Job Discussion Forums

snowboard · Joined: 13 Oct 2014 Posts: 24

My background:
-10 or so years outdoor instructor/instructor trainer for various sports
-BA degree (American, 31yo male)
-University coursework also includes 3 School of Education courses with about 30 hours classroom teaching and tutoring
-Currently hold 10-year tourist visa

I'm flexible on location. Harbin, Chengdu, Kunming, and Chongqing all stand out. I am only interested in teaching adults. Never been to Asia.

I'm confident I'll like the job/lifestyle enough to be with it for a few years so I want to get a CELTA certificate from the get-go to be more employable (and a better teacher!). I'm looking at a course in Thailand this September. Why Thailand over Beijing? No good reason, accommodation is provided and it's a little cheaper.

I have three questions really:

-Is it worth it to start applying to jobs before beginning a CELTA course?
-Would taking a CELTA course in China (over Thailand) give me much better employment opportunities?
-Gamble with a one-way flight to the course (be it Thailand or China) and hope I can do a visa change in HK?

I appreciate your thoughts.

LarssonCrew · Joined: 06 Jun 2009 Posts: 1308

You're forgetting you must go back to your home country to get a work visa. You'll essentially be paying to go to Thailand, do your course, then have to fly back to the states to get your visa before you come back again

snowboard · Joined: 13 Oct 2014 Posts: 24

I'm not forgetting that at all. I've heard there's some grey area about getting a visa change in HK, hence "gamble with a one-way flight". Thank you though.

LarssonCrew · Joined: 06 Jun 2009 Posts: 1308

To be fair the 4 cities you've chosen are fairly 'out of the way' not in the Delta, not BJ or SH, so they may be more lax than most with regard to visa.

I suppose if you can find a cheap flight home via HK it's worth the chance to wait and see if you can get it in HK, if you can't then you just boom home.

Your ten year visa will be canceled as well though remember.

jaybet3 · Joined: 15 Dec 2010 Posts: 140 Location: Indonesia

Snowboard,

In response to your questions:

1. No. Finish the CELTA then look for jobs. You'll need to send potential employers a photocopy of your CELTA certificate to complete the hiring process.

2. Don't think it matters where you get your CELTA, as long as it is a registered training center with Cambridge University. I did my CELTA in Jakarata and found jobs in Malaysia and China without problem.

3. Not quite sure what you mean with this question. When you apply for the CELTA ask the training center to advise on a visa. For Thailand, you should apply for a tourist visa BEFORE you arrive so then you can extend the visa for 60 days. If you get a 30 day Visa on arrival, you may not have enough time to complete your CELTA. These centers usually have staff who can help you with visa questions. Also, for a Thai tourist visa, you will need to show a return ticket.

JB140767 · Joined: 09 Aug 2015 Posts: 135

snowboard · Joined: 13 Oct 2014 Posts: 24

Thanks for the advice. I ended up going with a summer job in the states for a while longer. I have the ten year tourist visa so I may just pony up $1500 for a vacation to see if the country is actually somewhere I want to be, rather than just read about.

Non Sequitur · Joined: 23 May 2010 Posts: 4724 Location: China

I don't thing the cost/benefit stacks up.
CELTA won't be reflected in your salary.
If you need personal reassurance about your readiness to handle the China classroom do a short ESL course which centres on the communicative method.
That'll get you prepped for Oral English which is all you'll be asked to do.