Job Discussion Forums

[ryanlogic]

Hey guys I'm going to try to be quick, but I want to get this thread going.

I'm american, and plan to graduate from an American university with bachelors degrees in Sociology and International studies.

I'm looking for a good place to take a CELTA course AND find entry level employment without too much hassle with work permits and visas and stuff.

I'm married but my wife doesn't have a degree, so she's basically going to have to tag along.

I want to get a couple years of experience teaching. At that point I will make a decision to either pursue graduate programs or look for higher paying jobs in the gulf.

I've been kicked out of the Saudi forums for not having enough experience, then I moved to Indonesian expat forums and while Indonesia looked promising....unfortunately I don't have a degree in English so I can't qualify for a legit working visa under their new laws even if I get CELTA.

I'm learning Arabic, and others have mentioned morocco, so I guess it's time to start putting the feelers out.

I would appreciate any and all advice in this regard

[mitsui]

With a degree try an American Language Center.
They have many locations. I think work starts in the early fall.
Casablanca is nothing special. Another city would be better.

[desert]

I think it’s a good idea to try Morocco. Some of the ALC websites mention having 1-2 years of experience, but you have nothing to lose by sending in your application.

As for learning Arabic, the people in Morocco speak an interesting yet very distinctive dialect. It is a lot different than classical Arabic. One of the best books for learning it is ‘An Introduction to Moroccan Arabic and Culture’ by Georgetown University Press.

You should check out the Wikipedia map for the languages in Morocco. Some areas speak Arabic as a first language and some areas primarily speak a dialect of Berber. Even though it is reported that 90% of the people in Morocco can speak Moroccan Arabic, your best bet is to find an area where Arabic is the native tongue.

[mitsui]

Berber would be mostly spoken in places where there are no language schools, or at least people would know both Arabic and Berber.
For those who want to move on to the Gulf, Morocco is a good place to start.

French would be most useful at first, but in the north Spanish is more widely know.

There are other places too, like Amideast and BPEC in Casablanca.
Not sure what they are looking for in terms of requirements.

Learning Arabic will certainly make people respect you. Trying to find an Arabic school was actually kind of difficult when I was there, partly because I only had Sunday off.

[ryanlogic]

I contacted Linda Flanagan at the British Council in Casablanca. Unfortunately they only offer CELTA training once a year, and I am set to graduate just after that offering.in other words, I would have to wait another year from the time that I graduate in order to obtain CELTA certification in Casablanca. She suggested looking into some of the offerings in the surrounding countries... Or taking CELTA stateside (for me that would be a very difficult option)

I don't know where that puts me in regards to Morocco. My Arabic professor suggested Amideast as well.

If I could find a job without CELTA certification, that could be a good option... The problem is, I really want to get CELTA just to get it out of the way.

A couple years teaching WITH CELTA seems like it would hold more weight than simply teaching at sub entry level.... But I'm just speculating.

I'm aware of the dialect. Truthfully I'm not thrilled about the possibility of getting all mixed up with the Moroccan dialect. But I think living in Morocco would be better than Indonesia or another Asian country.. At Least I could keep up with what little Arabic I know... Hopefully I would be able to differentiate between the fus'ha I have been studying and the Moroccan dialect. I can read and write Arabic and I have good pronunciation so I'm sure that would help.

I know a couple of Moroccans and they can barely speak Arabic with other people because they don't know fus'ha, and only learned French formally in school. They revert to English or French whenever talking to Arabs from different areas because every one always gives them strange looks and has no idea what they are saying.

I have a good foundation in Spanish and can ask for basic directions and get help with things... but French is something completely foreign to me.

My plan for Indonesia was to save up as much money as possible for 6 months after I graduate... Sell off my car and valuables and come up with about $12-15K... At that point I would fly to Indonesia, take the CELTA course and then use the rest if our tourist visa to look for jobs in prescreened areas with schools that I had been in contact with.
Upon finding a job, and obtaining a valid work visa through the school, I would pay for two years rent for a basic but comfortable apartment upfront (which is typical there) this way could just live albeit simply off of the less than stellar entry level teaching salary.

Like I said earlier, I'm kind of running into a stalemate with legal technicalities regarding eligibility for a legal work visa.

More or less, I was thinking about doing the same thing in Morocco instead... However since CELTA is Offered much less often, I don't really know what the next step would be. Should I look into possibilities without CELTA, or should I stick with the original plan and just find a different country?

I'm open to all advice and suggestions.

Thanks

[mitsui]

Go somewhere like to St. Michael`s College in Vermont and take a certification course. It would be like a CELTA. You could do that in the summer.

[nomad soul]

[desert]

You might look into doing the CELTA online. It usually involves doing a 2 week practicum onsite, but that is less expensive that doing the entire course onsite.

http://www.cambridgeenglish.org/find-a-centre/find-a-teaching-centre/


There is the option of tutoring or teaching small classes in a literacy program for experience. There are many literacy programs around the U.S. that offer volunteer experience for teaching English to non-native speakers. I've read that this experience doesn't count very much with many employers, but it might be better than nothing.

[desert]

[ryanlogic]

[ryanlogic]

I'll look into the CELTA online as that may be a more viable option if I am forced to take the class while stateside. The main problem doing it here is that I don't love any where near where it's offered and it would be near impossible to take that much time off work and expect to keep my job. Plus paying for the course is more expensive here and I would still have to maintain my current expenses while taking the course and not earning any income.

It would actually be much more economical if I just saved up money for the big move and included the CELTA training in the budget. At that point, I would already have sold everything and ended my current lease stateside. I would be mobile, and without a permanent residence. It wouldn't be so complicated to stay in one city for a period while taking the CELTA course and then moving to a different one nearby to work.

I am interested in the literacy programs you mentioned. My county has a program that helps people who never learns how to read. I think my wife and I would both enjoy doing something like that.

I'm just waiting for classes to start winding down before I get to bogged down with more undertakings officially.

Im in the process of contacting a number of tutoring centers and a local language institute. Maybe I could gain some paid experience through that avenue as well. Upon graduation, I will have a lot more time to look for different jobs locally. My current job pays enough and works around my class schedule which is a blessing. Unfortunately it is not related to teaching English at all. What I will try to do is get a early morning schedule so I can work on gaining TESOL related experience during the afternoons and evenings. If I could get like 20 hours paid tutoring time at a tutoring center on top of working full time driving busses, I would be able to save more money which has additional advantages over volunteering. Even then, if I could orchestrate some kind of volunteer ESL workshops at my mosque on the weekends for a couple hours, then I would really be honing my skills and feeling productive.

I just have to see if places would even be interested in me. Right now all I have is unrelated degrees and a dream. I need to figure out how to bring it all together in a way that will give me what I want.

If any of you believe in God, a quick prayer would be appreciated. Nothing happens without Gods permission

[BocaNY]

Just another option for you. Since you are studying international studies have you thought about looking for work with NGO's?

[ryanlogic]

[BocaNY]

I have met many people who work for NGO's and get paid for it. They usually get paid a western salary in a country where it is cheap to live. Doesn't hurt to try.

[ryanlogic]