4 Signs That You Should Teach English As A Foreign Language After University

Congratulations on completing university; what an incredible achievement! Once the excitement dies down and you realise you are free to do exactly what you want to do with your life, you have to… decide what to do! While some people fall into their dream jobs, not everyone immediately knows that line of work or job role they want to settle into. Either way is just fine, but if you’re not heading into a new job, then what now? This is when your sense of adventure can truly kick in! 

You’re a native speaker of English, so that means that there are millions of people all over the globe who want to learn the language. Simply, this means that there’s a golden opportunity for you to take advantage of this and go on an overseas trip. Volunteering abroad is an exciting prospect, and with more and more people exploring the world every year, why not you too? 

If you need further convincing, here are just 4 signs that you should teach English as a foreign language after university. 

1. Your wanderlust is working overtime!

One of the main issues with being in education is that you can’t just book a flight and experience another part of the world. But, now that you are free to do so, you can pick a programme in a location that suits you and go on your merry way.  

Teaching English abroad isn’t always straightforward and it can be testing at times, but the reward is so great that you will be glad you did. When you arrive in a new school, you’ll have some real responsibilities, like ensuring the safety of the children in the class, and, of course, giving them lessons that will help them to learn and improve their understanding of the English language. But, when you consider that you’ll be in a truly remarkable area of the world, surrounded by children who want to learn and enjoy your lessons, not to mention all of the new cuisine, and friends you will get to encounter along the way, it all becomes very exciting! 

2. YOU want to learn another language

If you stopped learning another language when you were in school like many people did, then you might want to take the time to learn and develop some of the languages that the host nation speaks.  

Being completely immersed in a country that has its own language is a great way to pick up new lingual skills that might be extremely useful in years to come. In Africa, many people speak English, so you won’t be stuck for conversation, especially when you consider that the people you meet will want to learn all about you and when you come from etc. It’s as exciting for them as it is for you which can be really handy when it comes to being taught some of the native languages.  

But on the other hand, host parents, guides, or even fellow volunteers will be around if you want to pick up a new skill, so why not take this opportunity to learn another language as well as teach? You could even spend some of your teaching time in class asking the children to teach you some basic words… We’re sure they’d love that!  

3. You want to enrich your job prospects

As we touched on in the previous point, learning a new skill can go a long way to helping you in the future. So, when it comes to the point that you are ready to apply for jobs, being able to add skills and qualifications that will stand out on your CV, such as volunteering and speaking other languages can put you in good stead.  

When potential employers see that you have volunteered, they see a person who is willing to work with others in difficult situations and also prepared to lend their own time to helping others. Not only this but you will also be showing that you’ve taken the initiative to go and gain some experience in the real world, which is considered invaluable when applying for some roles in the workplace. Plenty of employers will be scanning CVs to see what experience you have, and when they see you have work and life experience on top of a degree, this could be the difference between securing a job and being overlooked for someone else.  

4. You want to develop your social skills

One of the problems with being shy is that you often feel as though you don’t have anything worthy of adding to a conversation, however, that ends when you have been abroad to volunteer. When you throw something into the conversation, it creates a connection with others, and when you have been abroad teaching English, you will have an abundance of things that you can discuss, share, and shed light on!  

Talking about challenges you had to overcome, fond memories, the culture, the food, the people you met (it’s a small world; the person you’re speaking to might know someone who was there!) are just some of the topics that might pop up or that you can bring to a chat with others. You’ll be amazed at how effective being a volunteer is for relinquishing you of your shyness too, which will make it easier to converse in future.