobs overseas. After looking at Japan and Korea, we decided to go to China. I can honestly say that it's the best decision I ever made.

I love my job. The students are respectful and want to learn. The administration stays out of my business and lets me teach. We live in a great apartment, rent-free. Our diet and health has improved dramatically. I have plenty of non-teaching time to read, write, paint, watch DVDs, go hiking, travel, and shop. My husband wants to eventually go back and get a degree in physics, but as for me, I would spend the rest of my life doing this. I don't care if I ever go back, and the though of having some corporate/cubicle/9-5 office job fills me with fear and loathing.

So decide for yourself what you want and go in with your eyes open. No, everything will not be perfect, or exactly the same as home. You won't find some snack food you like, and you'll miss all your TV shows. If that's what you live for, don't come. But even if you want to someday settle into a life of mortgage payments and midnight feedings, I would still recommend teaching overseas, at least for a little while. It broadens your mind, expands your outlook, and is an experience you will remember for the rest of your life.

[AsiaTraveller]

Community colleges in California frequently pay up to US$75,000 for full-time ESL teachers. Most of those instructors have MA degrees.

The colleges rely on part-timers for the bulk of their ESL staff. Part-timers can easily two or three ESL teaching gigs to produce a quite decent income.

In the U.S., there will not soon be a dearth of ESL jobs. The numbers are always growing.

[Hondo 2.0]

I think that the demand for ESL instruction is going to grow steadily--both in English and non-English speaking countries. I foresee it becoming more and more of a regular subject in public schools around the world.

However, as it develops, I think we're going to see more post-secondary training programs in ESL instruction. More people are going to get post-B.A. diplomas and M.A.s. As the supply of highly-credentialed teachers increases, so will the expectations of employers.

I'm going to try and stay ahead of that curve, and get an M.A. before the competition gets too fierce.

[SH]

I'm not[/i] a young 20 something, I'm a 50 something, I've done the mainstream teaching for the past 30 years here in England and I'm now looking forward to getting a TEFL qualification and travelling and working with my partner. We've both done the bringing up the family bits with mortgages & now we're raring to go.
My advice to anyone would be GO FOR IT! You've really got the rest of your life to worry about health insurance, mortgages, children etc etc and it's not just hedonistic pleasure to think of travelling and working abroad on Thai beaches! If and when you do decide to 'go home' then employers want people with experience, all kinds, and if you are able to reflect on what you've learned whilst abroad you'll be able to offer it in abundance.
Also we have a 'global world' I live in a city in England, not London, and 100% of the children are learning with EAL (English as an Additional Language) - the need for people who have experience of other cultures, languages etc is increasing all the time. Yes, I do have a teaching qualification which is very useful also but don't do that for the sake of it, only do it because you really want to.
Life expectancy increases yearly also - do you really want to stay at home forever?
I could go on and on but I think you've got the message.
Life's for living - live it![/i]

[Gorm]

Maybe some of us didn't grow up like you and actually have one place to call "home", so we are searching for that "home" by traveling abroad and experiencing something new, and meanwhile discovering something new about ourselves and our own identity. Besides, I can't think of a more exciting job where one can actually make a decent living from. Most people who work hate their jobs. Not every job is perfect, but I love teaching, so I try to overlook the negative.

Just because it didn't work for you doesn't mean you should assume it won't work for anyone.

Have some empathy...

G