United States
US
How To Teach English Abroad In Your Gap Year
July 11, 2023
Table of Content
- Introduction
- Teaching abroad in your gap year
- Teaching with no experience
- Teaching with no degree
- Gap year programmes
- Popular countries
- Get started
- Summary
- It’s a great way to earn money and travel the world.
- The great thing about teaching English abroad in your gap year is that a TEFL qualification is a very concise, compact course.
- The basic requirements for teaching English abroad are a TEFL qualification, an excellent grasp of English, and a can-do attitude.
Have you just graduated from high school or university?
Are you unsure of what you want to study at university or where you want to work?
Do you want to take a break from the books and the office and travel the world before settling down?
Then you’re probably already thinking about taking a gap year.
A gap year comes in a few different flavours:
- Taking a gap year between high school and university
- Taking a gap year once you have graduated with a degree but before you start a job
- Taking a mid-career sabbatical or a break between jobs or careers.
The so-called adult gap year is becoming more and more popular. Travelling is easier than ever, technology keeps us all connected, and our lives are increasingly flexible. We know a good work-life balance is important and aren’t willing to sacrifice our mental health for the sake of a job. This is why people are breaking the cycle of all-work-and-no-play. The new motto now is: If you love your job, you’ll never work a day in your life.
And we’re here for it.
Gap years are an opportunity to take a break from “the real world” and live the life you really want to live. If you’re unhappy in your daily life, maybe it’s time to make a change. The beauty of a gap year is that it’s flexi – it can be 3 months or a year or forever. It’s enough time to reflect, reassess your priorities, and make an informed choice about your future.
There are a number of different options for working in your gap year: seasonal work on a farm, au pairing, conservation work and volunteering. As you might guess, our top pick for a gap year is teaching English as a foreign language abroad!
Why teach abroad in your gap year?
There are so many reasons you should teach English abroad. It might be easier to tell you why you shouldn’t!
Jokes aside, there really are a handful of good reasons why you should teach English abroad:
- It’s a great way to earn money and travel the world.
- You can experience a foreign country like a local more than a tourist.
- You’ll meet people from all over the world.
- It’s flexible so you can move around whenever you want.
- It gives you skills which you can transfer to other jobs.
- It could be the first step to a career you’d never considered before.
But let’s look specifically at how you can teach English abroad in your gap year.
Can I teach abroad with no experience?
This is what gap years are made for!
A gap year is for trying things you’ve never done before, as a break from your day-to-day, or to experience something new. You’re not expected to have any teaching experience when you sign up for a gap year teaching English abroad.
The great thing about teaching English abroad in your gap year is that a TEFL qualification is a very concise, compact course. The TEFL Academy offers a 120-hour TEFL course or a 168-hour TEFL course. You have up to six months to complete either course but you can do it as quickly as you can.
Can I teach abroad with no degree?
Teaching English in some countries requires a degree but those requirements are a lot more relaxed when it comes to gap years.
What is important is a high quality TEFL qualification. Do your homework and find a TEFL course that is not only reputable and internationally recognised. Spoiler alert: a TEFL course with The TEFL Academy ticks all the boxes!
Your TEFL course can be done full-time or part-time, face-to-face, online, or a combination of both. This means that it’s possible to do the TEFL course while you are still studying or even working. You can study in your free time, which can be evenings and weekends. Rather than binge-watching the latest season of Stranger Things (okay, maybe afterwards), spend a couple of hours with your books instead.
Requirements for teaching English abroad
The basic requirements for teaching English abroad are a TEFL qualification, an excellent grasp of English, and a can-do attitude.
Get yourself a passport and visa
You can’t travel without a passport! Make sure your passport is valid and has enough free pages for your visas.
Get a TEFL certification
A TEFL qualification is not only to look good for your employer. It prepares you in every way for the TEFL classroom. Doing a TEFL course introduces you to the theories of learning and teaching English as a foreign language. It shows you how to plan lessons, manage a classroom, and assess your students.
Save up for start-up capital
Regardless of what you decide to do, you’ll need to save up start-up capital. Keep in mind the costs of relocating abroad, and the cost of living until your first paycheque.
Country-specific requirements
If you know where you’d like to spend your gap year, do your research and find out exactly what the requirements are for teaching. Don’t waste your time applying for jobs you’re not qualified for. Keep digging until you find the perfect option for you.
