Job Discussion Forums

[green213]

hi everyone


im a new teacher but have been teaching privately to small groups whilst living abroad for around a year and found it challenging and rewarding. i have recently spent a few months completing the most comprehensive tefl course i could find which i passed with specialist certificates in buisiness english,teaching one-to-one and large classes. i possess no degree but am going to apply to the OU and immeiately start an education degree. so my questions are can i start teaching and earning enough money to live abroad while i trying to further my qualifications?
in everyones proffesional opinion which direction should i head in in relation to qualifications and job oppurtunities ?

i realise this is a proffesion i want to pursue not just a way to go backpacking i would like to improve peoples language skills and make a difference to peoples lives your opinion is going to be taken very seriuosly thanks in advance Robert

[tttompatz]

[Glenski]

No offense, Robert, but please punctuate your sentences. That last block was unbearable to read without any.

What countries are you interested in? I think you may find that without a degree you are seriously limited to where you can work. Also, where are you from? Some countries allow nondegree holders to work under a working holiday visa, but it is only for a year.

[TeresaLopez]

You could also work in Mexico, lots of language institutes don't require a degree, and your certificate and year of experience would get you a job in either a language school, or an institute giving private or small group classes.

[MrMrLuckyKhan]

[quote="Glenski"]No offense, Robert, but please punctuate your sentences. That last block was unbearable to read without any.[/quote

Amen!






In my proFFesional opinion, I think you need to give us more information about YOU. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it appears u aren't a native speaker. That could (probably would) make a huge difference in your earning potential without having a degree.

What TEFL course have u taken? Was it online?

What kind of small groups were you teaching? Through a company? Can u get a letter of recommendation?

What country are you from?

[Dramateach]

If you are truly serious of pursuing this as a career, I would advise that you don't hurry. Enroll in a full time teacher certification path in ESL. With that there are many paths and opportunities for you far beyond language schools.
Good luck!

[green213]

Apologies for my lack of punctuation, I was in a rush to get out to work and just typed what I was thinking. Thanks for all the help given, it does look as if I�m not a native speaker from the original post but I�m from southern England. The TEFL course I took was 140 hour online followed by a weekend practical course.

I really have no preference of countries that I wish to work, that isn�t a big issue but somewhere I can improve as a teacher is obviously the aim. The experience I had teaching in France was mainly private but I also worked with a small team of EFL teachers in a private company. Thanks again for all the suggestions Robert

[tttompatz]

[nickpellatt]

With regard to the OU, if you are resident in the UK and earn under �15,000 per year, you can receive financial support to complete your degree. The grants will cover the entire course fee and you may also get a little extra as study expenses.

If you go abroad, you can still study most of the courses from most countries (there are exceptions though) but I dont think you can qualify for any grants, and course fees will be higher. This is worth considering as completing a degree at ZERO cost is obviously an attractive reason for completing the degree BEFORE finding a job.

UK passport holders can legally work anywhere in the EU, but you may find that your TEFL course isnt accepted with all EU employers, most of whom do not accept online courses. The minimum is the 120 hour onsite course like CELTA/Trinity with observed teaching practice of REAL EFL students. Without knowing more details about the course its hard to comment really. If your weekend practicum involved teaching other teacher trainees, it probably doesnt meet the standard required by most EU employers. Best thing is to check job ads and employer requirements.

China is possible without a degree, but not all provinces and all employers. Again, look through job ads and see what is out there. The downside of China is it can be expensive or sometimes impossible to study and OU course from there. Not all courses are offered in China. I know this from personal experience as I am an ex-China employee, and an ex-OU student.

[Jeanii]

Psst! 'Professional'.

*ducks*