Job Discussion Forums

[j-ang]

I've been living and teaching ESL in a public high
school in SW Poland for five years now. A BA and some
experience (OK, and a temp. residence card and work
permit)have sufficed so far. Now, I must get 'nostryfication'
whatever that is, for my US BA. The thought of MA came to
mind even though the two years at university is not at the
top of my list of things to do.

Scouting the WWW I found Concordia College/University.
(www.concordia-college.net/pages/145824/index.htm) They
offer various degrees for life experience, which I have.
But their price demands that acceptance be assured before-
hand.

Has anyone had any experience with Concordia in Poland?

Will the Ministry accept that MA (in Ed. or ESL)as
equivalent to a Polish magister?

Any ideas?

[Alex Shulgin]

Nostrification means getting your USA BA checked out and examined by a Polish university so that it is certified by the Polish university. I've heard of it happening for doctors from the former USSR but I've never heard of it happening to English teachers at public or private schools or universities for that matter! Have a look at the staff list of any university English department and you'll see a couple of BAs listed next to English/American names.

The Concordia 'degree' is not going to cut it here. Concordia is a joke. Degrees for life experience? Get real. If you even try to present it as a real degree you'll be cutting your own throat.

Frankly your best bet is to tell the public high school that if they want you to get any further qualifications then they can pay for the courses (an MA done via distance from a good UK university will run to around $10,000 and take 3 years to complete). If they insist that you get further qualifications and/or paperwork and pay for it yourself just walk away. There isn't exactly a huge over supply of teachers here. With five years teaching in Poland plus the degree you'll get a job offer from pretty much any private language school in the country.