Finding a TEFL job
Now’s the time to bag your fave gap year job. Check out our jobs board and see what fancies your tickle. Or, if you’d prefer, have a look if any internships or volunteer opportunities sound right up your alley.
Working holiday gap year programmes
You may have heard of a Working Holiday Visa, which is a visa which allows citizens of certain countries to work in another country for a specified amount of time. Each country has their own specific requirements but the most common is the age: Working Holiday Visas are generally available to people aged between 18 and 30 or 35.
Popular countries which offer a Working Holiday Visa are:
- Australia
- New Zealand
- Ireland
- France
- Argentina
- Germany
- Hong Kong
- Italy
- Japan
Each year there are a limited number of Working Holiday Visas which are issued, and they are issued on a first-come-first-served basis. Only certain countries are eligible to apply for these visas so make sure you’re one of them before packing your bags!
Not eligible for a Working Holiday Visa? Have no fear! With a TEFL qualification you can be eligible for the usual working visa.
Popular countries for teaching abroad during a gap year
Your gap year is your year, so the world is your oyster when it comes to your gap year. But there are a few countries that are especially popular when it comes to working in your gap year:
- Italy: Spend a summer as a summer camp teacher in Italy.
- Thailand: Teach at a private language school in Thailand.
- Cambodia: Get some teaching experience in a school in Cambodia.
- Online: If you want to hop from country to country for a year, there’s no better way to do it than by teaching English online.
Get started on your journey with us
Teaching English abroad in your gap year is an adventure. It doesn’t matter if you take it before you study, after you study or during a career break, it’s a year you can focus on yourself. Plus, teaching English abroad looks great on your CV, as it shows you are independent, adaptable, responsible and organised.
So teaching English abroad can prepare you for any career. But you might find that you fall in love with TEFL and it actually becomes your career! You might decide to live abroad permanently and teach wherever your heart desires.
Teaching English abroad in your gap year can be just the start of a lifetime of adventures. Check out our TEFL courses and sign up today!
READ MORE:
Meet The Author
Kirsten Colquhoun is the Content Manager for The TEFL Academy. A graduate of Cambridge University and DELTA-qualified, she first started teaching kindergarten in Thailand in 2003. A South African, she has also taught in China, the UK, Spain, Qatar and South Africa, but these days she is a teacher trainer and freelance writer and editor.Table of Content
- Introduction
- Teaching abroad in your gap year
- Teaching with no experience
- Teaching with no degree
- Gap year programmes
- Popular countries
- Get started
- Summary
- It’s a great way to earn money and travel the world.
- The great thing about teaching English abroad in your gap year is that a TEFL qualification is a very concise, compact course.
- The basic requirements for teaching English abroad are a TEFL qualification, an excellent grasp of English, and a can-do attitude.
Have you just graduated from high school or university?
Are you unsure of what you want to study at university or where you want to work?
Do you want to take a break from the books and the office and travel the world before settling down?
Then you’re probably already thinking about taking a gap year.
A gap year comes in a few different flavours:
- Taking a gap year between high school and university
- Taking a gap year once you have graduated with a degree but before you start a job
- Taking a mid-career sabbatical or a break between jobs or careers.
The so-called adult gap year is becoming more and more popular. Travelling is easier than ever, technology keeps us all connected, and our lives are increasingly flexible. We know a good work-life balance is important and aren’t willing to sacrifice our mental health for the sake of a job. This is why people are breaking the cycle of all-work-and-no-play. The new motto now is: If you love your job, you’ll never work a day in your life.
And we’re here for it.
Gap years are an opportunity to take a break from “the real world” and live the life you really want to live. If you’re unhappy in your daily life, maybe it’s time to make a change. The beauty of a gap year is that it’s flexi – it can be 3 months or a year or forever. It’s enough time to reflect, reassess your priorities, and make an informed choice about your future.
There are a number of different options for working in your gap year: seasonal work on a farm, au pairing, conservation work and volunteering. As you might guess, our top pick for a gap year is teaching English as a foreign language abroad!
Why teach abroad in your gap year?
There are so many reasons you should teach English abroad. It might be easier to tell you why you shouldn’t!
Jokes aside, there really are a handful of good reasons why you should teach English abroad:
- It’s a great way to earn money and travel the world.
- You can experience a foreign country like a local more than a tourist.
- You’ll meet people from all over the world.
- It’s flexible so you can move around whenever you want.
- It gives you skills which you can transfer to other jobs.
- It could be the first step to a career you’d never considered before.
