Fulbright 2013-2014

[there'sanappforthat]

You're right - they probably aren't the ones making the final selections. I said I was mostly curious from an administrative standpoint - whether to expect the same basic timeline as last year, or whether to expect an earlier or later date. Generally, that type of information is based on experience, and the response is up to the discretion of the program manager.

Personally, I receive calls and e-mails like the one I sent everyday, and I understand the curiosity and wanting to put the mind at ease, if only for a week or two. I try to give them as best an answer as I can (a time of the month to start looking out for an e-mail, give or take a week). 

On another note, I would like to congratulate those who have been accepted and wish the best of luck to the rest (alternates, those not accepted, as well as those still waiting to hear)!

 

What is the purpose of calling and asking for more information? I would assume that they release information as soon as they are allowed and my understanding is that the administrative staff at IIE aren't the ones making the decisions anyway. Calling them implies you think they have the results and are keeping them to themselves, which would be pretty silly of them!

 

That's not to say I'm not as nervous as you all-- I saw this clip from the TV show Community the other day that expressed my feelings pretty well:

I beleive some people have heard back from admin staff at IIE saying that the results for a particular country would be out shortly, and sure enough, they were.

[lls11]

But knowing the results will come out soon doesn't actually make them come out any sooner, right?
I guess we just derive peace of mind from different sources

[rtlc06]

Not to be disheartening, but it seems like for many countries, past notification dates don't necessarily predict future ones. For instance, within the past few years, my country's notification dates ranged from March-May. When I applied last year (and didn't get it) I was CERTAIN that I would find out in mid-April; I didn't find out until May.... aaaaaaand I'm pretty sure I caused irreparable damage to my mental health in the process!! This waiting game is brutal!! Another thing I learned (since I was the crazy who called her country's program officer not once - but twice): Program officers aren't always accurate about when results will be disseminated. The first time I called, Pam Jenkins (the Caribbean/CA person,) told me that we'd hear in a week.... two weeks later, we were all still waiting...

 

On a side note: If it comes down to that level of desperation again, I shotgun not being the one to call... mostly because Pam probably has my number BLOCKED... she's really nice though

 

**Fingers crossed for Germany to hear this week**

[there'sanappforthat]

But knowing the results will come out soon doesn't actually make them come out any sooner, right?

I guess we just derive peace of mind from different sources

For me, more just something to do while we're waiting.

[suntaoran]

Hello all,

 

I'm a Germany ETA hopeful and I've been stalking this board for the last two weeks or so. I was just curious, how many of you ETAers have previous experience teaching English? My Fulbright advisor has not been very communicative so y'all are my main source of knowledge about the program.

 

Congrats to all those who have received the grant and sympathy to those rejected and still waiting...

[ajollycossack]

Hello all,

 

I'm a Germany ETA hopeful and I've been stalking this board for the last two weeks or so. I was just curious, how many of you ETAers have previous experience teaching English? My Fulbright advisor has not been very communicative so y'all are my main source of knowledge about the program.

 

Congrats to all those who have received the grant and sympathy to those rejected and still waiting...

 

Howdy! Also an ETA applicant, no previous English-teaching experience. I'm applying to Russia, though, and they explicitly said in the description that no experience is required for the Russia ETA program; I don't know if this is different for Germany. (I have tutored some Russian, which I tried to highlight in my panel interview, but.)

 

(Also, hi to a fellow Denverite!)

[tarrare]

Hello all,

 

I'm a Germany ETA hopeful and I've been stalking this board for the last two weeks or so. I was just curious, how many of you ETAers have previous experience teaching English? My Fulbright advisor has not been very communicative so y'all are my main source of knowledge about the program.

 

Congrats to all those who have received the grant and sympathy to those rejected and still waiting...

 

I'm another ETA applicant, hoping to teach in South Korea. My teaching experience is limited to the single hour I spent tutoring my Korean roommate's classmates while studying abroad a year ago. I mean, I helped a lot of friends with their English homework too, but I don't know whether that's considered pertinent. It's comforting to know I'm not the only one going in blind.

[BlueLightSpecial]

Hello all,

 

I'm a Germany ETA hopeful and I've been stalking this board for the last two weeks or so. I was just curious, how many of you ETAers have previous experience teaching English?

 

I was wondering the same thing, to be honest. I have about a hundred hours volunteering teaching ESL to adults in undergrad. This past summer I received my CELTA (Certificate for English Language Teaching to Adults), which is conferred by the University of Cambridge. I received a Pass B in the course (the top fifth of CELTA candidates worldwide receive an A or a B, the others receive a Pass). I busted my tail to get that grade, and I think I was the only one in my group to do so.

