International TEFL Academy

I'm not one to become much of a member of anything (I suppose my nomadic lifestyle transfers over many things), but all it took was one explanation of the benefits and I was in. So, what are the benefits of being a member of REI?  For starters, it's only $20 for a life time membership! Here come the good parts. 1. 10% annual refund. Just from buying the Osprey Atmos 65 for $239.00, I'm getting $23 back next March - no matter what. Your purchases add up, so the more you spend the more you get back. It's a once-a-year refund they call a d...

There are very few times in my life when I feel like a child - being schooled in the oh-so-personal art of pack-choosing is one of them. These are the lessons I've learned so far in choosing the right pack for me. These are the top 5 lessons I learned when shopping for my first ever travel pack. I had read that REI was a really good company so I decided to head to Chicago and see what I could find.  _________________________________________________________________________________ Lesson #1: It's a pack, not a bag.That's the first thing I learned when I we...

It is rather surreal finishing the college experience. I have heard several older ones mention becoming a "career student," and it is at this corssroads this phrase beigns to make sense. After more than 3 years of doing the same thing, I'm getting pretty good at being a student. On one hand, I could stand doing this for another 2 or 7 or 50 years. On the other hand, I want to get on with life. The former, so safe; the later, so scary, yet at the same time with so many possibilities.

http://lifeabroadtommyj.blogspot.com/

This has been a pretty rough year for me considering all that has happened.  I lost my job and with that I lost everything that I know.  I have been applying for jobs for about the last year without any success.  I rarely get interviews and when I have had them they have been flooded with other candidates with the same credentials as myself.   Over the past year I have applied to hundreds of jobs and continuously received rejections, most of them without even having an interview.  The same is true for most of my peers my age.  It's just a point in time where j...

Today is my half-way point for the International TEFL Academy.  I have really been enjoying my experience here.  I have learned so much about the English language and I have enjoyed meeting and getting to know all of my classmates.   The teachers here are very through and indept.  I feel like I am totally prepared to start my new adventure teaching overseas.  I have been working with Student Affairs to update my resume and start my job search.  Karen has been very helpful in this regard.  Student teaching was very scary the first week, but now I am always...

Today was my first day of TEFL school in Chicago. Let's just say it was a very tiring and overwhelming day. But I'm very excited about this new adventure and receiving my certification. It's a very intense course, but very attainable. I'm looking forward to the next 4 weeks. I learned a lot already on the first day.

Everybody is familiar with the saying “you don’t become a teacher for the money,” and while going abroad to teach English will almost certainly be one of the most enriching and rewarding experiences you will ever undertake, you probably don’t want to count on it to buy that tropical island you plan to buy for your retirement.  That said, there are thousands of opportunities around the world for certified English teachers that do pay well and offer exceptional benefits.  Here are the top 5 countries in the worldto find these sorts of opportunities. 1. ...

Santiago is the financial and political center of Chile, yet with numerous museums, lively dancehalls, and a rich culinary scene, it is it’s cultural capital as well. Emerging as a global financial hub after a decade of steady growth, Chile’s booming economy has yet to show signs of slowing down. English teaching jobs in Santiago are at a surplus, and free trade agreement signed with the United States in 2003 only accelerated the Chilean capital’s need for English instruction. Explore this charming, colorful and sophisticated Latin American city and immerse yourself in the...

In its 2,500-year existence, Rome’s royalty, cardinals, artists and imperialists have carved out an empire with innumerable treasures to explore. Harboring some of the world’s most famous architectural heirlooms, the city itself exudes a cosmopolitan and romantic atmosphere. Regarded as both an international fashion capital and a millennium-long seat of religious and cultural power, Rome is truly at the center of it all. Beyond it’s aesthetic beauty, Rome is also the hottest place in Italy to find an English teaching position. English, the language of international business and ...