But let’s look specifically at how you can teach English abroad in your gap year.
Can I teach abroad with no experience?
This is what gap years are made for!
A gap year is for trying things you’ve never done before, as a break from your day-to-day, or to experience something new. You’re not expected to have any teaching experience when you sign up for a gap year teaching English abroad.
The great thing about teaching English abroad in your gap year is that a TEFL qualification is a very concise, compact course. The TEFL Academy offers a 120-hour TEFL course or a 168-hour TEFL course. You have up to six months to complete either course but you can do it as quickly as you can.
Can I teach abroad with no degree?
Teaching English in some countries requires a degree but those requirements are a lot more relaxed when it comes to gap years.
What is important is a high quality TEFL qualification. Do your homework and find a TEFL course that is not only reputable and internationally recognised. Spoiler alert: a TEFL course with The TEFL Academy ticks all the boxes!
Your TEFL course can be done full-time or part-time, face-to-face, online, or a combination of both. This means that it’s possible to do the TEFL course while you are still studying or even working. You can study in your free time, which can be evenings and weekends. Rather than binge-watching the latest season of Stranger Things (okay, maybe afterwards), spend a couple of hours with your books instead.
Requirements for teaching English abroad
The basic requirements for teaching English abroad are a TEFL qualification, an excellent grasp of English, and a can-do attitude.
Get yourself a passport and visa
You can’t travel without a passport! Make sure your passport is valid and has enough free pages for your visas.
Get a TEFL certification
A TEFL qualification is not only to look good for your employer. It prepares you in every way for the TEFL classroom. Doing a TEFL course introduces you to the theories of learning and teaching English as a foreign language. It shows you how to plan lessons, manage a classroom, and assess your students.
Save up for start-up capital
Regardless of what you decide to do, you’ll need to save up start-up capital. Keep in mind the costs of relocating abroad, and the cost of living until your first paycheque.
Country-specific requirements
If you know where you’d like to spend your gap year, do your research and find out exactly what the requirements are for teaching. Don’t waste your time applying for jobs you’re not qualified for. Keep digging until you find the perfect option for you.
Finding a TEFL job
Now’s the time to bag your fave gap year job. Check out our jobs board and see what fancies your tickle. Or, if you’d prefer, have a look if any internships or volunteer opportunities sound right up your alley.
Working holiday gap year programmes
You may have heard of a Working Holiday Visa, which is a visa which allows citizens of certain countries to work in another country for a specified amount of time. Each country has their own specific requirements but the most common is the age: Working Holiday Visas are generally available to people aged between 18 and 30 or 35.
Popular countries which offer a Working Holiday Visa are:
- Australia
- New Zealand
- Ireland
- France
- Argentina
- Germany
- Hong Kong
- Italy
- Japan
Each year there are a limited number of Working Holiday Visas which are issued, and they are issued on a first-come-first-served basis. Only certain countries are eligible to apply for these visas so make sure you’re one of them before packing your bags!
Not eligible for a Working Holiday Visa? Have no fear! With a TEFL qualification you can be eligible for the usual working visa.
Popular countries for teaching abroad during a gap year
Your gap year is your year, so the world is your oyster when it comes to your gap year. But there are a few countries that are especially popular when it comes to working in your gap year:
- Italy: Spend a summer as a summer camp teacher in Italy.
- Thailand: Teach at a private language school in Thailand.
- Cambodia: Get some teaching experience in a school in Cambodia.
- Online: If you want to hop from country to country for a year, there’s no better way to do it than by teaching English online.
Get started on your journey with us
Teaching English abroad in your gap year is an adventure. It doesn’t matter if you take it before you study, after you study or during a career break, it’s a year you can focus on yourself. Plus, teaching English abroad looks great on your CV, as it shows you are independent, adaptable, responsible and organised.
So teaching English abroad can prepare you for any career. But you might find that you fall in love with TEFL and it actually becomes your career! You might decide to live abroad permanently and teach wherever your heart desires.
Teaching English abroad in your gap year can be just the start of a lifetime of adventures. Check out our TEFL courses and sign up today!
READ MORE:
Meet The Author
Kirsten Colquhoun is the Content Manager for The TEFL Academy. A graduate of Cambridge University and DELTA-qualified, she first started teaching kindergarten in Thailand in 2003. A South African, she has also taught in China, the UK, Spain, Qatar and South Africa, but these days she is a teacher trainer and freelance writer and editor.