Job Discussion Forums

andre818 · Joined: 31 Jan 2011 Posts: 28

Hi,

My name is Andy and I will be finishing the TESOL course in Thailand on April 8. I do not have a university degree nor do I have an experience teaching English, but I know I will be very good at it.
Anyways, I want to move to Turkey and get an English teaching job over their. The reason I want to go to Turkey is because I am a fluent Turkish speaker and I am pretty familiar with the culture. Now my question is, which part of Turkey would you guys recommend and would I have a problem finding a job without a degree or experience? Will I have a problem finding a job with only a TESOL certificate?

Thank you

Wolfy1322 · Joined: 10 Mar 2011 Posts: 7

You can't work legally in Turkey without a degree.

That's not to say you won't be able to get a job, it just won't be legal, and you'll be subject to explotation.

Major cities are probably the best places, as far as I've been able to tell. I'm in a fairly similar position to you. Basically the general advice is be prepared for the worst, and if you can, get a residence permit. At the very least it helps prevent you from being deported if your every found to be working illeagaly. Also, typically they look for native English speakers, you didn't mention where your from, but it might hinder you a bit if your not a native speaker.

wardaw · Joined: 14 Feb 2010 Posts: 14

Not that the places where you work illegal would even ask for a copy of your diploma or TESOL cert...

cartago · Joined: 19 Oct 2005 Posts: 283 Location: Iraq

There are loads of jobs in Istanbul and in the larger cities there are always a few language courses where you can find a job. Many places won't bother with getting you a work permit anyway so you're not necessarily at a disadvantage.

I will say that teaching English may not be as easy as you think, my advice would be after you finish your course try to do more self study on teaching to improve your skills while you are teaching.

Another thing, finding work over the internet without a degree if you're not in Turkey is harder. Finding work while you're in Turkey isn't really.

Anyway, best of luck to you.

andre818 · Joined: 31 Jan 2011 Posts: 28

spiral78 · Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash

their/there
an experience teaching English/any experience/experience without article

Sorry - I'm an English language teacher, after all Embarassed

Yeah, as you've been living in the US most of your life you can certainly claim native speaker status.

I'm not questioning your ability in the language - the errors above are common to native speakers too - BUT course providers and employers won't be impressed if you make such errors!!

You are already at a disadvantage in terms of not having a degree, so you'll want to offset that by being as professional (and accurate with language) as possible.

Which TESOL course are you taking? It might also help you to brush up on the rules of English grammar in advance of starting the course. They can be pretty strict....

Good luck!