Korean Job Discussion Forums

rawiri · Joined: 01 Jun 2003 Location: Lovely day for a fire drill.

Which one of these would/did you do? I have somewhat inavertently stumbled into TEFL teaching as a career and i'll be shagged if i'm going to teach in hagwons/public schools till im 65. Which of these courses would be the best in terms of career advancement?

Ekuboko · Joined: 22 Dec 2004 Location: ex-Gyeonggi

In short:
Masters for Asia;
DELTA for Europe.

rothkowitz · Joined: 27 Apr 2006

I don't even properly know what they are..

Delta is a Celta half again.An MA(TESOL) is......like,a proper masters,or a 2-3 month thing?

cubanlord · Joined: 08 Jul 2005 Location: In Japan!

It really depends on your future goals and where you are from. For instance, if you are from the United States, then an MA in ed. with a TESOL concentration would benefit you the most, that is, if you went to a university in the States or a university that would be recognized within the U.S. (I am currently doing mine through S.U. in Winchester, VA). I will have an MA when I finish in another year and a half. This will help me in getting a teaching position when I go back home, or, in continuing on with my Ph.D.

A DELTA or CELTA will be ok for you IF you stay outside of North America. Which one is more respected in Asia? I don't know but would venture to guess the MA.

Also, consider time and money. Do you want to devote a year and a half to two years to an MA program, or, do you just want to do something to get you by? There are a lot of variables to consider. Ultimately, it is up to what your future holds.

If you want to return to your country and teach, then go for an MA. If you plan on "hanging out" in Asia for a few years, then upon returning to your country not teach...well...then a DELTA or CELTA is for you.

If you have questions regarding the MA, PM me and I will be more than happy to help you with questions, concerns, information, etc.

Paji eh Wong · Joined: 03 Jun 2003

Have you already done a CELTA or TESOL cert?

If not, I'd start there.

rawiri · Joined: 01 Jun 2003 Location: Lovely day for a fire drill.

I'll do either the Delta or Tesol cert next year. It may seem like i'm jumping the gun a little having not done the certs, but i will have completed 3 contracts in korea next year and will probably be hanging round for at least another 3...if not more.

gang ah jee · Joined: 14 Jan 2003 Location: city of paper

DELTA is great if you feel like managing EFL teachers in a private language school for the rest of your life. It's not equivalent to an MA though.

Oh, and you can't do DELTA without CELTA. In fact, to do a DELTA, you will need to do CELTA then teach full-time for another two years before they'll take you.

spyro25 · Joined: 23 Nov 2004

i dont think i've ever seen an advertisement on the korea job board asking for a DELTA, so if you want to work in korea for a long period do the MA. I'm doing mine by distance so I can work at the same time. So far I have to say its a lot of theory, whereas the DELTA seems to be more practical (from what i've read on here anyway). Its hard work but feels good to know that when it's all done i can pick from the cream of the crop in korea or go onto different non teaching roles within the realm of ESL. with a DELTA i would imagine your chances of getting a non teaching ESL position would less (but i would be happy to be corrected on this)

rothkowitz · Joined: 27 Apr 2006

I would really doubt that Koreans would have the faintest idea what a Celta or Delta are.

They recognise the word Tesol however,though you may have to explain what it means and what it involved.

My old MS were heartily disappointed that my Celta was NOT an MA(TESOL)

PimpofKorea · Posted: Tue Dec 12, 2006 11:22 pm Post subject:

Anybody ever see Delta Force with Chuck Norris.....what a great flippin movie.......... huh...huh...............................oh fine screw you then

Hotpants · Joined: 27 Jan 2006

I'd go with Ekuboko. If you're going to stay in Asia, the MA will be better in the long run - you can get into most Asian unis with an MA - but heck it's expensive!!! About 1 annual salary for us teachers in Korea for the Birmingham distance MA, for example. That's put my plans for an MA off for a few more years...
DELTA is often for the head teacher positions in language schools across Europe. The pay for these positions can be good, but the workload can be huge - certainly a lot more work than an average MA uni gig.

rawiri · Joined: 01 Jun 2003 Location: Lovely day for a fire drill.

Well good news for kiwis then, the full cost of an MA Tesol is round 5000 $ from Victoria.

penguin · Joined: 16 Aug 2003

If you want to learn how to actually teach: DELTA - and yes, you need a CELTA first. (It's not just a CELTA half again -it's way more work!)

If you want a university job in Korea: MA TESOL

oldfatfarang · Joined: 19 May 2005 Location: On the road to somewhere.

I've been trying to get a Korean Uni job for a year (no luck so far). I've a non-English related Masters Degree (1st class hons) a double BA, and 1 year toward a Ph.D. I just can't get a university interview - although I've taught in a very good Hagwon with adults/businessmen, Uni and the usual younger students for 2 full contracts/years. I have heaps of good solid work references.

I plan on getting a CELTA this January - so that may help. But I think I have the Asian 'not cute - age' problem. I've applied for so many unis here - never to hear back. So if you are an 'older' teacher - and don't look like an American newscaster - I'd think very hard about investing a lot of time and money in a MA. It may not land you a uni job. Maybe the CELTA is the place to start.

rothkowitz · Joined: 27 Apr 2006