EAP - obtaining work in the UK - advice please

[sela]

Hello all! I am planning to take a 4-week CELTA next month, and eventually hope to become an EAP tutor in the UK. A brief background: I have a post-16 PGCE, a degree in French and Italian, and have taught IT and modern languages for many years, and been a training manager in the public sector. I am currently working as a freelance courseware developer in IT.

Almost all the EAP contracts I've seen appear to require DELTA and/or a relevant MA (eg TESOL, Applied Linguistics), and several years EAP experience. My questions are: is CELTA the best starting point for someone wanted to move into EAP? Is it possible to obtain EAP (or related) work just a CELTA plus my experience/quals above? I am not keen on doing summer school tuition, nor does it seem particularly relevant to what I want to do. How does one get that first EAP contract without the DELTA and the MA? If I take a year out to do the MA, then it will be years before I get the required experience!

As you can see I am a newbie in need of advice and would love to hear your thoughts and comments on the above.

Thanks!

Sela

[eslweb]

The CELTA qualification is the key to most English Language jobs at the entry level. Given your qualifications you would do very well in other parts of the world, but I think that the jobs you are looking at are above entry level and would require a number of years of English as a foreign language teaching experience. Given that you have a PGCE I would make a decision, do you want to: A. Go abroad or B work in an FE college or school.

James

[sela]

Many thanks for your thoughts on this. I want to work in the UK, in a university if possible. I know that the CELTA on its own leaves me under-qualified & under-experienced for Uni jobs, so my hope is to obtain initial teaching experience in an FE college or private school. One question in my mind is - would such places take me on with just the CELTA? If so, would their main intake in September/October? I can take the CELTA in either April, June or August with my chosen providers; however I feel there's no point rushing to complete this qualification if there will be little chance of UK work over the summer (and given that I am not attracted to the teenage summer school tuition). I am digressing here onto the question of CELTA timing, but this is an important issue for me for all sorts of reasons.

All comments welcome!

Sela

[eslweb]

You've got a PGCE, don't undervalue it. The CELTA is specifically for people teaching English as a foreign language. Together they should certainly be enough to get you into an FE College or school. If they don't take you on then I am afraid you'll need to do the summer school and earn your stripes.

James