Ruth Kavanagh

Teach Enrich Empower

Culture Shock

Everyone mentions it, everyone talks about it, but you don’t quite understand it until you’re excited, nervous and eager, slightly terrified, but definitely ready to start your new job.

While instead you end up being late, lost and stranded with a broken-down motorbike in a country where you definitely do not speak the language.

Before I moved to Vietnam I was teaching in Scotland, loving my job but wanting to travel. I knew that if I hadn’t done it then it would have never happened.

I am a qualified teacher, but I decided to do a TEFL course to ensure I had every route covered before I went away.

The hardest step was committing to saying yes. However, having my TEFL course behind me made this a little easier. It seemed that once I’d completed my course and booked my flights everything else fell into place.

Living in Vietnam has ticked off a lot of firsts for me: the first time I’ve seen an entire family fit on a motorbike, the first time I’ve worked 5+ jobs at one time and the first time I’ve laid by 5 star pools all day thinking how this can be my life.

“I decided to do a TEFL course to ensure I had every route covered before I went away.”

The Vietnamese life is easy. The people are friendly; the weather is great and the country is beautiful. The people here value the small things, the place they live and the people around them. Living here teaches you to appreciate those too.

I chose Vietnam for a couple of reasons but one of the main reasons being that TEFL teachers were and still are in high demand. For native speakers finding work is very easy. Work is plentiful, the pay is good and in general you can teach around your own schedule.

Before I left I didn’t have anything but a hostel booked. I decided to go and see what happens instead of committing to too many things beforehand. I still believe that this was one of my best decisions to date.

My plan was to live in Hanoi for six months and then move on. I stayed in Hanoi for two weeks and have now been living in Da Nang for over a year. Having no commitments when I arrived meant that I had the option to travel around and see what I liked, find an area that suited me and what I wanted out of my trip.

Teaching here has taught me a lot. It has taught me that there are many ways to do the same thing. That different people value different things as they teach but at the end of the day kids will be kids. The children I used to teach are extremely different to those I teach now but every child just wants the opportunity to learn.

Living in Vietnam has opened so many doors for me. One of the best things about being in South East Asia is that you’re in South East Asia. You know you’ve made the right decision when a weekend trip to Bangkok is always an option.

So, my only question is, if you don’t do it now when will you?

Find your campus!

Choose to learn at one of our global TEFL campuses

The TEFL Academy has over 70 TEFL courses running every month in locations throughout the world.
Our combined TEFL course will give you the qualification you need to become a confident teacher abroad, wherever you decide to study. Select from the search options below to find the right course location for you.

You need to choose country and city!

Download 2024 Prospectus

Download 2024 Prospectus

Download your free 2024 prospectus and discover which TEFL course is best for you. Discover the amazing opportunities for our TEFL course graduates!

Download Prospectus

    Please enter your details in order to download our latest prospectus.

    Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

    Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

    Thank you for downloading our prospectus!

    We hope you enjoy reading our prospectus, we have tried to make it as useful as possible! Please get in touch if you have any questions.

    If the prospectus did not download automatically
    > Click Here To Download <

    Get Social

    Follow us on social networks, join our newsletter - get the latest news and early discounts

    Sign up to our newsletter

    Follow us on social networks, sign up to our e-newsletters – get the latest news and early discounts

    Accreditation Partners

    The TEFL Academy was the world’s first TEFL course provider to receive official recognition from government regulated awarding bodies in both the USA and UK. This means when you graduate you’ll hold a globally recognised Level 3 (120hr) Certificate or Level 5 (168hr) Diploma, meaning you can find work anywhere and apply for jobs immediately.

    Product added to your cart

    You have added to your cart:

    Request call back

      Please leave your details below and one of our TEFL experts will get back to you ASAP:

      captchaType characters on the left:

      Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

      Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

      Thank you! Your message has been sent!

      Download the TEFL World Factbook

        Please enter your details in order to download the latest TEFL World Factbook.

        Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

        Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

        Thank you for downloading the TEFL World Factbook!

        If the TEFL World Factbook did not download
        > Click Here To Download <

        Download the Online Teaching Guide

          Please enter your details in order to download our Online Teaching Guide.

          Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

          Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

          Thank you for downloading our Online Teaching Guide!

          If the Online Teaching Guide did not download
          > Click Here To Download <

          Download Prospectus

            Please enter your details in order to download our latest prospectus.

            Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

            Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

            Thank you for downloading our prospectus!

            We hope you enjoy reading our prospectus, we have tried to make it as useful as possible! Please get in touch if you have any questions.

            If the prospectus did not download automatically
            > Click Here To Download <

            $
            $