Opportunity to study TEFL in Finland

[wolfman61]

Hi all,

This is just a heads-up for any native English speakers who would like to pursue a career in Teaching English as a foreign language in Finland. You will know by now that getting a teaching job here is not easy if you are unqualified.

A vocational course is due to commence at Lansi-Suomen Opisto at the end of this month and lasts until January 2010. LSO - in Huittinen, near Vammala - is a private language school catering mostly for foreign students (i.e. non-Finnish people).

The college has been planning a teacher-training course for some time. The good news is that if you are currently unemployed, and depending on your financial circumstances, you will be able to get funding from Kela to pay the course fees. You should also still be able to claim the paiva-raha via the tyovoimatoimisto while attending the course.

Accommodation for students is apparently available.

Here is a link to their web-site with some details about the course:

http://www.lansisuomenopisto.fi/engpage/intstudies.html

[sammy]

That's a good thing as such, however those considering a qualified English teacher's post at a Finnish school might wish to check from the National Board of Education about the required qualifications. IIRC a TEFL certificate as such is usually not enough, you need to have an academic language teacher's degree (usually a Master's) including pedagogical studies.

You can ask from the NBE - for contact details, click here.

TEFL may give you some opportunities, and having a certificate like that never hurt anyone... just double check according to where you are aiming to teach English, and what the actual requirements are.