Korean Job Discussion Forums

[crocadoodledoo]

G'day mates!

I've been looking for a good 1 year Master Degree course that would give me my secondary school teaching qualification.

Anywhere in the world is fine, and the cheapest/fastest option possible would be great since I've already been teaching for 5 years and hold an MA in Linguistics and an M.Ed. in TESOL.

Thank you!

[alistaircandlin]

Why do another Master's if you already have two? You could do a teaching qualification in one year - in the UK the qualification is the PGCE. this is now Master's level and would give you 60 credits towards another Master's in Education.

Given your experience you could also qualify on the job in the UK - which I would recommend because all the experience you get from a PGCE is from you school placements anyway - the theory stuff is not so useful. You could get a Graduate Training Placement which means that you get taken on as an unqualified teacher in a school and you give evidence for your qualification at the end of the year. the benefit of this is that you get paid while you are training.

I know a few Australian, American and South African teachers who have done this in the UK - so it's worth looking into if you feel interested.

[smurfetta]

The only problem with the GTP is that you may have problems trying to use it outside of the UK. It is better to do the PGCE.

[smurfetta]

Getting back on topic...

OP- Where are you from? Australia? I would look at all the programs in your home country first. It will most likely be cheaper and easier to apply to. (You won't have as many prerequisite issues.) When I looked into doing the PGCE, I ran into a couple of problems. Many of the universities I contacted wanted me to have UK school experience and a face to face interview. However, there is a way around this- you can apply to a teacher's training recruiter based in your country for a UK school but you will be limited to a couple of schools.

If you are indeed from Australia then you could take advantage of free tuition if you work in a rural area for 3 years after you complete your training. However, it sounds like you probably would not want to do this option if you are in a rush.

[crocadoodledoo]

Hi and thank you for the replies!

I'm Canadian and pretty much just want it quickly so I can continue working in Asia.

Alistair: thanks for the great advice - I was thinking of doing it as a masters because if it takes the same amount of time and money, why not?
- I've been checking out the PGCE and it looks good as well - 36 weeks total - they have programs in England and Spain actually, so that's something to think about.

I wouldn't mind doing the theory part distance, and then go somewhere for the 12 week practicum, so still looking around.

[smurfetta]

Since you are Canadian, here are two recruiting sites for teacher training that you may be interested in. I'm in no way associated with them. It just looks like the easiest way for a Canadian to apply to a teacher training program abroad. Check them out- maybe you will find one that suits you.

http://www.canteach.net/

http://www.teach.ca/

You could also do your teacher training in Ontario in 8 months. I'm sure another poster will be able to pipe in with more info about that.

I personally decided to go back to Canada for my training because it was easier to sort out student loans and bursaries among other reasons.

I don't know if there are any Master of Education plus certification programs offered in Canada. UCalgary has a Master of Teaching that takes two years.

The other thing to consider is whether the certification that you are interested is transferable to your home province. You may want to return and teach at home some day.

[alistaircandlin]

It maybe that you can combine a Masters with your professional teaching qualification in other countries but not, I'm fairly certain, in the UK. Even if you do an Masters in Education or a Masters in Teaching and Learning here, that still does not make you a qualified teacher. You have to do your qualification separately, although you could potentially do them alongside each other on the GTP program. This is too much though: personally I'd do a Master's separately after you qualified or, as you're already well-qualified academically, go on to do your M.Phil or Doctorate.

Smurfetta I'm not sure that the GTP is a problem internationally, although you might be right. I've been applying for jobs in Korea recently and the employers want to see evidence of qualified (certified in the US?) teacher status. I forward my professional certificate to prospective employers, which you get after a year's practice, rather than my PGCE certificate. This professional certificate is the same no matter whether you do the GTP or the PGCE. I wonder if there is anything similar to the GTP in Canada though?


I forgot about the problems applying for the PGCE from abroad - you've absolutely got to have that UK experience and do a face-to-face interview, as you said.

Finally, i just remembered that the Open University offer a PGCE course and in my experience they are really good. www.open.ac.uk (I didn't do my PGCE with them but I know their creative writing and computing courses are really well put together and would expect their PGCEs to be similar.)

[definitely maybe]

There are a number of 12-13 month programs in the US that combine a Masters (usually MAT) and a teacher certification. You can find links to pretty much any decent grad program in the US in education here:

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-education-schools/rankings

The only problem is that most of the programs are likely prohibitively expensive when compared to Canada, Australia, or the UK. Additionally, many of them require the GRE.

[smurfetta]

[TECO]

Australia sure has gained a reputation for devaluing the Master's Degree - 1 year for an M.A.! Actually, it's probably more like 8 months for an M.A. since 8 courses are required and one could do 4 courses per semester. The Australian schools don't even require a dissertation component anymore do they.

I never understood why anyone would want a 2nd M.A., never mind a 3rd M.A.

[Space Cowboy]

With your experience, you might look into the programs around the US implemented by The New Teacher Project. These are intensive alternative certification programs, designed for career changers, that allow you to gain certification in high-need subject areas with minimal graduate coursework. The catch is that you will be expected to be hired by and work in a low-income school district as well, but you would earn a full teacher's salary during the certification period. There is a small fee, but it pales in comparison to the cost of an MAT program. The programs on the whole seem really solid: I was accepted to the one of the Teaching Fellows programs and was very close to moving there, but chose to take a uni job in Korea instead.

http://www.tntp.org/

[Mr. Pink]

I've already told you in another thread to do your B.Ed in Ontario which is 8 months. Why must it be a master's degree? You already have a couple...and in Canada we do B.Ed for certification.

If you aren't going to listen to advice given, people are going to stop giving it.

[Kissmykimchi]

[Quack Addict]

[travelnguy]

Any non-Canadians take the Ontario B.ed route? I am looking at these programs and am wondering about fees. I have only found one school that lists international fees. Do the other schools not charge international fees?