I was wondering if you get a TEFL certificate abroad as opposed to doing it in your hometown/online, do you have a better chance of getting jobs in that city/country where you took the TEFL course?
For example, I am in the USA and I can take the class in my city, locally. But I would consider taking the Czech Republic 4-week TEFL certification class in Prague, if I had a better chance of getting a job in Czech Republic. Any thoughts?
Loading recent content...
What do you think?
Add Your Comment!
Log in to leave a comment or Create an account
Thanks!
TEFL is just an acronym for Teaching English as a Foreign Language so ANY course that trains you to teach English as Foreign Language will result in a TEFL certificate. This is not to be confused with a CELTA (Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults) or Trinity CertTESOL (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) though, both of which are brand names and are offered only by providers accredited by Cambridge or Trinity College. For more information and/or to find a provider see http://www.cambridgeesol.org/exams/celta/index.html and http://www.trinitycollege.co.uk/site/?id=201
At around £1,000 for a four-week face-to-face course, they don't come cheap but they are the gold standard of TEFL courses. They are the ONLY courses which are recognised and accepted world-wide by all employers, although admittedly they carry slightly less weight in Asia than they do in the Western world.
Thank you, that does help a lot. Is the TEFL certificate that is offered by "i-to-i" a CELTA certificate too? I am a bit confused on that. And if I did not teach in the Czech Republic, would a CELTA certificat be good enough for other places? Say Spain or Asia?
It is said that if you know where you want to teach it would be worth doing your training in that country as any reputable course provider will have links to local/national employers. That said, I did my training in Spain and went on to work in Vietnam, Portugal and Poland.
As one of the newer EU member states, it is still possible for Americans to find work in the Czech Republic. I'd advise taking a CELTA or Trinity CertTESOL rather than any old no-name four-week in-class course, of which there are many, as you may find that the non-standard ones are as good as useless outside the Czech Republic.
Note that you will need to enter the Czech Rep on a Schengen visa which gives you 90 days within the Schengen zone (Google for more info). A four-week course will use around 30 days of this visa, leaving you just 60 days in which to find a job and convert your visa to a valid work visa. Failure to do so means having to leave not just the Czech Rep but the whole of the Schengen zone for a further 90 days. To maximise your chances of finding work you should take a course shortly before the start of the academic year (Sep/Oct). It is possible to find work in January (thanks to existing teachers jumping ship at Xmas) but it would be better to arrive in September.
Hope that helps.
» Comments RSS