So I *think* I'd like to teach English abroad after graduation. Any advice?

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

The title pretty much sums up the spirit of this thread nicely, but I wouldn’t be a Doper if I didn’t explain every little detail. :smiley:

I’ll be graduating either at the end of this Spring or the end of next Fall. The difference being that right now I have two majors (history and poli sci) and if I change that to a major and minor (poli sci and history, respectively), I’ll graduate in Spring. Frankly, I’m not sure if I should just do the extra quarter and finish up history (something my father thinks would be the dumbest decision ever)or if two BA degrees really aren’t that important in the grand scheme of things. Frankly, I keep hearing mixed things about both ideas, so I’ve got a lot of thinking to do. If you’ve got some advice in this regard, I’m more than happy to listen!

That’s neither here nor there though, as what really matters is what I’m going to do once I graduate. Eventually, I would like to get an MA and possibly a PhD, but I’m beginning to think that it might be good for me to spend a year or two working. I’d love to move, as I’ve got nothing really tying me down. I would also LOVE to travel, as that’s something I’ve always wanted to do, but the opportunity hasn’t really ever come up.

More than anything, the thought of doing the same mundane job every day, maybe in an office or in a cube, not making any positive difference in my life or the world really brings me down. Frankly, I can’t think of a worse way to spend my life.

I’m babbling again. Anywho, with a little research, I’ve realized that teaching English in a foreign country might be just what I’m looking for.

Ideally, I’d like to make enough money that I could afford to stash some money away in a savings while still traveling around wherever I’m at. Most of the jobs I’m checking out seem to include accommodations, which would be very nice.

The point of this thread is to ask if you all have any experience in this area. Do you have any recommendations for places to get the certification (TOEFL test)? Should I get a placement company or just apply directly to the jobs? What should I expect? Any recommended companies to work with?

For what it’s worth, I think I’d like to either work in Europe (anywhere, really, but Italy would be nice) or Egypt (somewhere I’ve always wanted to visit).

If you guys have any other recommendations for what I should do with my life, I’m more than happy to entertain ideas. Frankly, at this point? I’ll go with pretty much anything you suggest. :stuck_out_tongue:

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TOEFL is Test Of English as a Foreign Language. Definitely not what you need.

None of the native English teachers I’ve ever met had a certification. Several of them knew less grammar than we did (no, we don’t care if double negatives are OK in Kansas - if we use one in the exam, we still get flunked!). The different agencies train the teachers themselves. I’ve known schools that had links to the US Consulate or Embassy but no idea what specific agency you’d need to contact for those; you may be able to get a job in an international branch of a chain (Berlitz, Inlingua) via your local branch or a web application.

Other than that, I got nuthin’.

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Hook up with Autolycus. It seems that the two of you are very much on the same path.

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Brendon Small has been looking into this too (sorry, I’d find his recent thread on the subject for you but someone just called and said they’re gonna come over in a few minutes - maybe some better Doper than I will dredge it up for you).

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I know a number of people who did this and found themselves “stuck” in Asia because they didn’t have a plan to come back.

They find themselves in their late twenties and with no work experience other than teaching English as a foreign language (not a particularly marketable skill in English-speaking countries, unless you’re a superstar at it), so they have a hard time getting a job back here.

For folks with career-type jobs either here or overseas, however, experiences have been overwhelmingly positive.

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What exactly do you mean by this, TDN ? I can’t help but think you’re taking a jab at me, but because I don’t follow the drama of folks on the board, I have no idea what you’re talking about.

And thank you all for your advice. I’m definitely considering everything.

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Sorry, no input on the teaching English, but this PolSci major, SpCom minor can’t imagine a double major in History being worth the extra semester’s tuition. Hard to imagine many situations where it would really give you an advantage. Tho if you enjoy it, can afford it, and are in no hurry to graduate - no worries.

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Know plenty of people who’ve done this, but none have ever gone anywhere in Europe (where most countries teach English to some degree, I believe) or Egypt. Asian countries are the norm. Have heard good stories and bad (‘accomodations’ can mean sleeping in the living room with the chickens. And moving out to live on your own can be a major insult to your hosts). Some people plan to move back to China or Thailand, others consider it a learning experience but never plan to go back. You sound like a good candidate, though.

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Well, I certainly wouldn’t consider staying if it were astronomically expensive, but since I go to a CSU, my tuition for the quarter would be about $1000. If I started saving now, I certainly could have that cash saved up by then. But as I said, you’re certainly not the first person to express this sentiment that it might not be worth it. In fact, a professor told me that unless I intend on someday teaching history, I shouldn’t worry much about it.

Thanks for the advice, btw!

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What, if any, languages do you speak - other than English?

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Not a jab at all. After I graduate, I intend on going to Japan to teach English. I think tdn meant that I can give you a lot of info, because I dont see a long-distance relationship working out at the moment :wink:

So, the program is called JET - Japan Exchange Teacher. As for Japan, while it’s quite different from Egypt or Europe, the pay is nice and, more importantly, it will definitely fix your wanderlust. Ah, this brings back memories of when I got lost in the Fox Shrine in Kyoto.

Only two caveats that spring to mind. First, you should be able to cope with living in a rural environment. The point of the program is to spread internationalism, so they dont usually place people in cities. Two, you will be teaching kids around age 12 to 16, so experience with hormone-laden monster-spawn is a good idea.

