Everything TESOL: What do I do once I have my TESOL Certificate?

What do I do once I have my TESOL Certificate?

How do I get a job teaching English as a certified TESOL teacher?

In my 15+ years as a trainer on the SIT TESOL Certificate course, I have noticed that there are definite differences in how TESOL graduates enter the job market, TESOL certificates in their hands.

Some graduates have found work before or while taking the TESOL Certificate course. Some participants complete the course knowing that they will begin their teaching careers at a determined future date. Other graduates don't really know what they want to teach, where they want to teach or when they will begin.

More than likely you fall into category 1 or 2 if you are reading this.😏

Feel free to check out TESOL Trainer's Youtube page. There you will find a number of testimonials by graduates of the SIT TESOL Certificate course with John Kongsvik.

All of the graduates in the videos share what they have been doing with their TESOL Certificates. There is a wide range in the ages, the experiences, and the places where they lived and taught. It's well worth the effort to check it out!

If you are curious about what a TESOL Certificate is, read Get TESOL Certified & Teach Your Way Around the World.™

Let's take a look at what you can do to get the ball rolling, seek and find a job teaching English, and begin your new journey as a TESOL Certificate teacher.

Would you like to teach your way around the world? Contact John Kongsvik now!

Once I have my TESOL Certificate, how do I get a teaching job?

As I said there seem to be about 3 broad groups of TESOL graduates when it comes to getting started as teachers of non-native English speakers.

The first category is the Bon Voyage graduate. These TESOL graduates know when they will start teaching, where they will be teaching, and what they will be teaching. Often times, these people found an English language teaching job before the course began or found jobs during the course was.

There may even be some Bon Voyagers who don't have a job lined up before the end of the course, but they probably bought one way tickets to Peru. They figure they'll just find jobs when they get there. Once each of these people earn their teaching certificates, they waste no time to start teaching their way around the world.™

Bon Voyagers have already figured out the what, where, when, and why of their next TESOL job at home or abroad.

{Say, "Bon Voyage" to your old life and "Bonjour" to your new life as a TESOL teacher. Visit us.}

The next category of TESOL Graduate is the

Bientôt (French for soon). Even if these graduates don't have a concrete job before the course ends, they have are completely clear on their next steps.

They may not immediately teach after the course has finished, but they do know when they will begin. Likewise, the Bientôt-ers know where they would like to teach and even what kind of English classes they would like to teach.

In short, the bientôters don't intend on teaching right away, but they have mapped out the steps they will take before teaching English to non-native speakers at home or abroad.

Contact us if you'd like to hear more about how to get TESOL Certified. John Kongsvik, the director of TESOL Trainers will help you start teaching your way around the world. ™

The third and final type of graduate is the 'coup de pouce'-r (French for push in the right direction). This person completes the TESOL course but does;t have a concrete direction. She or he may not know exactly when they would like to begin, nor may they know where they would even like to teach or who they would most like to be teaching. Just like the name implies, these guys need a push in the right direction.

The coup de poucer needs some help deciding which direction is best for them & which steps s/he will need to take to get there.

Here is that coup de pouce! Read on if you'd like a little help in what to do after you have earned your TESOL Certificate.

Wondering why there are so many TESOL Certificate courses out there?

Read this article: The Difference Between TESOL/TEFL Certificate Programs

What do I do once I have my TESOL Certificate?

The what, where, when, and why of teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL).

For those TESOL Certificate holders who need a 'coup de pouce' to point them in the right direction, here it is! The purpose is to help you consider the whys, whens, wheres, and whats of teaching English to non-native English speakers.

Once you are able to answer these questions, you will find yourself pointing in the right direction to find your perfect job teaching English overseas.

Why did you take the TESOL Certificate course? As silly as this sounds, this is a very important question. A concrete answer creates a direct path from you to your dream job teaching English at home or abroad.

First, look at the top 6 reasons why people get TESOL Certified at our center in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Next, read the 6 directions these reasons will point you towards.

Finally, read our tips about how to start teaching your way around the world. ™

Top 6 Reasons why people take our TESOL Certificate course:

To help people learn English in my community
To make money
To live in a specific country or region (Mexico, Asia, etc)
To learn a language (Chinese, Arabic, etc)
To create art (paint, write, etc)
To travel the world

The 6 paths these responses create:

Teaching in my community Find out where people are going to learn English. Do these steps:

Contact your local community college.
Find the adult basic education program in your town.
Try contacting Pro Literacy and ask them if there is a program near you.
Talk to secular English language programs like Catholic Charities.
Call your school district and ask them if they hire.
Look for non profit organizations that provide English language classes.
Examine this list of national and local organizations that provide ESL classes.

