Should I get TESOL/CELTA Teaching English Qualification?

njmac · Post by **njmac** » Sun Aug 23, 2009 2:58 am

Hi,
I'm just about to move to Finland with my wife and children in late October. I'm British and studied in Oulu for a year. My wife is Russian and lived in Finland for a few years before we met. Her family live in Kajaani so we plan to stay with them while I look for work and see what happens. She speaks Russian, Finnish and English. I speak English and a few words of Finnish and Russian. I'm sure she will find work with her Finnish degree and language skills but I'm unsure where I'll end up.
I have a degree in Media Technology and I'm a qualified Business Analyst with 4 years experience in the Financial Services Industry. I'm considering doing a course to teach English to speakers of other languages but I'm unsure if this would help me in Finland or I'd be wasting my time since the standard of English is already so good. It's a different world from those who land in the far east and teach basic English to classes of adults who are happy to learn basic phrases. It's £1000 of my own money and a month that could be spent doing other things so I don't want to waste either if they're largely pointless.
I'm open to any kind of employment but don't see my current Business Analysis skills being too useful without fluent Finnish.

Any advice, tips, sarcasm, humorous images of monkeys etc would be much appreciated
Cheers
Nj

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Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Sun Aug 23, 2009 9:37 am

Well, on the one hand while the degree might seem useless education isn't wasted. Say at some point something lucrative pops up say in St.Pete? Thats "far east" teaching already

Kajaani's got about 40% unemployment but you know all that jive; so depending of where you find the job(s) at then makes plan b or c work.

njmac · Post by **njmac** » Sun Aug 23, 2009 9:52 am

that's a fair point. I hadn't considered that cheers. All in all it seems like a crazy move in the middle of a recession but since we sold our house and my wife is on maternity leave just now and will still be paid for a few months it seems like a good idea.. kind of

cheers
nj

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Sun Aug 23, 2009 10:58 am

Recession schmesession... the IT industry is now by the looks of it skimming the cream to be ready for the next upswing. The wood industries are going down still, but they've been on a decaying orbit for years - bad for Finland as they have made a significant part of the GDP.

njmac · Post by **njmac** » Sun Aug 23, 2009 4:14 pm

This one I know as my father in law has a timber business that runs between Russia and Finland. I'll just make a sandwich board and stand in the middle of Helsinki.. "Will document and improve business processes for food"

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Sun Aug 23, 2009 4:29 pm

This documentation bit is wanting... problem is nobody wants to *pay* for it.

Bubba Elvis XIV · Post by **Bubba Elvis XIV** » Mon Aug 24, 2009 10:13 pm

Not quite sure what to say...I work in the TEFL industry...And I can say that the industry is in a bad way at the moment, so even if you get the papers, you probably won't get work. I am at a big company and our is not hiring...and the contracts that come in will be passed to the old crew first.

But you do have that experience in the business sector which is good. A lot of companies like people to have a background in more than teaching, remember TEFL here is mostly teaching business people (not like in some places were it can be a 50/50 mix of GLT, General Language Training, ESP, English for Specific Purposes and business English).

One of the pros of the job is that you get to meet a lot of people. I know a guy who networked through his TEFL job and got (what I believe is) a sweeeet job...So that could be an option. Use TEFL to network.

Mind you if you have nothing else to do here and can't work...TEFL could be an easy answer. I have worked here for approx. 8 years, don't speak a lick of Finnish, things could be a lot better for me...but they could be a lot worse.

The standard of English is good here...but it's not so good that school is enough, and a few years after school and uni and it's easy to forget and lose fluency. Remember a lot of people screw up their high school years. The TEFL industry here isn't huge like in Eastern Europe and Asia...but it is here and you could get work under better circumstances.

Kajaani is probably a bit out of the way though...you need to be hitting Helsinki and throw a few CVs Turku and Tampere way. But on the other hand there is more foreigners in the bigger cities doing TEFL anyway!

I didn't help one bit did I?

Rosamunda · Post by **Rosamunda** » Mon Aug 24, 2009 11:34 pm

Nothing much to add except that if you are going to do a TEFL cert then you might as well do one that is recognised internationally. There is no CELTA training offered in Finland, however, there was a thread posted on here only a week or two ago advertising a new course somewhere Vaasa??? Pori??? Can't remember. But it wasn't a Cambridge, British Council whatever accredited certificate as far as I could tell.