 

It is the most widely recognized ESL certification in the world. It is a 4 week, intensive program totaling 160 hours and 9 taught lessons. People with CELTA's are qualified to teach more or less anywhere in the world, and it is the preferred certification for almost any teaching position. You will see job postings that say "CELTA required or highly preferred." If ETA's don't work out for myself and others, getting the CELTA is a great way to go. I received mine in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, though I didn't have a lot of free time during the course, I bookended by trip with two weeks of vacation for SCUBA diving and volleyball: http://www.ihrivieramaya.com/celta/tesol.html. You can do the courses anywhere in the world and they are monitored by external auditing to make sure they are consistent throughout the various centers. My instructors were also AWESOME and career ESL teachers and teacher trainers (which is an interesting world in its own right).

 

After the course, I actually feel incredibly equipped to be a teacher and I have an idea of what works and won't work in the classroom. It's one of those rare instructional settings that combines theory and practice very well. You also learn very quickly that just simply knowing English, or even those who have a background in Linguistics or English Literature, is EXTREMELY different than teaching ESL. In fact, people with previous teaching experience or backgrounds in linguistics and literature, or those who spoke Spanish fluently, were at something of a disadvantage because they either developed poor teaching habits from a lack of instruction and monitoring, didn't convey language in a manner effective for learning and focused more on the technical aspects of things, or used their foreign language knowledge as a clutch to present information when things got difficult or confusing.

 

Moral of the story, if you're serious about teaching and want to do it well, and also have a solid backup plan, I cannot recommend the CELTA enough. If things don't work out with Fulbright, that is my get-out-of-USA card, so to speak. I found I genuinely enjoy teaching ESL, but I also recognize that many people applying for Fulbrights, recent graduates or otherwise, may either not know if they like teaching, are using Fulbright only as a means for prestige, or want to get out of the country. My friend in Fulbright Bulgaria currently said her cohort is composed of a wide array of teaching experience ranging from zero, to actual US-based non ESL teachers with a few years experience, to people like her that taught in an inner-city, drop-out recovery program for a year. She also studied and researched comparative education policy as an undergrad. It seemed like the bulk of people, in her experience anyways, had little to no background or exposure to teaching or ESL. My guess is the Fulbright commission recognizes the above, and that a lack of teaching experience will not hurt an application, as many fall in that boat, but I imagine having some experience or certifications can also improve an application. That's why most ETA positions say that no previous teaching is required whereas other programs out there do recommend or require it. That is my hope, anyways, since I have some haha.

 

I also imagine for the larger programs like Germany, South Korea, Malaysia, and others have so many spots, that they will necessarily be filled with many people with little experience. Some of the more selective ETAs with only a few spots and dozens of applicants may be able to winnow it down to those with strong applications + teaching experience.

 

Sorry for the rambling, but I feel like some people may find this interesting as there has been little discussion, in 120+ pages of thread, about actual ESL techniques or experiences. With others out there who have experience or certifications, I would love to hear about your experiences, too!

 

Good luck and fingers crossed to everyone as we near the final stretch.

[suntaoran]

I guess I should clarify. I spent a year teaching English in China and I have a few TEFL certificates myself, although no CELTA. I've also been spending the last year working with ESL students in various capacities. I was thinking about getting the CELTA but it looks like I'll be going for a master's degree in history next year if I don't get the Fulbright, so further ESL certification might have to go on hold for a while. I've heard great things about CELTA though. I have a friend who's starting a class next month at Bridge Linguatec, which is only several blocks away from here in Denver. I have to say that both my TEFL certificates (including an online one from Bridge) really didn't help that much beyond giving me ideas for lesson plans. I'd like to do something a bit more formal if I had the chance. That being said, I feel pretty confident that I could be a good teaching assistant in a German Gymnasium (high school...ish). I imagine it'll be a lot less responsibility than I'm accustomed to, but with more structure and evaluation. In China, I had several university classes with no supervision or curriculum. They just sort of turned me loose with about 200 kids of varying levels. I did pretty well, but I'm looking forward to having a little more structure at my next teaching job, haha.

 

So yeah, I was just curious what the lay of the land was with other applicants. I'm sure that the responsibilities of the ETA position won't be more than most applicants can handle, including those with no teaching experience. Maybe I'm biased, but I think one of the best ways to learn to be a teacher is just to be thrown into it, especially in an ESL setting. And for what it's worth, I balance out my ESL experience with a relative lack of preparedness in German language skills.

