Job Discussion Forums

nessa · Joined: 20 Jul 2006 Posts: 6 Location: new york, usa

i am looking at doing ESL teaching for the long run. university prep programs or K-12 schools would be ideal. i already have a MA, but in asian studies. should i at this point:

1. do a MA TESOL or M.Ed. or applied linguistics;

2. just go out there with my current graduate degree plus a CELTA cert, and it would be enough to land my dream jobs (i'm thinking of turkey as the starting point);

3. head out with my MA and a CELTA cert, and do an online MA TEFL sometime down the road (after deciding that ESL teaching is my calling)?

in short, given my situation, what would be the most practical, financially wise, and least time consuming way to guarantee a bright future in ESL teaching? enlighten me please! thanks!

GWUstudent · Joined: 29 Aug 2006 Posts: 29 Location: Washington DC

If your ultimate goal is to teach k-12 then get your teaching credential or M.Ed and go into teaching with international schools. From what I have read on this board, you will need two years of experience teaching in the states before you can work at international schools. Something to keep in mind.

If you want to teach at the university level, then an MA TESOL is probably the way to go.

If you just want to try out teaching overseas and want to feel prepared for teaching ESL then do the certificate.

I think it also depends on what country your planning to teach in. I taught in Japan, China, and Bhutan with just my Bachelors degree.

tedkarma · Posted: Sun Oct 29, 2006 4:48 am Post subject:

I agree with GWU.

CELTA or any 4-to-6-week program is nice - but doesn't really qualify you for much except language school teaching. Pretty much bottom of the barrel work in TEFL.

University work - an MA/M.Ed. are essential - though there are some jobs for people at the BA level - but no usually the best and limited to several countries.

Just my opinion.

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

Do option 3.
You are qualified to teach in Turkey so go ahead and start. A second masters can wait awhile, you may hate TEFL so then you w0 vuld waste a lot of money and time.

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397

For uni prep programs you need a degree+ CELTA+experience. Contacts and an MA are an advantage obviously. you need to have a degree in English to teach at high school. Primary and middle school only need degree+ CELTA. But this being Turkey there are ways around it.

prof · Joined: 25 Jun 2004 Posts: 741 Location: Boston/China

Masters dealing with EFL are a dime a dozen.

And what do they give you?

A chance to work on a 1 year contract in a Korean Uni? (if you "look" the part)

A 1 year deal in the ME?

Some PT work in Japan?

Think about it.

tedkarma · Posted: Mon Oct 30, 2006 2:03 am Post subject:

Serious_Fun · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 1171 Location: terra incognita

Chris_Crossley · Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2006 10:55 am Post subject: Get the MA, then go back home!

I am just over midway through my online MA in Education with the Open University (UK), which, all being well, I will finish by the end of next year, by which time I will have accumulated 6 years of teaching experience (both in EFL and in EAP) in China. Indeed, I came to China in October 2001, having gained the Trinity College (London) Certificate in TESOL, a recognised British equivalent of the CELTA.

My intention, after gaining the MA, is to search for a teaching job back in my home country, the UK, with a view to starting it in the autumn of 2008, a time when my then-4-year-old daughter will be eligible to start primary school in a Reception class. I have UK government awarded qualified teacher status for the high school sector, so I might be able to get a job in a state (if not independent) high school, though I would look at EAP jobs at universities or colleges of higher education first.

Hence, my remaining in China for longer than another two years is really not an option, since, based on what I earn here in the Middle Kingdom, I cannot really be expected to spend anywhere near 150,000 RMB per year on tuition fees at a British "international" school - unless I were fortunate enough to land a job there and have my little one benefit from reduced tuition (if not a free education!).

Hence, I am doing my MA for career development, and it does take time and effort to do, not something you should do "for the least amount of time", because it is an investment in your own future. An MA in TESOL is certainly not to be embarked on lightly, but it can be challenging and rewarding.