Hello! I'm an English teacher who is moving to The New Taipei City area in a couple weeks. I sent out a bunch of job feelers in advance and one place that I was excited about has offered me an interview. Does anyone have experience with this place? It's in Tamsui. I've not been able to find any teacher accounts of the place, only a couple of parent reviews. To my knowledge, it's pretty new? Any Taiwan people know if this might be as nice as it looks?

The Tots Gallery https://www.thetotsgallery.com/

Non-native english speaker. I have a bachelor's and a master's (not teaching related) from an Australian university. I have an Australian passport and many years of (not teaching related) experience in Australia in complex jobs that require a high mastery of the language.

My objective is teaching in Spain. I will complete celta for the purpose but not sure if I should:

a). Do it in Australia (AU$3,500) and apply for jobs online while living and working (not teaching related) in Melbourne. I've been told as a non native speaker without any teaching experience (actually I have some via an NGO - 1 academic year - but that was over 20 years ago and I can't prove it), it may be very difficult to get a job in a competive job market like Spain. I've been told I'd have to try somewhere else first, e.g. Asia. Spain is too attractive for native speakers and oversaturated. I've been told as a non-native speaker without teaching experience, I do not stand a chance.

b). Do it in Spain. I've been told, alternatively, that if I do well during the course, there's a much better chance to get noticed and get a job offer or at least some referrals and interviews, compared to alternative a). Completing it would cost me $2,500 (so $1,000 less), but I'd have to take a month off work (loss of income), flights and accommodation for a whole month, so overall more than double of what it would cost me if I do it in my home town.

I do have an EU passport apart from an Australian one. I also speak Spanish at C1 level (and Italian at B2, but that's only relevant in the sense that I'm very accustomed to teaching myself languages and grammar concepts in general).

I'm also in my 40s - will age be relevant?

I'd appreciate some advice.

Was working in the Japanese working culture as a foreigner as horrible as its made out to be? Taiwan is my second choice. I’ve spent a few months in each country and feel the quality of life is higher in Japan. Any opinions welcome. I have two semesters left before I graduate and have a small bit of experience in one on one tutoring.

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Hey all! So for the past few weeks I've been trying to find a company where I can get my TEFL certification at. I've mainly been looking at in-person classes abroad mainly because I'm a very "hands on" learner. Just to give a little background info, I'm a 19m, no bachelors degree, and I'm looking at teaching in Latin America or any other countries where I can teach haha!

After extensively researching TEFL providers, I have two options left, International TEFL Academy or Maximo Nivel. Both offer in-person classes but Maximo Nivel would be slightly cheaper than ITA. Though the biggest issue at the moment is the lack of information I can find about Maximo Nivel, TEFL wise. The last mention of it on this sub was from 2 years ago. So, I come here to ask all you lovely people, as the title states, is Maximo Nivel a reputable TEFL cert provider?

I also want to add that if you have any other suggestions about TEFL certification providers or any general advice, I'd really appreciate it! Thank you so much for reading all of this haha, and thank you in advance! :)

As the title states, I'm considering applying for all three. I'm strongly leaning towards EPIK but would like to have options should EPIK not work out. I remember reading somewhere that applicants are asked if they have applied for other English language teaching programs/positions, but I can't remember where I saw that. With regards to my application timeline, the intakes are Autumn 2024 for JET and Feb 2025 for EPIK & British Council ELA. So in this case, I may have to inform EPIK & British Council that I have applied for JET.

Any advice would be appreciated :) TIA!

For context I don’t have a tefl cert yet; I’m still debating whether it’s something I want to do, but I’ve had a couple calls with an advisor from International TEFL Academy who said Thailand pays well right now but that seems to contradict things I’ve seen in this sub. I’ve been to several places in Asia including having lived in mainland China for 3 months and I’ve been to a majority of countries in SE Asia and loved it all. First, can anyone speak to the legitimacy of International TEFL Academy, or should I be looking into another program? Second, what are the best spots in Asia for an entry level teacher if I pursue this path?

My brief background - 33m, white, US citizen and passport, bachelors in Music, 6 years as a yoga instructor and several years teaching piano to kids and adults (don’t do it currently) and I have 1.5 years of IT experience in the real estate industry. Any thoughts or advice appreciated; thanks!