 

So yeah, here's hoping we hear something by week's end! Good luck everyone!

 

Also, WOOO denver!

[tarrare]

Thanks for putting the time into that. I've been considering a TEFL course but it seems like CELTA certification is more valuable.

[BlueLightSpecial]

I guess I should clarify. I spent a year teaching English in China and I have a few TEFL certificates myself, although no CELTA. I've also been spending the last year working with ESL students in various capacities. I was thinking about getting the CELTA but it looks like I'll be going for a master's degree in history next year if I don't get the Fulbright, so further ESL certification might have to go on hold for a while. I've heard great things about CELTA though. I have a friend who's starting a class next month at Bridge Linguatec, which is only several blocks away from here in Denver. I have to say that both my TEFL certificates (including an online one from Bridge) really didn't help that much beyond giving me ideas for lesson plans. I'd like to do something a bit more formal if I had the chance. That being said, I feel pretty confident that I could be a good teaching assistant in a German Gymnasium (high school...ish). I imagine it'll be a lot less responsibility than I'm accustomed to, but with more structure and evaluation. In China, I had several university classes with no supervision or curriculum. They just sort of turned me loose with about 200 kids of varying levels. I did pretty well, but I'm looking forward to having a little more structure at my next teaching job, haha.

 

So yeah, I was just curious what the lay of the land was with other applicants. I'm sure that the responsibilities of the ETA position won't be more than most applicants can handle, including those with no teaching experience. Maybe I'm biased, but I think one of the best ways to learn to be a teacher is just to be thrown into it, especially in an ESL setting. And for what it's worth, I balance out my ESL experience with a relative lack of preparedness in German language skills.

 

So yeah, here's hoping we hear something by week's end! Good luck everyone!

 

Also, WOOO denver!

 

Thanks for sharing! I definitely agree that practical experience, just kind of getting in there, is effective. In my opinion, it's useful up to a point with significant diminishing returns, i.e. more years does not translate into increasing skills. I also agree that everyone applying for an ETA will likely be a capable instructor, but there are many degrees of effectiveness with capable, or good, as the baseline. Nothing wrong with that, but it is always important to be aware of what else is out there. We aren't reinventing the wheel, after all. ETA's are also a little less than a year, so it isn't like Fulbright is expecting people to make a career out of ESL, so capable would absolutely be a sufficient threshold to determine the potential aptitude for educators. I figure, personally, after a year of Fulbright or equivalent, I will know whether ESL is something I want to pursue more long-term. I suspect that goes for many applications.

 

There was a veteran ESL teacher in my group (like 8+ years). She was not very good, mostly because she had developed so many poor habits by teaching for so long with no instruction or feedback on her lessons. A few of us, in my opinion, were more capable in that classroom setting within a few observed lessons, anyways, than she was simply because we started with a blank slate. She also spoke Spanish and used it heavily as a crunch. Having a bit of ESL volunteering background going into the CELTA, every single lesson I would think "If only I knew then what I knew now!!!" It was seriously mind-blowing.

 

There was another guy in our group who taught in Korea for a few years, and he adapted to the lessons moreso than our classmate. He couldn't believe how much he had improved with a few taught lessons. It helped, also, that he had the requisite experience and exposure to a variety of classroom settings and lessons. Since he was receptive to change and adaptation, he really flourished into a capable teacher by the end of it.

 

Another neat thing about CELTA is that they do as you suggest, throwing you into the classroom teaching on the second day (terrifying). On the first day, we observe a lesson where our instructor teaches our students. We take notes, and try to model what they had done (to comically bad effect). It was very little lecturing on how to teach, and even the theory components of the course were hands-on. For instance, when learning how to integrate music in the classroom, our instructors literally taught us the lesson by integrating music into it. Before we knew what was going on, we were like "..oh, damn, they have been doing what they are talking about for the past hour." It went like that for writing lessons, phonetics, conveying instructions, and so on. They basically taught us in the method that we need to use in the classroom, even though we were all fluent speakers. They were tricky, tricky...

 

I definitely agree that structure and feedback is crucial for effective teaching. I think that is the essence, in theory anyways, of a "teaching assistantship" and not a "25-30 teaching hours per week with little to no help." I'm sure that varies based on country and particular school, though. I certainly do not feel I am at the point of, day-in and day-out, constructing lesson plans that I know I am capable of. I believe my friend in Bulgaria says she has 16 classroom hours, which is very reasonable. CELTA is neat because it gives you a strong foundation by which to recognize opportunities when they come about and be able to effectively utilize the materials at your disposal. In that way, the CELTA seems indispensible compared with other EFL certifications (I havn't heard very good thing about the others. Supposedly, you can take some online??) or simply a few years of experience. I am obviously biased, and I am sure others have differing opinions on the subject.

