What A Business Degree (And Experience) Can Do For You In TEFL, by Tedkarma

Part 2 of Tedkarma’s advice on combining business training and experience with EFL – for more from Ted, including free online TEFL training, visit his website at www.TEFLDaddy.com.

Here’s what a business degree and experience can do for you:

Most adult EFL students take courses to help them in their occupation - and many also take courses because their workplace requires it. What types of jobs are these? Quite likely some of them will be what you have been doing back home and already know the specialized vocabulary for and the demands of. You will relate to people who work in a field similar to yours easily and so will also develop a rapport with them easily. You will already know the demands, frustrations and joys of that field. The most common are business-related jobs, but sales, banking, hotels, restaurants, tourism, manufacturing are not uncommon either; there are also EFL jobs in medicine, hospitals, aviation and many other areas.

What is your employment background? Add that to a TEFL certificate and you are ready to market yourself to teach people who will already have similar interests and experiences as yours. This type of EFL teaching is typically called ESP - English for Specific (sometimes “Special”) Purposes. Those taking theses classes have a purpose: to improve their occupational language skills.

How do get yourself into those types of roles? Don’t forget your past! Many people feel they have nothing to put on a TEFL resume when they are first staring out. Yes, you do.

Stress your previous work experience and point it in the direction that you might like to specialize in. As a teacher trainer for several years I taught a wide range of people who, with just a little extra thought, were able to market themselves appropriately and find very special jobs in the area above. Their very first jobs! All the way from 25-year-old finance majors to 63-year-old corporate trainers (a perfect fit for TEFL!).

Before you start your job search, sit down and think through the best way to market yourself and your special set of skills and experience. You”ll be glad you did!