Hey guys looking to get my z-visa and move to China to master my Chinese and teach a bit of English. Bit of background, I am a white 25 year old Australian Male with a double degree in Computer Science and International Business from a decent Australian University. I am looking to move to Nanning guangxi as it fits what I am looking for. I'm not too worried about finding a job, more worried about the visa process, my questions are:

1. I am currently doing a TEFL with the online 'The TEFL Academy', this seemed like the best choice for the lowest cost as I didn't want to do a CELTA. I am now reading this will be useless in obtaining a Chinese z-visa due to changes in acquiring the 'foreign expert status' certificate. Source: https://tefl.chinajob.com/about-tefl-in-china.php . Has anyone had any experience with these recent law changes?

2. Has anyone completed the TEFL academy course recently and successfully used it to obtain foreign expert status?

3. What salary range can I expect in a Chinese tier two city? My main goal is to master my Chinese but getting some part time afternoon/night work would be great

Any other info you guys might think is useful is greatly appreciated!

Thanks

I thought this was totally sealed if it happened as a minor and was completely blindsided that it's on there. It's an evading arrest charge that my probation officer told me I should have disputed in court. Am I shit out of luck?

Edit: South Korea is the country I'm seeking and am in contact with a recruiter from

Hi, I was recently contacted by a recruiter on a job site for TEFL jobs in China and wanted to know if this site was legit.

https://chinalinkesl.com

Hi,

I am looking into moving to Hainan, China to work as an ESL Teacher. I have 4 years of experience as a teacher in Taiwan.

Does anyone have any information or advice or me?

Thanks

Hello,

I'm considering taking a TEFL course to teach English abroad.

Bit of background about me: Bachelors in International Studies with an exchange semesters in LatAm and Europe. US Passport. No prior teaching experience.

As of right now, here in the US, it's been a bit of a rough job market so I'm looking at pursuing teaching English abroad to get started with my career as a recent grad and get some kind of professional work experience. For those of y'all that have recently gotten English teaching jobs: Is the job market for English teachers tough right now worldwide?

My plan is to start teaching somewhere in Latin America due to previous experience with the region and having B2 level Spanish. Could I get some insights to what it is like right now with the job market and the region?

Edit: Countries I would like to find work in are Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico.

What's it like and what are your qualifications?

I am an Aussie native, heading home soon after working at EF Chongqing. And about to start my Masters in Education in Melbourne. I know it's competitive so I would like to know realistically when it could be doable to work and live in Shanghai.

Many thanks dajia 😊

I'm planning to become an English teacher in China sometime next year, and am currently saving up for it. Would around $4,000USD likely be enough? I'm factoring in flight costs, visa, daily expenses etc for the first month before I get paid.

I should also mention that I'll likely be applying for jobs in Dongbei :)

Would I need a recorded demo lesson to apply for a job as an English teacher abroad? and what should I do if I don't have any?

Hi all, I am looking for a culturally enriching place to teach that is off the beaten path a bit. For context I spent 5 months in Kyrgyzstan which I loved as it was not super touristy.

Thanks!

Hey guys I'm talking to recruiters and they're asking for a non criminal report along with degree apostilled, etc. I live in NY and googled non criminal report and what showed up was 1 Manhattan Plaza to get a certificate of conduct and the earliest appointment is September 13, two months from now...is that the right place to get it or are there other options? It seems like I'm doing something wrong if I have to wait multiple months just to get an appointment for a background check? Any insights would be greatly appreciated 🙏

I'm in the US (California), and I did my TEFL certification through TEFL dot org. I have a job opportunity in another country where I need to have me certification apostilled. Am I able to get it apostilled here? Or do I need to have it apostilled through the UK because TEFL dot org is a UK based company?

I'd be interested to hear others opinions as to whether I'm overthinking this or my concerns are valid.

I have a colleague who regularly hangs out with his teenage students outside of school. I'm talking one on one dinners, lunches, them visiting his apartment etc.

I don't want to make any drastic assumptions but I've never seen this guy with any friends his own age (mid thirties) nor has he every mentioned or posted on social media about any romantic relationship. He does however, regularly post pictures of himself with the same two or three teenage boys.

It may be totally innocent, the school admin and his students seem to love him but idk the whole thing just seems a little off to me. At best it seems highly unprofessional and just a bit weird. At worst... well we all know TEFL doesn't have the best track record with this sort of thing.

What would you make of this?

Hi guys

I started teaching ESL, in Vietnam, 6 years ago. I left in 2019 and have been itching to go back since. At this point in time I have 6 years experience with all ages, all levels and also exam preparation like IELTS, TOEFL, etc. I've also given grammar workshops to other teachers in training. For what it's worth I'm an EU national, English is my first language, I have a CELTA, a degree and all those years of experience I just mentioned.

