Master in TESOL, what should I expect?

8 comments

1. Not sure your course or their load but I did an extended one. Spent about an hour a day during the week and a few on weekends for papers and reading. Sometimes this would be more or less depending on what was due.

   It could be a time crunch but was able to work and do it at the same time. Most of my friends had the same experience, some programs more intense than others.

   I would also think about yourself personally. I know some people who are just really perfectionist and will spend lots of time on aspects of the papers which don’t provide a lot of bang for their buck grade wise.

2. This will depend entirely on your school and instructors.

   I think there’s no way anyone here could give you a good answer about what your specific program is like without knowing what the specific program is/where it is.

3. > Anyone that’s completed this degree, do you reckon it is possible to work at a school while doing this course at the same time?

   Yep I did it while also getting married and having a baby in the same year. It isn’t THAT difficult IMO.

   > Also, what is the expected pay coming out of this course realistically? Is there a need/demand for it?

   Pay should stay the same. I think some schools pay a token amount for people with a masters/honours (say 10,000 yen or so). Wouldn’t say there’s any need/demand for it in Japan. IMO the value is largely intrinsic. It’s a decent reflective exercise that gives you something to do other than your eikaiwa/ALT duties.

   That said, I did alright with mine in Australia, where I taught English in prisons, tech colleges and job service providers. It was a tick-box for entry into such places (i.e. no TESOL, no job) and I earned upwards of 12,000 yen an hour (so I was on significantly more than casual uni tutors in Japan… but mostly because I was a contractor & worked in a dangerous setting). Wouldn’t say that’s an ambitious/growth industry or anything, but it paid the bills for a while and gave me a stepping stone towards the next step in my (totally unrelated) career.

   Not putting down TESOLS but it won’t make you a big fish or anything, it isn’t a stepping stone into academia (it’s a practical, coursework degree) and these days LOTS of people have random masters degrees. They take 6-12 months and basically involve churning out a heap of essays on a topic (comparable to an extra year of undergrad at uni).

4. I taught for 10 hours a week during my TESOL MA, and during that time the two basically consumed my entire life and left little room for anything else, but I still highly recommend that combination because I found it extremely valuable to connect and contrast what I was seeing in the research with what was accepted as normal in our school’s teaching program. How it goes for you is going to depend on your program’s rigor and your academic skill, but personally, I would be suspicious of any program that would allow a significantly higher ratio of teaching-to-research and still be considered doable within a year.

   As for pay (assuming you mean in Japan), there is a demand, but accessing it from outside the country is tricky. Getting in with a school that hires from abroad without connections can be hard. There are a couple of unis that constantly recruit for new hires, and if you follow the job ads, you’ll see their names come up again and again. Otherwise, you may have to get your foot in the door with a dispatch company that will be more than happy to take you, but won’t pay you remotely what you’re worth. Me, my MA got me in with a salary comparable to what JETs used to be paid, and of course the work load and responsibilities were not remotely comparable.

   But once you have your visa, opportunities here are better, though finding them is of course not easy.

5. An MA is necessary (usually a minimum) for teaching at a university in Japan. If you want to live in the Kanto area, two unis often hire new MATESOL grads from abroad: Tokyo International University and Kanda University of International Studies. Both start at around ¥5.2 million per year plus benefits. They both have large teaching staffs of 50 teachers or more with lots of support for first timers in Japan. So I would check them out first as well as JREC for comparable job postings. Also, Kansai Gaidai is a possiblity for the Kansai region.

   Your courseload will depend on your program but 10 to 20 hours of part-time work per week should be doable.

6. It varies much with the program. The one I did effectively required one to be working as a teacher while completing the degree. If English is your strongest language and you are used to writing, you probably won’t find it intellectually challenging, but time constraints can be troublesome.

7. 1. MA is required for teaching at universities in Japan

   2. Of all the MA programs, the TESOL one is the most desirable, good choice

   3. Difficulty starts at 70% and increases by 20% with each of the following : you work full time, are married, have a kid, have a 2nd kid 😜

   4. After completion you will have no problem getting most teaching positions in Japan 👍🏼

8. It really depends from what institution or country the university is in. If you are doing a UK-based degree, it will be weekly readings and video lectures while reflecting on these. Then you will have a final report for your module grade.

   If you are doing a US-based degree, there will be a more class-based component with multiple assessments.

   I worked as an ALT about 35 hours a week while doing mine. The readings weren’t a big problem, but towards the end of the modules the written assessments could be hard due to time constraints. At the time it felt rough, but looking back it was just due to inexperience with academic writing/research.

   Masters open the door for different EFL jobs that might not be available without it, for example, university positions. However, a masters alone does not guarantee these. They will make your more marketable for finding positions in schools.

   If possible, I suggest working while doing the degree. It will give you access to students to be able to do research for your capstone/thesis, as well as help you better learn the content of the masters in practice.