I have a degree in Language Sciences with a focus on English teaching from a university here in Mexico. I learned the language very early in life and have been fluent since I was 14. Currently, in the process of acing TKT Module 2 (passed Module 1 with Band 3), as well as starting C2 certification by Cambridge. I count with more than 3 years of experience teaching English to elementary and middle school students (as well as teaching Spanish to foreigners), and I have been making inquiries to the TEFL Academy about starting a Level 5 course to boost my chances at teaching in the country, as well as to start studying for the NPLT 5. Now, where's the issue?
Mexico only offers positions as a CIR (Coordinator for International Relations), which means that the JET Programme here doesn't have positions to teach English in Japan. People at TEFL tell me I can apply directly, or to other dispatch companies, but I don't even know where to start, or if this effort on my end will actually get me where I want to go. The average salary I've researched is literally three times higher than what I make here, and if I manage to get there by the deadline I set for myself on my head (July 2026), I'll be debt-free and with 60,000 mxn ready to go.
Where do I start? What should I do? What do I focus on? Where do I even begin? I need to know everything, but most archived threads on the subject for non-natives are 8+ years old, or are from people who:
a) Did not study to be a teacher
b) Do not have degrees, experience, or interest in the subject
I want to do it, but before I sink more money and time into this, I need to know if there will be an actual light at the end of the tunnel, or will I put more money into this and find out I won't get in any way?
What's the path to take then?
by BigFox4445