Money, Money, Money If you don't care about money, your options are obviously greater. If you need to make a certain amount of money, you'll need to focus your radar on countries or jobs that will allow you to obtain what you need. Try these:

If you don't need the cash, try.....

Volunteer with Pro Literacy or similar institutions.
Volunteer teaching overseas for short periods of time.
Contact NGOs that fund English language programs overseas.
Join the Peace Corps.

If you need the cash, try.....

Teach in well-to-countries such as Japan, South Korea, the Middle East, etc.
Teach in dangerous areas such as Kurdistan, Afghanistan.
Teach specialized English classes like pronunciation, legal English, etc.

Visit Specific Places The clearer you are on where you want to teach, the easier things become. Once you have this, try....

Do a google search for: -country- English language programs.
Find out if there is an English Language Fellows Program in that country.
Contact the USA consulate in that country and ask them for a list of English language programs.

Learn Specific Languages So you want to learn Chinese? Burmese? Spanish? If this is the case (e.g. the real reason why you got TESOL certified), you already know what parts of the world you should go to. Pay attention to these three things to make it happen:

Ask employers if they offer language classes to foreign teachers
Ask to speak to a current teacher who has been studying the local language. You'll be able to ask how s/he did it and what kind of support the school offered.
Make sure you aren't working so much that you don't have time to study. This is something to pay attention to when you are in an interview.

Create art Believe it or not, people get TESOL certified because they want to paint and teaching English is the way they are going to fund their own art. If this is the case, pay attention to the following points:

Be clear on how many hours you will be teaching.
Find a place in the world that fits your idea of a creative space.
Make sure you find out before you go if you can find any supplies that you may need for your art.

Travel the world This one seems easy, but for some, there may, in fact, be too many options. Try honing down your options and try focusing in on the next question in our list. If you are more interested in culture than you are in teaching, make sure the job you decide upon doesn't have you working so many hours that you won't be able to feed your need to immerse yourself in the culture. Finally, check out these important blog posts. They will immediately help you.

When would you like to start? Some people are able to start their new career teaching English right after the course ends. Others need to wait a period of time before they can (e.g. they need to complete school/job before they can go). Whatever time frame you have, try these:

Map out how you will use the time to find your ideal job.
If it's a longer wait, try teaching locally to keep honing your skills and to beef up your resume.
Get started on learning that language.
Learn about the culture you'll be living in.

Where would you like to go? This may be easy for some people, but it can be hard for others who feel there are so many choices. Of course, if you are thinking of teaching locally, you probably don't have as many choices. If you are someone who finds deciding where to teach challenging, consider the following:

Choose a limited number of places you would like to live in.
Ask yourself what else is important to you (e.g. money, proximity, etc).
Try to put them in some kind of order (preference, money, possibilities, etc).
Apply to all of these jobs and don't decide until you've reached the end of the process.
Read about teaching English overseas like: Close your eyes, spin the glob and pick your place to teach.

What would you like to teach? Some people want to teach English to children, and others to adults only, please. Others have a specific kind of class they would like to teach. For example, some want to teach only conversation classes as they don't, for one reason or another, want to teach writing or TOEFL. For other TESOL graduates, it might not matter. If it does matter to you, consider these things:

What type of English class you would like to teach?

Conversation English, Business English, Writing, Pronunciation, Test Prep.
Beginning, Intermediate, Advanced.
college course, private classes, etc.

Who would you like to teach?

Ages: young children - teenagers - adults.
immigrants, refugees, professionals, wealthy kids, etc.

What things are you most hoping to avoid?

So, if you have mused over the Why, When, Where, and What of teaching English, you should have a clearer idea of which steps you need to take to find your dream job.

You can get TESOL Certified anywhere, but there is only one place where you can get TESOL Inspired ™: Santa Fe, New Mexico with John Kongsvik, the director of TESOL Trainers, Inc.

Do you have a question about TESOL? Send me a message with your questions whether they be about getting certified or getting a job. I'll try to help as best as I can!