Looking at job offers in Vietnam, I can see the situation is largely the same and that the majority of offers are for newer teachers with little to no experience, usually for teaching children. But I don't want an entry level job, I would like something that is more suited to my qualifications, experience and skill. I would love to teach adults or perhaps enter into a more managerial role. I remember when I was teaching there the academic coordinator of our centre had been teaching for 1 year! So I figure I can get a job that is a little bit beyond entry level.

Does anyone know good schools or websites that would lead me in the right direction? Hope my request isn't too vague.

I am getting ready to looking into moving abroad and I was wonder if or what other people did to make friends/contacts/etc before they moved to their target country? Did you find expat groups or a pen pal? Or did you just move there blindly with no contacts ahead of time and hope for the best?

The long and the short of it, my youngest brother would love to teach abroad with me in Taiwan. However my folks are worried about his Crohn's and I am as well. I'd love to hear from folks with his or similar conditions who have lived abroad, is it possible for someone with his condition to comfortably live in East Asia?

Best.

If you guys are comfortable then you can write how much you're paying for your House/Room and where's the Location

Hey guys! This sub reddit as given me some wonderful insight and I think I'm ready to reach out

I (22 afab) (from the US) am autistic and currently work as an after-school teacher at a montessori school. I'm a senior in collage getting my Bach in English. I knew I wanted to teach abroad way back in high-school when my teacher inspired me to do so. I love working with kids and have worked with ages k-12.

Ive taught art history to high schoolers, cooking basics to middle schoolers and art to elementary kids. I have no certifications my boss puts a lot of blind faith in us. It's actually nuts here. But I love my job and my students. I want to be good at my job, I want to be a good educator. But I'm not looking to get certified in my state. I live in a hell hole.

Since working towards my goal of teaching abroad since high-school, the industry...has changed a lot. And it's been really hard to navigate with these new realities. I'm also realizing I only want to teach the unserious things like art or extra curriculum stuff! Which I know sounds dumb and unrealistic. I love science and would totally teach it...if I was qualified. I wanted to get my masters but I've finally accepted I just can't afford it. I wanted to be a reading specialist...but they also discontinued that program in my state as of this year.

I guess what I'm asking is it still worth it to try? I know I need my TEFL. I'm just so scared I'm freakishly under qualified to do anything. Scared I haven't made the right choices. Do I get a double bachelor's?? I can afford it at the very least. I just feel so discouraged. Ive been considering Spain, Taiwan, Vietnam, China, and Japan (I'm more familiar with the language and have friends there)

Basically Ive travelled to the US for more than 365 days and now I need a ‘FBI Identity History Summary’ done. Is the process described in the fbi page also applicable for non-citizens, non-residents?

Thank you all!

Fulltime or part time celta? Why? Is there a big difference or it fully goes back to me and my schedule. I am freelancing and I can only decrease my working hours for a month but I can't take it all off. Should I opt for the part time or the intensive and get done with it? Any one has gone through this. Appreciate the tips 🙏🏻

So context, I want to life abroad and teach English. I currently work around 37 hours a week. This course looks fantastic and seems to suit me very well. However, I have been told CELTA is better if I want a long career in teaching English but why can’t I start with TEFL and do CELTA later on?

As the title states, I work at a language centre which has a "nothing negative can be said to parents about their children" policy. The children are aware of it I am quite sure, and due to that fact they misbehave heavily. They know that nothing bad will happen to them, so they can do whatever they want. And they do exactly that, whatever they want. I asked for advice, and I've been told to be "more strict" with students, but what does that even mean when there are no consequences for misbehavior? How can you be more strict, when the biggest punishment you have in your arsenal is take away their points (which by the way mean absolutely nothing to them, they don't care for stickers, candy or anything that I tried to use as a reward)? Anybody has any advice on how to reverse that environment? How to turn around that bunch of feral animals which are used to the zoo that it was before my arrival? Anyone has any advice for me?

I have a trial lesson with two students. They are classmates and their parents are seeking a private tutor to teach them together. They are two boys, age 9, with unknown English level.

My plan for the trial lesson is to give each of them a level test while the other attempts a worksheet (level test worksheet)? After that I’m not really sure.

The big issue here is their unknown English level. I have lots of online private tutoring experience, but this is my first time tutoring in person. I don’t have a printer, nor do I own any textbooks. I know some websites and games we could use online, but I’d really appreciate some advice on what textbook and workbook materials I could use with these kids. Their parents want to focus on speaking and listening.

Any PDF links, names of textbooks, worksheets, and other resources would be highly appreciated.

For added context, we are in Taiwan and the rate of pay is 1500NTD/hr.

With Trump back in the news, my class were interested in learning some politics related language. I can't find anything in the old English Files or Headways... can anyone point me in a direction that might help?