General Employment Prospects (Credit Crunch!)
Posted: 19 Apr 2009, 23:53
Howdy,
I'm currently researching into becoming an English language teacher and I must say it's a confusing field! After spending several days reading up on the different type of qualifications available I've come to the conclusion that the CELTA is the most widely recognised qualification for someone new to the world of TEFLing. Great, except CELTA is also far more expensive than some of the other courses. However, if you're going to do something do it right so I intend on pursuing this qualification.
Right now I'm in college and I'll finish in June, however graduation will not occur until late September or early October. What I'm wondering is:
Most schools I've read about require a degree for me to teach there. Do I have to wait until I've actually received the paper certificate of my degree or is it possible to start earlier even though I don't officially graduate until October.
Secondly, and most importantly, what's the current jobs market for an inexperienced TEFL teacher?
The CELTA course costs a lot of money, and if I can't get a job with that would be a tremendous waste of nearly €1500. I'm not getting into this to make my fortune (I'd make much more money pursuing my current field of study) and I don't harbour any illusions of sitting on a sunny beach sipping cocktails between classes, but I really don't want to waste my time training for an area which is being hammered hard by the global recession.
Part of me feels tempted by these companies such as i to i which promise guaranteed employment and a much less expensive course, however I also know if something seems too good to be true it probably is which is why I look at them with a lot of scepticism.
But anyway, enough of my ramblings, I would love to hear from some of you experienced folk in the TEFL market, hopefully to soothe my fears!
I'm currently researching into becoming an English language teacher and I must say it's a confusing field! After spending several days reading up on the different type of qualifications available I've come to the conclusion that the CELTA is the most widely recognised qualification for someone new to the world of TEFLing. Great, except CELTA is also far more expensive than some of the other courses. However, if you're going to do something do it right so I intend on pursuing this qualification.
Right now I'm in college and I'll finish in June, however graduation will not occur until late September or early October. What I'm wondering is:
Most schools I've read about require a degree for me to teach there. Do I have to wait until I've actually received the paper certificate of my degree or is it possible to start earlier even though I don't officially graduate until October.
Secondly, and most importantly, what's the current jobs market for an inexperienced TEFL teacher?
The CELTA course costs a lot of money, and if I can't get a job with that would be a tremendous waste of nearly €1500. I'm not getting into this to make my fortune (I'd make much more money pursuing my current field of study) and I don't harbour any illusions of sitting on a sunny beach sipping cocktails between classes, but I really don't want to waste my time training for an area which is being hammered hard by the global recession.
Part of me feels tempted by these companies such as i to i which promise guaranteed employment and a much less expensive course, however I also know if something seems too good to be true it probably is which is why I look at them with a lot of scepticism.
But anyway, enough of my ramblings, I would love to hear from some of you experienced folk in the TEFL market, hopefully to soothe my fears!