 

Though you're going for a masters, if at any point you want to return to the classroom, there is a next level called the DELTA, which requires a minimum of two-years experience (and possibly the CELTA as well): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_%28ELT%29. From there, after someone receives the DELTA and continues teaching, they can develop further into teacher trainers, and then into curriculum/center directors. It was neat to be exposed to the career of ESL, as it can be stereotyped as a dead-end, non-advancing occupation for people without any other idea of what they want to do. Obviously, a year with Fulbright will increase one's earning potential and opportunities in the future if they wanted to make a career or an extended stint as an ESL instructor or teacher trainer.

[crthrasher]

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!

[Torrid]

Well, March Madness is starting today -- hopefully that takes some of the edge off waiting for people?

[suntaoran]

Thanks for sharing! I definitely agree that practical experience, just kind of getting in there, is effective. In my opinion, it's useful up to a point with significant diminishing returns, i.e. more years does not translate into increasing skills. I also agree that everyone applying for an ETA will likely be a capable instructor, but there are many degrees of effectiveness with capable, or good, as the baseline. Nothing wrong with that, but it is always important to be aware of what else is out there. We aren't reinventing the wheel, after all. ETA's are also a little less than a year, so it isn't like Fulbright is expecting people to make a career out of ESL, so capable would absolutely be a sufficient threshold to determine the potential aptitude for educators. I figure, personally, after a year of Fulbright or equivalent, I will know whether ESL is something I want to pursue more long-term. I suspect that goes for many applications.

 

There was a veteran ESL teacher in my group (like 8+ years). She was not very good, mostly because she had developed so many poor habits by teaching for so long with no instruction or feedback on her lessons. A few of us, in my opinion, were more capable in that classroom setting within a few observed lessons, anyways, than she was simply because we started with a blank slate. She also spoke Spanish and used it heavily as a crunch. Having a bit of ESL volunteering background going into the CELTA, every single lesson I would think "If only I knew then what I knew now!!!" It was seriously mind-blowing.

 

There was another guy in our group who taught in Korea for a few years, and he adapted to the lessons moreso than our classmate. He couldn't believe how much he had improved with a few taught lessons. It helped, also, that he had the requisite experience and exposure to a variety of classroom settings and lessons. Since he was receptive to change and adaptation, he really flourished into a capable teacher by the end of it.

 

Another neat thing about CELTA is that they do as you suggest, throwing you into the classroom teaching on the second day (terrifying). On the first day, we observe a lesson where our instructor teaches our students. We take notes, and try to model what they had done (to comically bad effect). It was very little lecturing on how to teach, and even the theory components of the course were hands-on. For instance, when learning how to integrate music in the classroom, our instructors literally taught us the lesson by integrating music into it. Before we knew what was going on, we were like "..oh, damn, they have been doing what they are talking about for the past hour." It went like that for writing lessons, phonetics, conveying instructions, and so on. They basically taught us in the method that we need to use in the classroom, even though we were all fluent speakers. They were tricky, tricky...

 

I definitely agree that structure and feedback is crucial for effective teaching. I think that is the essence, in theory anyways, of a "teaching assistantship" and not a "25-30 teaching hours per week with little to no help." I'm sure that varies based on country and particular school, though. I certainly do not feel I am at the point of, day-in and day-out, constructing lesson plans that I know I am capable of. I believe my friend in Bulgaria says she has 16 classroom hours, which is very reasonable. CELTA is neat because it gives you a strong foundation by which to recognize opportunities when they come about and be able to effectively utilize the materials at your disposal. In that way, the CELTA seems indispensible compared with other EFL certifications (I havn't heard very good thing about the others. Supposedly, you can take some online??) or simply a few years of experience. I am obviously biased, and I am sure others have differing opinions on the subject.

 

Though you're going for a masters, if at any point you want to return to the classroom, there is a next level called the DELTA, which requires a minimum of two-years experience (and possibly the CELTA as well): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_%28ELT%29. From there, after someone receives the DELTA and continues teaching, they can develop further into teacher trainers, and then into curriculum/center directors. It was neat to be exposed to the career of ESL, as it can be stereotyped as a dead-end, non-advancing occupation for people without any other idea of what they want to do. Obviously, a year with Fulbright will increase one's earning potential and opportunities in the future if they wanted to make a career or an extended stint as an ESL instructor or teacher trainer.

