Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Pyongshin Sangja]

Hi, I have a bit of personal experience with this and have lots of friends who have completed all or part of University of Southern Queensland, Macquarie and back-home, apple pie USA MATESOLS and M.Eds. Talk amongst yourselves.

Is USQ vs. Macquarie like Yonsei versus Harvard?

Is UNE, Deakin, Monash way better than all of them?

Who made the Australians so important?

Are the American programs better, Indiana, Shenandoah? Why?

Are University of Birmingham/Sheffield/Leicester as bad as they sound?

Is an online, virtual university a byword for degree mill?

Is distance learning a joke?

Is an M.Ed. way better than an M.App.Ling TESOL or MA in TESOL?

Why would anyone really want one of these expensive, time-consuming degrees in a discipline that is really just developing?

Why would someone with one of those degrees stay in Korea?

Is this Framingham State College/Korea University thing for real?

Would a Korean MATESOL get you beaten up at an MATESOL party?

If you do a coursework MA, will not having a thesis doom you to lousy jobs forever?

Is a completed online M.Ed. or M.App.Ling. a good way to get into a real program somewhere later?

[VanIslander]

[jaganath69]

Is distance learning a joke? Certainly not. I'm doing my MA (not TESOL) through Deakin right now and it has really honed my research and critical thinking skills. This is mainly due to having to rely upon yourself much more and find resources outside the library. And while I do miss the classroom interaction, there are forums where you can debate issues. I would recommend Deakin distance courses thus far.

[Scott in Incheon]

I did my M'Ed through Deakin and I have no complaints. Great contact with professors, great use of tech to 'talk' with classmates. Deakin has been providing distance learning to locals for a long time. Almost everyone in my program was an Aussie teacher looking to upgrade their qualifications.

[indytrucks]

The University of Birmingham (UK) has produced some of very well respected scholars in the field (Sinclair and Coulthard immediately spring to mind) and is generally accepted as having one of the most well-respected MA TEFL/TESL programs on offer, anywhere.

[HapKi]

[Pyongshin Sangja]

Hm. So, a lot of love for Deakin and Birmingham.

How have these things benefited you. Like, money-wise.

You can't eat skills, no matter how honed they are.

Anyone else?

[Scott in Incheon]

Can't really say that the M'Ed has made me any extra money. But I am the only person hired at my uni in the last two years that didn't have connections on staff. Part of my hiring was the fact that I had a masters. So I didn't have to put any time in making connections to get a uni job.

I was looking more to the future when I did mine. I took a masters in language and literacy with an emphasis on esl reading and writing. I hope to use this either in the public school system in Canada or in the writing program of some college or university.

I may even put it into use running some sort of writing academy here in Korea but the sheer amount of work it takes to run a school has dampened my eagerness for the moment.

[jaganath69]

[Pyongshin Sangja]

Thanks, guys. Just trying to stir things up a bit. Glad to hear that it's succeeding for some people.

[Tiger Beer]

[RoryB]

Anyone done one through the Open University? Would also like to know the cost of doing these different courses if you know?

[cubanlord]

so many questions...I'm sure they will all be answered. Here is my little input:

It depends on what you plan to do and where you plan to go. Employers in The United States tend to favor degrees from their own country as it is easily verifiable if need be. Therefore, if you plan on working in The U.S., then go with an accredited American university (unless of course there is a program that is world renown and known by all). If you plan on going to another country and working there the rest of your life, choose accordingly.

Oh, and look ut http://www.su.edu/sas/TESOL

[Francis-Pax]

The University of Birmingham is one of the best programs out there. The University of Birmingham has some very big names in the applied linguistics and TESOL fields, i.e., j. Sinclair (Corpus Linguistics), m. Coulthard (Discourse Analysis), j. Willis (Methodology and Discourse Analysis), and c. Kennedy (Curriculum Innovation). THESE PEOPLE WRITE THE COURSE BOOKS.

The degree is well regarded everywhere. I am in currently in the program and I checked its validity in the USA. The degree is accepted by colleges and universities in the USA for teaching positions. Some school teachers in the USA have done the degree and it counted for pay raises and promotion opportunities.

The University of Birmingham is far from a diploma mill. It is a rigorous program and difficult to get high marks. Many people don't finish.

[HapKi]

On a related note. the University of Birmingham is currently holding their annual seminar for in-Korea students of their distance learning MA. Two professors from Birmingham have come, and would be more than welcome to answer any questions about the course. It's being held 10-5 till Friday at Kyungwon University.