crthrasher
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Posts posted by crthrasher
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I think people are mostly going off spreadsheets from previous years, or contacting the representative from IIE for their region. Honestly, I wouldn't contact them though. They probably are pretty busy. I think the time frame of notification for previous years is fairly reliable as a predictor, at least as to which week you'll hear back for your country & program.
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Yes, we should probably post this periodically. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmoTe-gJd4B9dFJ0aW1mYTVkYnhKcUEzR28yRTNwdlE#gid=1
If it doesn't work let me know. I applied to Estonia, just right across the way!
I agree about posting that google doc periodically. I just added it to my signature. If a few others could do that too, I think it would really help remind newcomers to keep their info updated on there and to use it to check on notifications for other countries.
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*cries*
I wonder if it could have an impact on how many ETA slots they have.
Hmm, do you think it could? I don't know -- I feel like the cost of the program really isn't that much when looked at in the big scheme of things. Then again, it's stuff like this that gets cut first in situations like that probably... gah. But I would think that the organization administrating this program already has its budget for the upcoming year? Who knows though. :/
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Here are two blogs from Germany ETAs.... As you can tell, I too have been quite bored waiting!
http://thechangingevergreen.blogspot.com/2010/10/welcome-to-wernigerode.html
I've exchanged emails with Amarette from the second blog and she's very friendly and helpful if any of you Germany ETAers want someone to bug with questions.
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Fellow Germany ETA applicants -- just FYI, so I checked back in the thread from 2012-2013, and the rejects/alternates heard back on March 26th, which was the Monday of the last week of March, and the accepted people heard back on March 28th, which was the Wednesday of the last week of March. Just to give us an idea when we'll hear back this year.
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I definitely agree with the above. It is a huge investment both in terms of time and money. I negotiated for about 6 months with my employer to taken the necessary steps to take paid time off, so I was able to cover the cost. As I mentioned above, the course is incredibly intensive. Your life is CELTA for that month, so if you have anything major going on in your life (divorce, death in the family, crazy boyfriend/girlfriend, etc), then they strongly caution you against doing it. They were quite upfront about this during my interview. There was one girl in my group from South Carolina who was going to do hers in Boston, but she went to Playa instead because it was cheaper, even with airfare and so on. I believe my course was about $2,000 or so, and my lodging was about half that. If you have one in your hometown or college town and you can do it without having to pay additional cost of living, it may be more affordable. You can find a list of all the centers on the Cambridge/CELTA website.
One recommendation for those of you who want to get some exposure/experience in the classroom before jumping into a program like Fulbright, volunteer! There are plenty of opportunities to volunteer teaching if you're in a large enough city. I know of at least two here in Dallas that have nightly classes. My girlfriend is currently volunteering two hours each Monday night. Google is your friend in trying to locate volunteering opportunities. Moreover, interestingly, Peace Corps English Teaching placements require 6 months of ESL volunteering before you can be invited to join. I received a nomination during my senior year of undergrad, which is why I ended up having a fair amount of volunteering experience. I don't know if Fulbright has a similar requirement or recommendation either for experience or a TOEFL.
Totally agree with the volunteering... it's free and a great experience! Can't say it'll give you quite the same know-how. I did this and a lot of the other volunteers that trained me were using pretty outdated ESL methods so I kind of had to educate myself by reading up about better methods. But you do get the practice of actually working with ESL students.
Another suggestion -- you can check out what CELTA courses, if any, are available in the country you're planning on doing an ETA in. Some centers offer part-time courses that are two nights per week. I applied for a Germany ETA and the Berlin School of English has a part-time one so if I get placed around there I might consider doing that!
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I really appreciate all the information regarding English teaching. I have a question regarding TOEFL classes, are they worth it? Do they help at all? If I were to receive the ETA, I was planning on taking a course this summer to help prepare me a little more, although I do have some experience, but I was not sure which route to take. CELTA sounds like a great opportunity, however, I am not sure teaching is something that I want to do long term at this point. Does anyone have any insight?
I haven't taken the CELTA but have done a lot of research on it. I would say that it depends on the availability of your time/money, and your confidence in your abilities to teach for the ETA. Personally, I have a lot of tutoring experience but no classroom teaching experience, and I'm a bit of a shy bird, so I think the CELTA would really benefit me if I could take it before the ETA. From what I've heard, it really improves your confidence and gives you a lot of tools to work with so you won't be floundering when you have to give your first lessons.
With that said, it does cost money -- usually around $2500. It's cheaper if you take it outside the US but in that case you might have to pay for a flight so I don't know if that helps much. So basically, if you have the time/money and don't feel 100% confident about classroom teaching already, I would definitely do it. It can't hurt you and will probably help reduce some initial stress with the ETA. It's also a respected certification and even if you don't go into English teaching as a career, could be applicable to any career involving public speaking, teaching, cross-cultural/linguistic communication, etc. There are also cheaper TOEFL courses than the CELTA but the CELTA is the best and most worth doing.
Hope this helps!
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I'm an ETA Germany applicant and I've really been wanting to do the CELTA, but I won't have the time/money to do it before I leave for Germany this September (if I get in). However, apparenty the Berlin School of English offers the CELTA and they have a part-time option. So if I get placed in that vicinity I'm hoping to be able to take that part-time while I'm starting out as an ETA, which will hopefully help me do a better job!
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Right on! Fellow Germany ETA applicant! High five!
Yay, go Germany ETA applicants!! <3 I hope we all get in so we can all meet each other and have good times, etc. I know it's competitive but on the bright side, the acceptance rate for Germany ETA is a lot higher than Germany full grants! So there's hope right?
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Did anyone else apply for a Germany ETA grant? Did you have to submit an application in German? I was told by previous Germany ETAers that they had to in previous years for the second round, but I haven't received any information about that. All they asked me for after I received my recommendation was my preference for placement in different German states. Thanks!
Christine
Fulbright 2013-2014
in The Bank
Posted
Is it putting a hold on the process? Unless I'm missing something, I think people have just been speculating about that, but I don't think we've received official news that this is the case... but maybe I just didn't read the part where someone said that?