Advice
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Pros and Cons of Teaching English Abroad
Let me start off this post by saying anyone who tells you that teaching English abroad is a walk in the park is LYING. Yes, it is the most rewarding job that I have ever had — but it is also one of the most challenging jobs as well. Like any job, there are going to be pros and cons to teaching English abroad. For me, the pros absolutely outweigh the cons. However, there are a lot of cons that you probably aren’t aware of that I have discovered after two years of teaching English abroad. Of course, everyone will have a different experience, but these are the main pros…
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5 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Moving Abroad
Moving abroad is one of the best life experiences that anyone can have — it’s also hella scary. It isn’t as simple as packing your bags, hopping on a one-way flight, and then you will automatically begin living your best life. There are a lot of things you need to consider beforehand and questions that you need to ask yourself. If you are seriously planning on moving abroad, here are 5 questions you need to ask yourself before you buy that plane ticket: What do I want that my own country can’t provide? There is a reason you want to move to another country instead of simply moving to another…
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How To Find Apartments In Spain
Your flight is booked, your bags are packed, and you are counting down the days until you land in Spain! There is just one minor detail that you now need to stress over, where are you going to live? Whether you are looking to rent a whole apartment or an individual room, don’t fret — you have options! Many people want to have their accommodation booked before they land in order to have some peace of mind. However, I urge you not to book anything long-term before you arrive at your destination in Spain. Simply book an Airbnb for 2 weeks in order to settle into your new home and…
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6 Hard Truths About Life As An Expat
The term “expat” is short for “expatriate”, someone that has moved from their native country to another country permanently or for an extended period of time — thank you dictionary.com. It seems like these days everybody is some sort of “content creator” or “digital nomad”, which allows them to hop from one country to the next while working online and becoming expats wherever they choose. They post these beautiful photos that fill your Instagram feed with gorgeous Mediterranean sunsets from an infinity pool and captions along the lines of “Today’s work views! #digitalnomadlife”. We’ve all seen it and we’ve all envied it. But as we know, life isn’t always what…
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10 Tips for Your First TEFL Class
Congrats! You received your TEFL certification and got hired to teach your first class, wherever in the world that may be! Teaching for the first time is both scary and extremely exciting. I’ll never forget my first time teaching in front of a class in Barcelona. I spent about a week planning the perfect first lesson and barely slept the night before. I was absolutely terrified of failing my students who I hadn’t even met yet. Looking back on my first TEFL class, I realize now there was no reason to be so stressed out about it — and you shouldn’t be either! You were hired over other candidates for…
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5 Things To Consider Before Teaching English Abroad
Teaching English abroad will probably be the best life experience you ever have. From immersing yourself into a new culture to having the rewarding job of helping your students improve their English everyday, there really is no other experience like it – so of course you want to do it! But before you pack your bags, there are a few questions you should ask yourself: 1. How will I get a job? This is obviously the biggest question to ask yourself if you haven’t already figured it out yet. There are a number of programs in Spain that you can participate in which will secure a teaching job for you…
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What is a TEFL Certification and Do I Need It?
So you’ve thought about quitting your job, selling all your things, and moving abroad for a while now. You know you want a change but you don’t know the exact logistics of actually being able to support yourself abroad. You have heard of people teaching English overseas before and it always seemed like something a little too off-the-beaten-track for you. You never considered it as a “real” job as you wouldn’t be spending your days inside a corporate office chained to a desk, which is what we have have been trained our whole lives to achieve. Sound somewhat familiar? This is the exact predicament I found myself in a year…
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5 Things I Learned After A Year of Living Abroad
One year ago today I quit my job, sold all my things, packed my bags, kissed my loved ones goodbye, and hopped on a plane from New York to Barcelona. It’s hard to believe that I have been living abroad for a year now, but that is why I decided to embark on this journey 365 days ago… because life goes by so fast even when time feels like it is moving so slow. There have been a lot of ups and downs. A lot of calling my mom and crying. A lot of asking the question “What the f*** am I doing here?”, without being able to provide the…
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How to Apply to VIPKID 2020
Like working with kids? Enjoy flexible work hours? Dream of working from home? Want to decide when and where you work? Love being goofy every now and then? If yes (and if you meet the requirements) then becoming an English as Second Language (ESL) teacher with the online company VIPKID is the perfect gig for you! I began teaching with VIPKID in March 2019 and have loved working for them ever since. VIPKID is always changing how they hire teachers and there is a new 2020 VIPKID hiring process. The hiring process can be a bit lengthy and there are some key factors you should know before you apply, so…
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How to Teach English in Spain
Teaching English in a foreign country is a great idea for native-level speakers who would like to immerse themselves in another culture. However, when you get down to the nitty-gritty of exactly how to live and teach in the said country legally, your options can be limited. As it can be very difficult to obtain a work visa in Spain, there are a number of programs in Spain that provide native-level English speakers the opportunity to teach English in the Spanish school system legally through a student visa. Luckily for you, I’ve interviewed with more than half of the programs this past spring. I did a lot of research on…