Site Search:
 
Get TEFL Certified & Start Your Adventure Today!
Teach English Abroad and Get Paid to see the World!
Job Discussion Forums Forum Index Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
 
 FAQFAQ   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   UsergroupsUsergroups   RegisterRegister 
 ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

Experiences of online MA TESOL
Goto page Previous  1, 2
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> General Discussion
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
AGoodStory



Joined: 26 Feb 2010
Posts: 738

PostPosted: Sat Sep 02, 2017 8:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you for the link, Sammysez. While the OP may not be a US citizen, others reading this thread probably are. (You may have noticed that it's more common than not for a discussion to range beyond an OP's specific inquiry.) And thank heavens for repetition--the Café depends upon it!

Nonetheless, Eihpos does state that she wants to continue teaching at the university level, so the question most relevant to her particular situation would seem to be whether online degrees are acceptable qualifications in university hiring--and where and where not.

.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
nomad soul



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

PostPosted: Sun Sep 03, 2017 5:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

eihpos wrote:
I will try with my MA in lit and see what happens.
....
At the moment I am thinking of better jobs in China, but in the future, perhaps Turkey, Kazakhstan or Korea. I am not sure yet, but my home country is unlikely to be an option whatever extra qualifications I do. I would really like to know if an MA TESOL will make any difference to having just an MA in English before actually doing it!

Check out A professional ePortfolio can help you stand out. If you're thinking of seeing what your MA in English lit might get you in your target countries, consider creating an ePortfolio to include university-level content for all four English language skills to show prospective employers that you're a serious contender. It would highlight your experience and take the focus off your lit degree. Ditto if you're concerned that some employers don't feel an MA TESOL completed online is in the same league as a similar degree program studied on campus.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
maggietulliver



Joined: 06 Oct 2011
Posts: 19

PostPosted: Fri Nov 03, 2017 4:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I completed my MA TESOL online from one of Australia's best universities and have had no issues landing jobs in Australia and the Middle East (Abu Dhabi).
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Elicit



Joined: 12 May 2010
Posts: 244

PostPosted: Tue Nov 07, 2017 2:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

No problems thus far in East and South-East Asia with securing work at university level. I actually think that preferences for the traditional method of degree delivery may well exist, but demand here still very much far outweighs supply... thankfully.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Vince



Joined: 05 May 2003
Posts: 559
Location: U.S.

PostPosted: Thu Aug 23, 2018 5:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Apologies for the necro-post. Since we already have some groundwork in this discussion, I thought it would be easier to continue it.

What have you seen or heard, particularly in Japan, about the viability of online degrees from reputable brick-and-mortar schools? I believe that such an online degree can be viable in terms developing the necessary skills, particularly if it leverages the experience of a student who is currently working in the field. My concern is more about any notions of academic pecking order that might affect an online degree's marketability.

In rank-and-file industry, your educational pedigree probably fades into the background as you gain professional experience (hence, the education section of your resume moving to the bottom). My impression of academia is that the education pedigree would still loom large, regardless of how much professional experience you've accrued in your academic field. But that might be in high-profile fields. In the realm of TESOL / applied linguistics, maybe it's understood that people who aspire to this field aren't pushing for the Ivy League. If so, does that understanding extend to acceptance of the better online degrees?

I could do an MA TESOL at an excellent brick-and-mortar university, and I know that would be the most marketable route. But doing it that way as a part-time student would take more years than I'd like. If an online degree from an established brick-and-mortar school is viable, I'd prefer that flexibility so I'm not held to one place while I work through the degree. I'm doing this later in life, so I'd want to get the show on the road, as it were, and start building experience and connections while I work on the degree.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
taikibansei



Joined: 14 Sep 2004
Posts: 811
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Fri Aug 24, 2018 1:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Vince wrote:


What have you seen or heard, particularly in Japan, about the viability of online degrees from reputable brick-and-mortar schools?


For most Japanese universities, as long as you're graduating from a reputable school, it won't matter if some (or even all) of your MA coursework was online.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
1st Sgt Welsh



Joined: 13 Dec 2010
Posts: 946
Location: Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei

PostPosted: Fri Aug 24, 2018 11:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

maggietulliver wrote:
I completed my MA TESOL online from one of Australia's best universities and have had no issues landing jobs in Australia and the Middle East (Abu Dhabi).


Well done on completing your studies. Just out of interest, was your undergraduate degree done on-campus? Many thanks.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Marcas



Joined: 20 Oct 2015
Posts: 5
Location: Texas

PostPosted: Thu Nov 08, 2018 2:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I recently completed a 36-hour M.A. at a state university. Of those 36 hours, 30 were online.

Not really the way I'd like to have done it, but it did allow me to keep on working full-time while completing the degree.

It took me three years.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
spiral78



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

PostPosted: Thu Nov 08, 2018 4:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

36 hours?
If that's accurate, my MA was about 1,000 times more rigorous ...how many hours of study = one credit hour?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
RedLightning



Joined: 08 Aug 2015
Posts: 137
Location: United States

PostPosted: Fri Nov 09, 2018 8:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

spiral78 wrote:
36 hours?
If that's accurate, my MA was about 1,000 times more rigorous ...how many hours of study = one credit hour?


36 hours is the average, which makes make think that the more rigorous MA programs should be given a separate degree distinction (something similar to an MFA) because as it currently stands, whether your degree entailed 30 or 60 hours, it's simply viewed as an MA
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
GambateBingBangBOOM



Joined: 04 Nov 2003
Posts: 2021
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Tue Nov 20, 2018 1:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

spiral78 wrote:
36 hours?
If that's accurate, my MA was about 1,000 times more rigorous ...how many hours of study = one credit hour?


A Canadian single term course (AKA a "half-course") / a UK "module" / an Australian "unit" is, in the US, usually 3 (but sometimes 4) credit hours.

So a 36 hour degree = 12 single-term courses = 6 full courses.

That's why Americans often describe their 4-year undergraduate degrees as 120 credit hours.

120 credit hours= 40 half courses = 20 full courses (exactly the same as a four-year degree in Canada).

https://www.mastersportal.com/articles/1110/what-you-need-to-know-about-academic-credit-systems-in-the-us.html
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> General Discussion All times are GMT
Goto page Previous  1, 2
Page 2 of 2

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling.
Contact Dave's ESL Cafe
Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved.

Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group

Teaching Jobs in China
Teaching Jobs in China