Comments on: Before you sign that overseas TESL contract…

By: Tim Patterson

Tim Patterson — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 00:23:15 +0000

exactly. the more research the better, but one informed, reasonable contact is worth 12 ranting fools on a message board.

(Report comment)

By: Megan

Megan — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:44:49 +0000

Great advice, Anne, and obviously written from a wealth of experience.

Another thing that’s important to remember is keeping an open mind. All too often, new teachers arrive in a foreign country and expect either a) the same standards as at home or b) to be treated like a king because they are foreign. Teaching abroad is a lot more difficult than anyone ever tells you, but it’s really worth the effort you put in, in the long run.

(Report comment)

By: Alanna

Alanna — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:49:24 +0000

Great advice! Definitely take the blogs with a grain of salt. Some complaints are valid and the majority come from people who should choose a job better suited to them. My advice would be to do some interviewing of your own. Interviews that consisted solely of “Are you American?” “Do you have an accent?” and “How soon can you be here?”, made me a bit nervous. Ask, ask, ask. Ask about accomodation; the furnishings; the location; transportation; hours; and age of students you will be teaching. While taking a job in a foreign country is a bit of a risk, remember the school is taking a risk too. I knew teachers in Korea who did “midnight runs” and would leave the school without any notice leaving them in a bit of a bind. I taught abroad for 5 years and loved it! I would say don’t let the horror stories discourage you. Go for it!

(Report comment)

By: Amy

Amy — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 04:32:36 +0000

I’m so glad I found this website!

My partner and I have signed up to do a TEFL course in Thailand in August and like anything on the internet we were careful about organising it. I did some research about the company and found all these websites posting negative feedback. Its really hard to know who to believe!

I guess its just the risk you take.

Thanks for the great advise!

(Report comment)

By: Anne Merritt

Anne Merritt — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 11:05:37 +0000

You raise a good point John; the distinction between ESL and EFL is an important one, and an oversight on my part. Thanks for pointing it out – I’m sure it’ll save the readers some confusion!

(Report comment)

By: Alexandra

Alexandra — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:01:08 +0000

Trying to set up an ESL job from half way around the world is challenging enough as it is, but if you’re trying to work in Argentina then you should know that 99% of the schools will not hire someone who is not currently residing in the country. This is in part an effort to not have to a) pay for the teacher’s flight, b) sort out the teacher’s work visa, but it’s mainly just the culture. People are very warm and friendly here, but they need that face-to-face contact to decide if they want to hire you.
Most people come here on a tourist visa and find work with schools or companies that offer business English courses and don’t have a problem. Although the government does require a work visa for foreigners, most language schools don’t (unofficially).
It’s a little intimidating, the thought of moving somewhere before you know whether you’ll have a job or not, but in Buenos Aires people do it all the time and there’s always work to be found somewhere.

(Report comment)

By: Sarah

Sarah — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 03:24:24 +0000

Could not agree more about Dave’s ESL! I found a position in Japan and went on Dave’s ESL to check it out. Everything on there was extremely negative ranting, but when I asked none of the bitchy comments came from anyone who’d actually ever worked with the company! I ended up leaving a post asking if anyone who was saying all of these condescending, negative things had ever had any personal experience with the company or could offer the testimony of someone who did, and no one responded. Hmmm.

Then I got one private message from a person who had actually worked with the company and recommended it, and when I took the position and came, three out of the six teachers had already done several contracts with the company and really enjoyed it!

So yes, oftentimes the people on those forums literally live and thrive there being negative and complaining about everything, and most have never actually had experiences with the places they’re bitching about. I’ve met plenty of other teachers who say they’d never actually consult Dave’s ESL for a balanced opinino about a job or a place, but you can find some people on there (like the guy who sent me a private message) who are willing to give decent information.

(Report comment)

By: Hal

Hal — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:58:41 +0000

Definitely good tips, and I liked what you said about taking rants on sites like Dave’s with a grain of salt. I hit up the forums on that site a lot when I lived in Korea (for general living info in addition to employment), and the ratio of pissed off people was MUCH higher there than in the general expat population.

(Report comment)

By: Colin Wright

Colin Wright — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:52:26 +0000

VERY good information to know. I plan on teaching English in a another country at some point, and I’ll be keeping this article on hand so I’ll know what to look for when I do.

(Report comment)

By: John Bardos

John Bardos — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:19:09 +0000

I would recommend going to the country you want to teach in before you get a job. You will find many more job opportunities and you can see what the school is like first hand. It will require that you leave the country to renew your visa once you secure employment, but there are always many inexpensive countries nearby to go to.

I have owned an English school in Japan for 8 years and have been teaching here for 12 years. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I will try to answer to the best of my ability.

Also, I think it is worth pointing out that ESL is English as a Second Language. That means teaching English in an English speaking country. The author is really talking about EFL, English as a Foreign Language. That distinction is important because it requires a different approach to teaching.

(Report comment)