Job Discussion Forums

[vre]

WELL?

[yaramaz]

Are you trying to resolve my life-choices dilemma for me or are you just curious?

[vre]

It may serve both purposes

[ghost]

M.A. wins because it is polyvalient and multi-purpose. An M.A. is good for teaching, and is also recognized outside the teaching world...in the world of business, management and all other fields...the same cannot be said for the DELTA which is only specific to the ESL field.

Further, even within the teaching field, many employers in many countries have never heard of the DELTA - but they all know about M.A. degrees from Universities.

For those who move on from teaching, the DELTA will be of much less utility on your resumes than the M.A.

[Albulbul]

DELTA will make you a better classroom teacher but an MA is more likely to get you a job.

People outside the esoteric field of EFLology know what a "Magister Artium" is but who knows about obscure diplomas named after a letter in the Greek Alphabet ?

[lucy k]

I think it depends on your future plans. The DELTA is great if you plan to teach English for a while. It will definitely serve you well in Turkey. It takes less time than an MA (at least an MA from the USA), it's cheaper, and you can still work full time while you do it. Also, I hear it's very practical and really makes you a better teacher. The MA is alot more theory (also interesting). For personal teacher development, I think the DELTA seems great. My concern is how well-known it is in other countries (and other professions, as mentioned before). So, I'll put my vote this way: if you want to stay in Turkey and teach a long time, DELTA. If you might want to do other things or teach in other countries, MA. It's really a toss up!

[Gordon]

[justme]

Despite the $27,000 I owe to the American government for student loans, I've never regretted getting the master's. The SLA and applied linguistics theory was all really interesting, and I still have a good network of colleagues that are supportive both personally and professionally.

I think some universities here only look at Master's-level teachers.

I don't know if all Master's programs are the same, but I had as many, if not more, practicum and observation hours required for my Master's as for a DELTA-- the same amount of practical classroom focus plus a lot more, and more indepth, theory.

I also think the Master's (and the preceding BA in linguistics) makes me a better language learner...

Two things to keep in mind:
1) It's much easier to get a job with a Master's, but you have to be more selective-- some schools won't plan to use your Master's training at all, they'll just plan to make you visible for important guests and visitors so they can say 'Look! We have a yabanci with a Master's!'

2) In Turkey at least, I've run into skepticism from British managers about American masters', like ours aren't as good (even though they're accredited by the same organisation). I knew an Australian teacher with the same problem. But maybe that was just them looking for a way to not have to pay us more...

[Faustino]

A DELTA is good enough for (almost) any ELT job in Turkey

[dmb]

The DELTA will make you explore and discover your teaching. The MA will open a few doors that the DELTA can't. If anyone needs info on the Dip in Istanbul pm me.

[ghost]

When you guys leave teaching (and most of you will...) then carrying a DELTA in your baggage will be of little use compared with an M.A.

Many employers have never heard of a DELTA and even if you explain they still think of it as a lesser Certificate type credential, with limited use.

[dmb]

[calsimsek]

It's a sad day when dmb say's that ghost might be right about somthing.

[scot47]

You see - ghost is right sometimes !

Where is he anyway ?

[dmb]

I read on the UK board that he is looking into getting work in the state school system in England