Job Discussion Forums

[stacers]

Hi there,
Perhaps this is an extremely obvious question. All the same, I should ask.
My boyfriend and I will be taking our TESOL course this summer, and are hoping to head out to teach by October. Our situation is odd; he has his EU passport and I do not, but I have my university degree and he does not. We are extremely committed to the idea of working either in Portugal or Spain (preferrably Portugal).
So my question is: although it will obviously be more difficult given our EU/degree limitations, will it be impossible to find work? If I go out of my way to learn the language and upgrade my certifications, will that increase the chances of us being able to work in either of these countries?
Thanks.

[Jameso]

Hiya,

I'm certainly not an expert in the field being fairly newly qualified myself. However, I do have certain information that might be useful. I'm really sorry, but unfortunately you have almost zero chance of being employed in Portugal, due to the high level of proficiency amongst the population as a whole. Close ties with the UK over many decades (some would say centuries) has meant their level of English is already superb. In Spain the prospects are much better. Even without an EU passport, work is available. The route many non-eu members go down, is to apply for a student visa in their home country and enrol in language classes when in Spain (which is a good idea anyway). You don't mention which type of TESOL course you are taking. A quick scan of most job sites will suggest that either the CELTA or Trinity Cert.TESOL are the most respected in the area. Either will certainly be a good indicator to employers that you are both serious about providing a good service to students. With regard to University degrees, they are certainly a great benefit. However, experience will often be the deciding factor. If you and your boyfriend can get some work in a summer school, it may be the diffence between a CV in the bin, or a phone call. I hope that has been of some help.

Good Luck

[spiral78]

If you are referring to the Global TESOL course, think again about your certification. European schools mostly want a certification from an on-site course of 100+ hours including at least 6 hours of supervised teaching practice on real students (not peer teachers) with feedback from experienced teacher trainers. Global doesn't meet the standard.

You should probably consider taking a course in the country where you want to work. There are lots of advantages to this: you get your feet wet in the country while you still have a support system, as most training centres will help you sort out accomodation and provide some local orientation. Your cert is certain to be recognized by local employers, and you will make contacts that can be useful when you have to find your own housing, jobs, and handle other details. Your practice-teaching students will be representative of the people you'll be working with when you start teaching.

A non-EU passport holder has near 0 chance of finding legal work in the older EU countries, including Spain. Many people work illegally - though there are some risks. Your qualifications/language skills will not overcome this legal barrier.

Degrees are not legally required for teachers in most (maybe all) European countries. However, you will obviously be competing in a labor market where most other newbies do have one. You'll need to demonstrate compensating strengths - professionalism, reliability, etc.