Posted 12 Dec 2008

Many people who are facing job losses are considering to be re-trained in other professions and many opt to teach English abroad, it has been suggested.

As rising figures of unemployment hit the headlines, some people are investing part of their redundancy money into TEFL courses, writes Laura Harrison in a piece for the Guardian.

She says that it "provides you with a ticket to ride" and gives people the opportunity to leave the UK.

Elena Chetri, originally from Russia, lost her position as a reservation agent at the holiday firm XL Airways and now hopes to get a TEFL course.

Speaking to the publication she said: "I could be a teacher who makes a difference in her students’ lives, just like my first English teacher did for me."

There are opportunities to build a career in TEFL and even if people only teach for a short period of time, they can develop many transferable skills which can be used in other careers, Ms Harrison added.

People can complete TEFL courses online and some popular destinations for people to teach English abroad include Thailand, China and Japan.

Category: TEFL Industry, Teaching and Learning