Job Discussion Forums

[pwlivingstone2706]

Hi,

I am here in London racking my brains trying to work out which country will be best for taking a TESOL / TEFL course then teaching for a new teacher.

I've read elsewhere that Cambodia is like the wild west at the moment ... and Vietnam has a glut of teachers who are leaving Thailand ...

So, shall I take my CELTA or TESOL course in Vietnam then try and get a job in HCMC ?

It seems also there are a lot of very bad TEFL schools out there - even Cactus has a couple on their books...

Is anyone there who can recommend a good school for a certificate that is recognized internationally?

I was thinking of TEFL International in Thailand, ILA Vietnam, or World TEFL School in Cambodia ...

any thoughts?

thanks
Philip

[inky]

Have you considered Hanoi? Both Language Link and Apollo offer official CELTA courses throughout the year. Your chances of being hired by the school where you do the course are pretty good.

[daniel_hayes]

Philip, another Brit here. Got one year left of Uni, but I am also thinking of Cambodia and Vietnam.

And, I need to work out the best place to do a CELTA/TEFL. How come you prefer TESOL/TEFL? Do you think it's superior to CELTA?

If a person wanted to keep their options open, do the best certificate that would be useful in Cambodia, Vitennam and Thailand, what is the best option?

[blateson]

Just my two cents, and I'm no expert in this area but if it were me, why not do a certificate at a place in Thailand, afterwords look around for work there, and if you must, later try Vietnam as a second option. Thailand is a much more pleasant place than Vietnam, and in general so are the people.

[daniel_hayes]

Blateson,

I spent about two years in Thailand overall. I particularly like Chaing Mai. However, a few things put me off teaching there:

1. The Visa situation. Even though I will have a degree and a CELTA, visas are still not straightforward. Visa-runs were not enjoyable. Although I got to see lovely Burma every month, the great knock-off DVDs soon lost their charm.

2. Some of the teachers I encountered in Thailand were less than ideal specimens of humanity: I would like to go somewhere that requires more in perspective teachers.

3. Linked to (2), life can be too good in Thailand. Not challenging enough. Thailand will always be there for me, but I must try other places first.

4. Rates of pay are not good.

[inky]

Not only that, but a lot of teachers love Vietnam, and they especially love the people.

So, blateson, I take it you have transferred to Thailand?

[daniel_hayes]

Inky: how have you found Vietnam? Would you recommend it to a new graduate?

[inky]

Daniel, have you been to Vietnam? It's not everyone's favorite place. I have had a good experience here, but that's not to say everyone will. The best plan would be to spend some time in Vietnam traveling, then make a better-informed decision about whether to work here. The vast majority of jobs are limited to the two major urban centers, HCMC and Hanoi, so you should definitely spend time in those two very different cities.

One idea would be to do a certification course in Vietnam in addition to traveling around; that would give you a more clear idea about staying in one of Vietnam's cities for an extended time, and it would introduce you to Vietnamese students and what it's like to teach them.

Recommend Vietnam to a new graduate? It depends on your personality and interests as much as anything.

[pwlivingstone2706]

and would you recommend it to a non-graduate?

[asia0708]

my advice is go for the money (if you need it) :

thailand - 30,000-35,000 baht/month FT (250-350 bht or 8-10 dollars / hr)
cambodia 10-12 dollars an hour, might struggle to get 20-25 hrs though
vietnam 20 dollars an hour FT hours (25+hrs / week pretty easy to get)

living costs pretty similar really, vietnam way out there in terms of salary

if youre coming out here, do your tefl course then look for a job. avoid tefl + stay on and teach. just work it out when youre here - youll get lots of advice

WHATEVER you do, make sure it is a CELTA. Non CELTA providers will dress there courses up to be something similar but dont do them.
The best language schools, british council, etc will not take you on without CELTA - regardless of experience (which really pi**es me off since you would expect the managers of schools to be [ex-]teachers that know that exp means more than quals).
last year there were CELTAS in vietnam for 1200 bucks (with early bird and other discounts - cant remember name of provider though)
There is a provider in chiang mai, thailand - in my opinion the best place to teach in thailand (if you dont like overwhelming cities). And if youve never done asia before - its a nice introduction for sure.

If youve just qualified, id recommend only do say 15hrs first term, if you have a choice. good luck. ps. get a one way flight from stansted to KL for 150-200 quid then and asia is your oyster from there. one way flights make ur life easier

[adw]

Asia0708, does your information also apply to people who only have a TEFL certificate, but no degree ?

[asia0708]

for the previous poster..

if you dont have a degree my advice is stick with cambodia in south east asia. you will be paid the same as those with degrees or maybe 1 dollar less - but they like experience there and degrees mean jack sh*t to the ministry of education (if it exists).

outside of south east asia - s korea and china seem to be OK about no degree - and there are tonnes of jobs going

thailand used to be lax about degrees but new recent visa/immigration rules means they are really looking for someone with a degree.
vietnam, form what i remember, are very keen on degrees too.

my advice on cambodia - just turn up, cheap as chips to live there without a job for a month or so. scan the cambodia daily post on tues and thurs for a job. ask around. there arent many places (20 or so??) so within a couple of weeks familiarisation youll work out whats where etc and where the jobs are. the trick is timing - just b4 a new school term is best - big turnover of teachers in cambs so one term at a time is about as far ahead as employers look.
ps. schools/unis/language schs seem to have there own term dates so impossible to say when is best
good luck
i wish someone would answer my questions in korea board - how to find a MOD EDIT AND DON'T DO IT AGAIN job in china/korea/taiwan teaching adults and not more than 6 month contract!!

[asia0708]

regarding my comments on skorea n china, i have never taught there so perhaps i shouldnt have commented.
after another fruitless day of job search on skorea/china i can say that from what i have seen - the degree/major is very important, particularly in skorea.

anyway, if you read the posts you get the general feeling that there is more fun to be had in south east asia anyway!

i think i'll stick to my formula of checking out a place before commiting to a job so perhaps i'll never make it to the more westernized asian countries, where hotel costs dont permit a one month familiarization and in-situ job search

[saigon cowboy]

Get your TESOL from OXFORD SEMINARS.

They are recognised as one of the best.

Just my humble opinion.

[pwlivingstone2706]