 

I agree that just being "thrown into it" is only useful to a point. I think I'm ready for some more serious instruction. Although having lessons observed sort of terrifies me still. If I do go master's though, I'll also be working as a teaching assistant. It just won't be for English language. So either way, hopefully I'll get to hone my craft next year. Then, if I decide not to go full PhD, I'll probably return to something like CELTA.

 

I'm also worried about teaching English in a country where I actually speak the language. I didn't have a problem with not using Chinese in the classroom because my Chinese is totally dreadful. It's going to be a bit more difficult not to lapse into German in tough spots. One thing I do like, though, is having students that come from the same cultural background over a significant period of time. You really start to get a feel for the types of difficulties someone from a specific language background faces while learning English. I think having a pretty good understanding of German grammar will help that as well. It's nice to know where the students are coming from.

 

Someone mentioned receiving a Fulbright from a country they did not apply to a few pages back, so naturally, I had a dream last night that I received a grant to India. The email was in Hindi (or at least my brain's bizarre approximation of HIndi). I was very, very confused.

[Porshyen]

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? 

[there'sanappforthat]

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 don't; but I would love some feed back on this as well

[crthrasher]

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!

[BlueLightSpecial]

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!

 

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.

[Torrid]

I will say in my personal opinion that it makes sense to me to pursue a CELTA/similar qualification if you don't get the ETA but still want to teach abroad, but it doesn't make much sense to me to want to pursue it as a complement to your ETA placement. If they give you the Fulbright, they clearly have some confidence in your ability to complete the responsibilities of the ETA despite (presumably) not having any formal teaching experience; moreover, they won't throw you in without any guidance whatsoever. Orientation sessions should prepare you at least a little for what to expect.

 

Also, it's my understanding that as a Fulbright ETAs, your role is more of a cultural ambassador than as a language teacher. I think it's less important that you know how to teach English grammar and more important that you're comfortable leading discussions on American political culture. For people whom I have known who have completed similar programs, this was always the case. They're leading discussions more than they're teaching lessons.

 

Someone with more background in Fulbright ETAs can feel free to correct my if my impressions are incorrect, but I don't know that it makes sense to shell out thousands of dollars for a variation of a TEFL certificate if it's not necessary for the position and you're not even sure that's what you want to pursue post-Fulbright.

[crthrasher]

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!

[mjm2230]

Hello all, longtime lurker here. Just wanted to let you all (and future applicants) know that Laos ETAs heard of their application status around 11 am EST today. I was selected as an alternate. Congrats and good luck to all!

Edited March 21, 2013 by mjm2230

[Torrid]

Hello all, longtime lurker here. Just wanted to let you all (and future applicants) know that Laos ETAs heard of their application status around 11 am EST today. I was selected as an alternate. Congrats and good luck to all!

 

Thank you for letting us know, and I hope you hear better news soon. Good luck!!

[suntaoran]

My two cents about the TEFL programs I did:

 

I needed a TEFL certificate to get my job in China, and because I was still in school and short on money, I took a 120-hour online course for about 400 dollars. It taught me a lot about how language lessons are structured and gave me tons of ideas for lesson plans. The 120-hour deal (as opposed to the 40 hour, which is cheaper) also had an English grammar course and modules about working with younger students and business English. In all, it was better than nothing, but it had no physical teaching component, so sometimes it felt like I wasn't doing much. However, I do use a lot of the things I learned, especially in terms of structure, in my teaching.

 

The second program I did was through a language institute in Beijing. It covered a lot of the same ground (structure of lessons, lesson plan ideas), but also included a teaching component with real students, complete with in depth evaluation of your lessons. I only got evaluated two times and the program was only two weeks, but it felt more useful than the online course.

 

So yeah, I would recommend doing anything that involves actual teaching and evaluation. That includes volunteering. I don't think getting an online TEFL certificate is actually a bad idea, so long as you supplement it with some real teaching. It is, after all, way cheaper and doesn't require you to leave home.

[ALostScholar]

Hello all, longtime lurker here. Just wanted to let you all (and future applicants) know that Laos ETAs heard of their application status around 11 am EST today. I was selected as an alternate. Congrats and good luck to all!

best of luck and thank you for the update....

[jcho5]

Hi Everyone!

Fulbright Germany applicant here

I applied for the Full Grant and am just as anxiously waiting as everyone here. Hope we hear soon!