The advantage of living in Kajaani is that there aren't so many sane ex-pats living in the area, so the competition for teaching English is probably not as keen as down here (I spoke to the DoS of a language school in HEL last week who told me she had received over 40 CVs during the last few weeks). So you might be able to go totally freelance (set up a sole trader TMI company) and find some work in SMEs and even in schools. The flu epidemic will probably put half the teaching profession on sick-leave, so some of the high schools and polys will be desperate for subs.

Bubba Elvis XIV · Post by **Bubba Elvis XIV** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 12:04 am

Yeah - Schools, polys and vocational schools etc etc...they often pay more than TEFL schools but your hours are often less, which is a pain in the arse as most TEFL teachers work freelance. Then it can get difficult sorting out your schedule...I've done it
but it wasn't worth the extra money (in my eyes). You might drop on and get a position in a poly...It does happen.

The key to freelance is obviously networking - I got my work from meeting someone who knew someone who...don't be afraid to knock on some doors too.

My experience is that companies in the Nordic area don't like to take people from outside the country, so make a point of telling them that you are moving here...don't just send a random CV from the UK. Pick up the phone, call them and speak to them. I got my first position that way but I got about 10 rejections as I wasn't based in any of the countries I applied to but was told to get in contact if I am over this way.

and Penelope is dead right...CELTA...not any random course, not saying it's better but more 'official'.

MagicJ · Post by **MagicJ** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 12:22 am

Yeah when i've shown mine to people (KELA or whoever) they think i've been to Cambridge!

Jolly ho and all that.

Bubba Elvis XIV · Post by **Bubba Elvis XIV** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 12:38 am

Hahahh....I get that. I tell 'em 'of course'.

njmac · Post by **njmac** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 2:09 am

One really must convey one's utmost appreciation for the splendid advice offered. erm.. yeah.. So play on the Cambridge bit, OK.

It sounds like doing the CELTA before I move over is a good idea instead of some other random TESL. I know someone in Helsinki who has been keeping an eye but it's exactly that thing that there are so many "johnny foreigners" relying on their English but facing fierce competition.

Regarding location, I really don't plan to stay in Kajaani. It's a nice enough place but if we land with the in laws initially I dare say it won't take too long to outstay our welcome and need to move on.

I liked Oulu when I was there but something draws me more to the wider Helsinki area. Coming from Glasgow and working in the city centre a small town may be a bit of a shock. Plus it would be nice to be a couple of hours from the airport. Hell, my family from Northern Ireland Scotland may actually visit me if it's only 2 flights instead of 3.

My father in law and a couple of contacts already have my CV but to contact schools, polytechnics, etc should I wait until I have the CELTA and just turn up when I'm in Finland or send out the CV with "CELTA in progress"?

Seriously, please do keep the advice and humour coming. I'm becoming pretty stressed having just sold my house in the middle of a recession and trying to accept that moving with no job is still the right thing to do for my family. [deep breath.... and blow out....]

cheers
nj

Bubba Elvis XIV · Post by **Bubba Elvis XIV** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 2:47 am

I dont know what you should do...but if i was in your situation, I'd get a ton of contacts...and give the main ones a call , exlain the situation and ask if they will take your CV now. Then just send it to the smaller companies and include the details in the covering mail. if the main ones say 'send it'...just repeat the details in the mail 'as discussed on the phone' blah, blah, blah...

Not saying that's the right way...but that's what I would do.

njmac · Post by **njmac** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 2:51 am

carpet bombing my CV across the country eh? It's better than doing nothing that's for sure.
I'd genuinely do just about anything work wise. Maybe I should dig up old pine stumps and get cracking on a small tar empire of my own?
Or a good old bacon roll and Tetley shop in Helsinki.

Bubba Elvis XIV · Post by **Bubba Elvis XIV** » Tue Aug 25, 2009 3:33 am

skip the tetley....I'll have bacon butty though...Can you start selling wrights pies? Get a shop open my way!

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