Job Discussion Forums

[Stellabella]

Hello there to all the great people on this site...this is my very first post so pardon me if I waffle on...

Some info about me...I am Australian born & my parents hail from Greece so I have applied for an EU passport which is almost ready.

I am going to travel overseas next year SOLO. I thought I may like to stay in Asia for approx 6 to 12 months and then head off to Europe and see what awaits for me there.

I am a fit & healthy 39 yo and have been government employed for over 15 years as a Counsellor and an Aged Care Consultant in a major Sydney Hospital. I have been teaching Mental Health Awareness & Suicide Prevention to Children, Teenagers & Adults for approx 10 years, which is very involved & needs great skill as you can imagine.

I have also hosted homestay students from all over Asia as house guests for over 10 years. I have been a Greek teacher & I have taught Greek to Greek-Australian children ages 7-12 for over 10 years.

Ok a few questions here

#1 I am looking to undertake a Tesol / Tefl course next month. After CAREFUL reading on this site, I have realised that the Celta course is the most recognised/respected, but working fulltime I have time constraints so may need to do something else online/distance (any recommendations) I am still so confused by the huge variety of courses out there. Please don't take offence but info is contradicting on not just this website but many others...which is the most recognised ONLINE/DISTANCE course one can undertake.

#2 Also after reading all of your postings to each other , I see I may (or most certainly will) encounter scams and scammers along the way. So my question..is there a WEBSITE to guide me to ie non-fraudulent schools...reputable agencies...somewhere to tell me which countries are better/safer....or is there anybody you could recommend me to. I am truly terrified as I will be travelling ALONE!!!

#3 I have Dip and Assoc Dip but no Bachelor Degree...so I realise this limits my stays/choices in certain countries. So it looks like China and a few other are my options...any other countries that you know of please tell me

Thanks...any advice...would be soothing and helpful

Stella

[Glenski]

As I responded in the General Discussion forum, you need a bachelor's degree for a work visa in most countries, and you are too old for a working holida visa. If you can narrow it down to a certain country in Asia, perhaps someone can help.

[Stellabella]

Thanks Glenski...I replied to you on the other post...see you over there..lol

[aksiram_2000]

HI there,

Have been travelling alone last year in SEA. Went to Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Yeah I was scared in the beginning, but I felt safer than I feel in any western country ( europe / australia) walking on the street alone...... (day or night)

Count on it, you will get a lot of attention, but friendly or they want to sell and make a some money...
Generally, people are interested in you, make money or just want to talk to you to practice their english!

Of course common sense is needed:
If you feel you are in the wrong neighbourhood, get out!
If you think they are scamming you, they probably are, so thank them friendly for their time and leave!
Follow your thoughts and listenen to your intuition and than take action, make your move, change your situation.

AND don't have your wallet hanging out!

Trust me, its not half as scary as you think, once you get out there!
Its all very logical...

Regarding good or bad courses and time constraints:
you could do a short course before you go after finishing work.
I'm doing a certificate IV in TESOL at the moment. 2 weeks inclass, 100 hours online and 6 hours teaching in an elicos centre.

or take a course in the country where you want to teach, probably a lot cheaper as well and you have contact with a local institution which may be able to get you a position somewhere.

check out the PELT tesol on www.ajarn.com (Thailand)

on this website there is also a discussion about the degree issue (Bachelor) have a read I would say! Pretty interesting stuff....

Good luck, Mariska