Here are two links with more information:

The Main JET Page

The funniest and most accurate JET blogger that I’ve ever seen

Let me know what you think :cool:

Oh, I forgot to mention, the only requirement is a bachelor’s degree. No TOEFL or Japanese experience is required. The main thing they are looking for is wholesome, energetic people to spread Genki Ganbatte Spirit. (happy perservere).

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Anecdotally, one person in my grad program taught English in Europe for a year before coming to grad school.

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Fluent Spanish and incredibly basic Arabic (like, I can say hi, ask for the bathroom, that sort of thing. Someday, I’d like to learn more Arabic).

Thank you for the information and clarification, Autolycus. In the grand scheme of things, I think we all have our lists for places we’d like to visit and for me Egypt and (various parts of) Europe are at the top, with places like Japan a bit farther down the list. That’s not to say I wouldn’t be interested in visiting or even living in Japan for a bit, it’s just that I know that I’d definitely be interested in seeing the things higher on my “to do” list sooner rather than later. I’ll definitely check into the program, though!

While I would like to live in a city because I’ll have access to travel on the weekends and such, I think that any problem I have with living in a more rural area would be negated by the fact that I could help people in need (even if just a little). Travel is definitely a priority for me, though.

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There are some English teacher threads floating around somewhere. I’ve posted to most of them.

The thing about getting jobs in Europe is that they can afford to be picky over there - England is practically next door, plus they have people from their own country who are competent enough to teach ESL and teach it well. I would suggest you think about Asia - they pay better, and as long as you don’t live in Tokyo, living expenses will not be that expensive. And yes, all you need is a BA from whatever field. European ESL schools usually require a TEFL or TESOL certificate or years of previous experience. And they (Asian schools) prefer it if you don’t speak the language, since it gives the students a crutch to lean on while they’re learning English.

That said, if I ever teach ESL again in another country, I’m heading to Europe. I don’t have a TEFL or a TESOL certificate, but I do have enough experience that I think I can cover that. I remember looking into schools in Prague - it’s cheaper to live there and the pay seemed reasonable, IIRC.

I can answer questions about the general experience, but I’ve only taught ESL here in Chicago and Korea.

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Yep, thank you. All I meant is that you’ve got a fellow Doper thinking about doing the exact same thing, and you might be able to compare notes.

But if it’s a jab that you want, you’ve got a little something stuck in your teeth there. Please tell me you haven’t been walking around campus all day like that. :smiley:

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I have always found this rather surprising. The mere fact of having a university degree is more important that what kind of degree? Wouldn’t either teacher training or professional experience using English (or both) be more important? I mean, you could get someone with a math degree who can barely speak English* over there teaching, but the lowly tech writer with no university degree is barred.

Is there training you can take to make yop for lack of a university degree?

[sub]*Reminds me of my Laplace transforms teacher in electronics school, come to think of it…[/sub]

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You know, looking into it it seems that Korea pays a lot , even compared to similar places. What was it like living there? Did you have your own apartment or a shared flat? What about things like banking, cooking (food in general), getting clothes, medical care, and are you of Korean anscestory yourself? If so, do you think that effected how you were treated by the locals? If not, what was your experience like? (I’m clearly not Korean heh).

There are TONS of jobs in China, but it would worry me going there. Maybe I’m totally misinformed (why, hello, Political Science degree that is probably useless :slight_smile: ), but I’d be a little worried about any country that randomly executes its own folks. Just seems a little unstable, is all. Does any one have any advice in regard to this? Am I just being a paranoid, uppity, judgmental American?

You are SO mean! :eek: :frowning:

And ha! I couldn’t have been walking around campus like this all day because it’s only 9 AM and I am at work, so ha! I’ve only been walking around WORK like this all morning. Mwahaha! I showed you, tdn . :stuck_out_tongue:

There are a few certifications you can get, most of which (it seems) involve a weekend course and a little test. That certification seems to cost about $400 and for an additional $400 most of the places look like they will place you in a job for free. I don’t know if the extra $400 would be worth it though. Anywho, that certification generally (from what I’ve seen) allows you to work in higher certified schools and get better pay.

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If you haven’t already, take some business and management classes. Why? Well, for one thing, an excellent English teacher will become head of the English department. Besides, unexpected things happen. I know two men with doctorates in History, a generation apart. Neither has ever taught History, and their career paths are not even remotely connected to History.

19

Start the application process sooner than later. I have one friend who has just finished her second year in Korea (teaching 5-7 year-olds) and another who leaves in November to teach in Japan. From watching them go through the process it seems to take several months to work out the details.

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I’ve got nothin’ on the “teaching English” thing, except that (a) it does seem like a great way to see part of the world but (b) AFAIK, doing “JET” is not considered particularly impressive in terms of improving your resume, because so many young people do it and because JET’s standards for who they take are not that high. (Forgive me if I am being insulting as that is not my intent, this is based solely on what little I have gathered from around the university I work at.)

On the issue of doing the extra quarter: I can certainly see Dinsdale’s point about cost and time investment, but to me “double major” sounds sort of impressive (like “I really worked at college”), while I’ve never met anyone who gave a shit what anyone’s minor was. I minored in history and no one has ever cared, including me. Plus for me there would also be the feeling that with just a little more effort I could finish the degree . . . that would probably prompt me to do so. But I know I would feel differently if I was faced with more work than just one extra quarter.