If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know

How to QualifyMy Strongest Advice
There are essentially two "tracks" for qualifying as anMy strongest piece of advice is this: You MUST get a
English as a Foreign Language teaching professionalCELTA or a TEFL teaching certificate. Without it - with
(ELT). One is the Certification track, which requires youno teaching degree and no experience you can't work.
to study and pass a series of certification program inA CELTA intensive program will take only about 5
conjunction with observed, critiqued teaching. Thereweeks full time but will pay for itself in less than a
are three levels to this track - I have all three. Each ofsemester. Look around in your state or local area,
the "levels" is higher and more difficult than thethere should be an available program. Be sure to get
previous one. The CELTA or TEFL certificates are theyour English language teaching certification in the USA,
first and lowest levels of this route. Next is an INSETthe UK or Canada, etc., not in a non-English-speaking
or practicing CELTA often conducted in conjunctioncountry if you can help it. Some countries "frown on"
with your employment at a school or language institute.TEFL certificates from programs in non-English
It could also be a Business English teaching certificationspeaking countries.
frequently called a "Cert. TBE". Finally there is theWant More No-Nonsense Information?
Trinity College Licentiate Diploma (LTCL Diploma inIn this article I can barely scratch the surface. You can
TESOL) or DELTA for those who aspire to the higherget some additional information by going to and doing a
levels of knowledge and English language teachingsearch there for my name, "Larry M. Lynch". You will
application - and are also a bit suicidal. CELTA is anthen be taken to my free article postings on English
acronym for Certificate in English Language Teachingteaching. Finally, don't get me wrong, I'm not "knocking"
to Adults. TEFL is an acronym for Teaching English asany organization's TEFL program. You just need to
a Foreign Language. TESOL is an acronym forscrupulously check and compare what you'll be getting
Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.and if it'll be accepted where you're planning to teach.
Get used to the jargon, you're going to need it.With more than 17 years in the field working on both
The Academic Tracksides of the interview table, I've seen far too many
The second track is an academic one. That is thethings go wrong which could have been avoided by a
person gets a teaching or language / linguistics -more careful scrutiny of TEFL training programs. Yes,
related degree, then proceeds to an MA or MSmost internationally certified CELTA or TEFL
degree and perhaps finally to a PhD or other terminalcertificate programs cost more and are far more
studies degree. This track can be done with little anddifficult to successfully complete to boot, but, as the
sometimes no actual in-class teaching. This used to besaying goes, you usually get what you pay for. Most
favored but now is in more of a decline due to itsgood CELTA and TEFL programs also provide job
impracticality in North America and Europe. You couldplacement assistance. But that's a topic for another
have an advanced teaching degree without workablearticle. In the next article we'll take a brief look at online
teaching and class room management skills, you see.TEFL programs. See you then.
So it's very difficult now to get a teaching positionLet me know if there's anything else I can help you
without actual class room teaching experience. This iswith.
one of the reasons you should attend a TEFLGood luck.
program in person, intensive or not.