FROM ACADEMIC TO ESL TEACHER

FROM ACADEMIC TO ESL TEACHER

Susan Bradley, blog author
Author
Susan Bradley
2020.04.28

People choose to teach English as a Foreign Language for many different reasons. Equally true is where these people choose to go and which company they choose to work with. It's delightful to know that EF is home to teachers from varied backgrounds and countries, and all of us are excited and committed to breaking barriers through a common language.

One such person is Magderie Nel, or Maggie as her friends call her. Maggie is from South Africa and has been in China now for some 4 years. Maggie began her time teaching English after fulfilling her dream to complete her studies back home. She completed her bachelor's degree with honors in Social Anthropology with minors in philosophy and ancient texts and cultures. She then began her master's degree studies in Social Anthropology with an emphasis on Christian texts.

An academic at heart and by discipline, Maggie was on track to move forward with her doctorate studies when she got bit by the bug to do something different and explored teaching English in Japan. She went through a couple of interviews and learned besides her degree that most employers want their new hires to have a 120-hour TEFL certificate as well. So Maggie headed back to the classroom.

Maggie realized she had a friend who worked with EF and connected with the fellow to learn what it was like to work for EF and to live and work in China. The feedback was positive and Maggie doing more research on EF decided to apply but was unsure if she wanted to work in Russia or China.

Soon she had a Skype interview with EF's recruiting team, from the university library to boot! Things went well and within a month Maggie her back from her recruiter and was asked whether she might prefer working with adults or with kids and when would she like to begin her journey with EF!

Well, it was 2015 when Maggie's journey began as an online teacher with adults. During her two years there many colleagues would come and go, and she learned that there is great training with EF. She began and earned her CertTESOL in 2017 and transferred to teaching adults in the classroom.

Maggie really likes her work with EF and enjoys living in Shanghai. One of the great advantages of living and working in China is it's a great stepping-off point for travel. She has traveled around China, Japan and twice to New Zealand!

Her bucket list for the next couple of years while she is in China is more travel and to save money. Maggie has found that it is relatively easy to budget her salary here in China which will afford her a couple of trips a year and to save money, too. Her ultimate goal is to live in New Zealand, possibly using her newfound and transferable skills to teach there, too!

Living well and good is possible here in China while teaching English. Moreover, working with EF is more than a job, it is a way to build transferable skills to achieve future goals and dreams! Way to go, Maggie!

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