Why did you choose UK-TEFL?

I decided I wanted to take a break from my job in Lancaster and do something totally different for a while, I had started working straight out of university and I felt like I needed to step back to get some perspective. My boss offered me a six month sabbatical and UK-TEFL seemed like the perfect way to combine travelling with working.The timing was ideal, there were locations across the country and the booking process was very straightforward.

How did you secure your placements?

I found my summer placements through the UK-TEFL website. Dani, my UK-TEFL trainer, recommended that we do a summer school as soon as possible in order to get some initial experience. I love Italy and so applied for a summer camp there, and when Finland came up on one of the UK-TEFL e-mails I decided to also apply for 4 weeks there too. It is not somewhere I would ever think of visiting but that is the beauty of TEFL. The application process was all pretty straightforward and I got every job I applied for.

What is the best bit about being a EFL teacher?

There are so many things. The children are obviously a huge part of it, I have taught some brilliant kids over the last two months and it has reminded me how much I love working with young people. The travelling is one of the best bits for me; I have been to some amazing places and met so many great people over the last two months.

Tell us about the Italy summer camps!

Italy was a brilliant experience.  I spent a week in San Remo on a training camp which was so much fun and the perfect way to start TEFL rather than being thrown straight into a classroom. The highlight of this week though, was definitely the people, who were from all over the world. We had parties on the beach or took over a bar in the town every evening, it was a wonderful start and I was very sad to leave!

The camp itself was insane, and a massive shock on the first day! We were given lots of resources to teach from though, which came in very useful! It was a steep learning curve at first, but one that I think was ultimately successful. At the end, we managed to perform a great little play about knights, dragons and princesses and hopefully they learnt a small amount of English over the 2 weeks!

Tell us about your current Finland placement:

I was not really looking forward to Finland to be honest as Italy had been so good I didn’t think it could compare, but three weeks in and I am definitely changing my opinion!

I flew into Helsinki which is kind of like flying into a forest, no sign of a city just a million trees and lakes and it’s a little like being on a Centre Parcs holiday! I finish work at 2:30 every day so after coffee and cake we generally go down to a lake and sunbathe! My first class was lovely, naughty on occasion but I definitely felt like I had learnt a lot from Italy and I’m loving my time here.

What are your future plans?

I’m back in England for a month in August, and then in September I am off to India for 3 ½ months for a UK-TEFL voluntary placement in Darjeeling which I’m really looking forward to. Back to work in January and as for future TEFL work, we will see, the world really is my oyster!

Would you recommend UK-TEFL to others?

YES! Taking a TEFL course was one of the best decisions I ever made and UK-TEFL made the whole process so easy and enjoyable, from booking the course, through to finding a job. TEFL opens up so many options, the possibilities are endless!