United States
US
Rosie Thomas
Teach Enrich Empower
There Is Little Not To Love About Living in Brazil
My name is Rosie. I am 24 years old and am currently working and living in Brazil as an English teacher. Before I studied with The TEFL Academy, I was working as an accounts assistant in Manchester.
At the time I decided to study for a TEFL qualification I had just returned to the UK after travelling in Australia and Asia. After 18 months abroad, experiencing new cultures and lifestyles, I found that I was no longer satisfied with my 9-5 daily routine. I craved the adventure and laid-back lifestyle that I had experienced whilst travelling.
During my time in Asia I met so many young people of a similar age to myself that were travelling whilst on vacation from their positions as English teachers or travelling at the end of their teaching contract. I met people that were doing a job they loved alongside travelling to beautiful places and embracing new countries, cultures and experiences. All of the people I met spoke so enthusiastically about teaching abroad and it was then that I thought this may be something I would like to do also.
After three weeks of being home in Manchester in January, I was ready to leave again. I was googling teaching courses one night when I noticed The TEFL Academy’s site. They were offering a 120-hour combined classroom and online course in Manchester at the beginning of February on a half price promotion. I decided then that it was now or never so I just booked the course.
The course was made up of a twenty-hour classroom element and 100 hours online. There was a great group of people that attended the course. I met many people similar to myself that just wanted a rewarding job which would enable them to travel. Everybody hit it off very well which made the group activities and ice breaker tasks a lot of fun. During the two days we spent in the classroom we focused on teaching practice, techniques and confidence building.
“Book the course, I guarantee you won’t regret it!”
The online part of the course was very well organised and easy to get to grips with. There was a reading section which acted as a guide to complete the assignment for each category. I completed the course in just over 4 weeks and received my certificate very promptly.
The TEFL qualification is a great opportunity for those that do not have a university degree as well as those who do. When I first considered teaching I thought I would be unable to qualify as a teacher as I do not have a degree. I think many people are put off by the same thing. Although there are some countries that do require a degree, many do not. I think this is great as the majority of my students prefer to practise conversation skills and grammar which I feel, as a native speaker with a TEFL qualification, I am more than capable of being able to help them with.
As soon as I had my certificate, I began to apply for jobs in the places I wanted to go to. There are many websites that can help you with this and The TEFL Academy has a great Jobs Board. I received many responses and organised four Skype interviews in the first week of being qualified. The interviews all went well and I felt comfortable with all of the interviewers.
I was offered three positions: one in Malaysia, one in Colombia and one in Brazil. After considering all three positions, I accepted the position in Brazil and booked my flights. Of course I was nervous about teaching for the first time, especially in a foreign country where a different language was spoken, but I definitely felt I was a lot more prepared for the experience as a result of what I had learned from my TEFL course.
There is very little not to love about living in Brazil. The scenery is beautiful, they have the best food, the weather is great, the people are awesome and you can’t beat hanging out on your balcony in a hammock, sunbathing in what they call winter. I have just extended my contract to cover next semester. I have begun Portuguese lessons and am making plans to spend New Year in Rio. I honestly can’t recommend getting a TEFL qualification enough. I really don’t think there is another option which will enable you to have this kind of lifestyle, where you can travel, do a job that is actually worthwhile and have a far better quality of life than you can achieve at home doing a job you do not love.
Book the course, I guarantee you won’t regret it!
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