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/lit/ - Literature

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4148624 No.4148624[DELETED]  [Reply] [Original]

I was going to post this in >>4147285 but I thought I'd make a new thread so more people can see it.

For anyone interested in teaching English in another country, I have a friend who did the very thing so I asked her what it takes and what it's like. The following is her reply, copy/pasted. Interesting stuff! [the country in question was italy btw]

>Well, take a TEFL course, apply to schools, interview on Skype, and THEN move. Moving out there with no Bachelor's degree is no picnic if you haven't secured a job first, (trust me....I lived it). And as long as you are entertaining and kind of know what you are talking about, people will learn from you. Except teaching children, which just involves a ton of coloring, songs, and games.

Be prepared to get turned down a lot, (I mean, 120 times out of a 100, and then have somebody who supposedly hated you call last minute), and teach at weird hours, (I did 5am-7am once, and had 5 students 10:30pm-midnight once a week) to fit around adult students's schedules. There is also NO WAY you will make enough from a school salary to live on (unless you are in an Asian country, or you go to someplace scarier like Dubai or Kazakhstan, where you should definitely speak the language and BLEND IN when not in the classroom. In the classroom, you will be worshiped). Maybe your salary will pay your rent, but you will have to get some private students to tutor for everything else, meaning.....

You will have to be comfortable walking up to random people in the street, give them your flier, convince them they need English lessons, and then get THEIR name and email or phone number, all in under 30 seconds so they don't have time to walk away from you.

>> No.4148634
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4148634

Also, make sure you speak some of the local language...enough to hold a short conversation, or they won't trust you as a teacher.

And be prepared to enter and teach in people's homes where screaming children, weird psycho dogs, crazy relatives, and laundry/telephone calls/whatever is cooking will be constant distractions, which of course will NOT count as part of the paid lesson time. And be prepared to eat whatever they have cooking, or they will be offended and never hire you again. They will also tell their neighbors/friends/barmen/extended family and the guy that works in the shop down the street that you hated their food, resulting in you never working again, going broke, and being forced to live on your friend's (my) floor for two weeks. (This happened to someone I know).

However, teaching abroad is an amazing experience, just make sure you have enough savings to live off of for at least a couple months and a changeable return ticket home BEFORE you leave, for when you inevitably and unexpectedly find yourself unemployed, (which happens for "no foreseeable reason"). It will certainly change your world view, make you a happier person, and you will definitely meet hundreds of fascinating people.

P.S. The coffee is also a million times better in every other country that is not America.

>> No.4148643

Personally I don't think I could do it. To recruit students you have to be a salesman, and salespeople are assholes by necessity.

>> No.4148976

Also, if anyone has first hand experience feel free to share

>> No.4149080

>>4148624


No experience but it's what I'm planning on doing. I have one more quarter of my philosophy degree to go and then I'm planning on moving to japan, hopefully kyoto, to teach english. I know no Japanese but I really want to experience that culture and see the world a little before I start law school.

>> No.4149321

I thought about doing this. I have friends doing it currently. I even went as far to get together the necessary paper-work and to achieve a TEFL certificate (which is ludicrously simple really). I spoke to recruiters a bunch of times and employers a few more times. Nobody seemed to want to take me and I started to have second-thoughts. I have a Philosophy degree and most employers want English Lit or Language degrees with experience in teaching. It's competitive now. Really competitive. They appeared much more interested in American Females than anybody else where I was looking (Korea).

Living back at home post-University has ruined my ability to be independent (no car, living in the sticks, nobody here, staying in 7 days out of 7). I plan to go to do post-grad in another European country next year.

Personally, I think it'd be great and though I'm a shit at being independent here, I thrive of being put in a difficult environment. That said, and though it's easy to get into with perseverance, I'd rather do it when I'm 25 or something than when I'm 22. I hear a lot of stories about terrible school-owners and I guess they don't respect fresh grads, which sort of makes sense. Why would they?

>> No.4150031

>>4149321
How does one get the TEFL paperwork?

Also...
how bad would it be to Say that you have a degree you don't have? Do they really check?

>> No.4150082

From the sound of it the most promising place would be some run down eastern European place. Bonus: Eastern European girls are world-class hot. Have you seen the porn that comes from there? Unreal.

>> No.4150471

>>4150031
Seeing as the paperwork is required to get the visa and you have to send off copies that have been certified by a solicitor. I would say that saying you have a degree when you don't will get you zero jobs.
Also TEFL is a course not just paperwork.