Just to Reiterate...

While surfing the Delaying the Real World Book site, I came across some great Tips and Advice from others who have taken some time off to find adventure. They’re pretty helpful and inspiring so I thought I’d post some for all to see!

“I went into the Peace Corps and one thing I was worried about was missing out on all of the cool stuff family and friends would be doing while I was away. But even after two years, I didn’t miss a beat. To sum up what happened, I was away having an amazing experience while my friends who entered the "real world" were hating their jobs and wishing they had done something more exciting.”

—Rob Marek, 28, did the Peace Corps in Namibia

“Think about where you want to be in ten years or twenty years and the types of stories you want to be able to tell about your life. Life is just too short to do anything other than create your own path. You may not know how all the pieces will ultimately fit together. That is part of the fun. Just focus on following your gut and pursuing your dreams.”

—David Schacht, 30, quit an investment banking job to go work in France and Chile

My advice is that if you have a passion for something, whether it is athletics, the arts, academics, or something totally unique, follow that passion and don’t wait. I believe that every day you postpone a dream you weaken it a little bit. The longer you wait, the less likely you will ever chase it.”

—Andy Liverman, 24, Olympic Rower

“I have hitchhiked in Ireland, joined and quit the Peace Corps, volunteered in Croatia, and most recently moved to Las Vegas for graduate school. If you are willing to risk failing and make a fool of yourself a few times, I think you can learn how to succeed and flourish in any culture or situation.”

—Andrea Gregovich, 28, bartended at a fishing lodge in Alaska

“Moving away from home at a time when I was most vulnerable was also the time I was most willing to learn about new things.”

—Kate Ward, 24, did a volunteer program in San Franciso

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Delaying the real word? Read this!

“Congratulations—you’ve finished school. But if you’re not sure you’re ready to settle down into an office environment, Delaying the Real World is chock-full of creative ideas and practical information that will help you craft your own life-changing adventure!”

~ This quote is from the travel book Delaying the Real World: A Twenty-Something’s Guide to Seeking Adventure. And it is the perfect book to have when trying to “satisfy your free spirit but also pay the bills”. It’s written by Colleen Kinder, a Yale grad who also delayed the real world for a couple of years in order to work in Cuba and volunteer through out Latin America. Her book is a compilation of young college grads experiences exploring the great unknown before hitting the books again or getting that desk job. Take a gander!

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Teach for America!

If teaching in a foreign country doesn’t strike the fancy, perhaps teaching somewhere in the U.S. will?! Teach for America is one of the most reputable and intense teaching programs while also being one of the most fulfilling experiences a young college grad could ever have. And here is the rest of itThe Teach for America program takes bright and ambitious college grads and places them in classrooms set in high poverty school districts. Though the job can be challenging at times, there can be no greater reward than inspiring and motivating students who are not awarded the advantages many other children are in America. The screening process to be accepted into the Teach for America program is intense, but it’s only like that in order to pick reputable college grads. The program lasts for two years and teachers have the option of going to one of the 26 cities featured in the program. Just to give you an idea of what a young teach will endure while participating in the program, here is a layout of weekly expected work:

Institute programmatic structures:
Teaching
Corps members teach summer school students for approximately two hours each day, under the supervision of experienced teachers. For the first hour, most corps members work directly with four to five students to build skills in math and literacy, which also builds the teacher's skills for facilitating student group work. For the second hour, corps members lead a full class lesson, which also builds the teacher's skills in delivering lessons and managing the classroom.

Observations and feedback
Teach For America instructors observe every corps member several times each week, provide them with written feedback, and engage in debrief conversations to help them refine their teaching practice.

Rehearsal sessions
Corps members get together in small groups to rehearse the delivery of upcoming lessons and to respond to management challenges. Rehearsal sessions provide safe space to practice new skills and to receive feedback from Teach For America instructors and other corps members.

Lesson planning clinics
Corps members receive extensive support in lesson planning from Teach For America instructors. They work to internalize the upcoming week's objectives, determine the assessments that will be used to evaluate student progress, select the appropriate instructional methods to meet their objectives, and flesh out their plans in greater detail.

Curriculum sessions
Teach For America instructors present essential material that all new teachers need to know to be effective.

Reflection sessions
Corps members get together in small groups to engage in structured reflection on student achievement data, student work, and the feedback and observations of Teach For America instructors, veteran district teachers, and other corps members. Reflection sessions lead to clear steps for corps members to take to improve their effectiveness.

Interested?! : Check out the website. They have informative videos, tips about joining the program, and their history info.

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TESL, TEFL, TEOSL, CELTA...what does it all mean?!!

Before going to teach English abroad it's probably a good idea to take what is commonly known as a TEFL course. (Esp. if you don't have an education background. But even so, it is still pretty helpful to have!). Basically, TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) is a term used to describe any course that helps thoes about to go abroad learn how to formulate effective lesson plans when teaching Enlgish as a second language. They are available on line and though most schools don't require a TEFL certificate, it probably is a good idea to aquire one! When looking for a TEFL course things can get kind of confusing considering there are somany different accronims used when describing TEFL courses. They are also, reffered as TEOSL, CELTA, TESL, ESL, and they are all pretty much the same thing! (or atleast they advertise the same idea). If you are considering taking a TEFL course, here's a handy site that has a guide for choosing an online course. They usually last for 4-5 weeks and usually start at about 100 bucks! Also, here's the TEFL website incase you may want furthur info and they also provide a handy job posting page full of teaching English abroad opportunities :)

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The Canadian Connection

OK I hate to sound bias by bringing up this agency, but I do know a lot about it so I might as well! Like I said in my very first blog, I'm going to teach English in South Korea for a year. The company I'm going through is called Canadian Connections, and I heard about them through the Asian Affairs department of my University. They are a company based in Ontario, Canada (believe it or not!) and basically they take college grads from native English speaking countries ( IE the US, England, Australia, New Zealand) and ship them over to different Providences in South Korea to teach English to Korean students. When teaching with Canadian Connections you get to choose the size of the providence to live in and what kind of school you'd like to teach. For example, I chose to teach in the Jeollanamdo providence ( an average sized city) in the Southeast region along the coast. Also, I got to choose teaching elementary, middle, or high school students (I went with the elementary kiddies). Along with this you get the option to teach at a public or private school. I heard teaching in the private schools can be kind of sketchy. First of all, you have to live AT the school, sometimes the teachers don't get paid on time (or at all!), and the pay isn't as good. SO, naturally I went with the public school. It's a year long program, but you can extend the contract up to three years. The school pays for living accommodations and the plane tickets for both ways, (not to mention a monthly pay check). You teach up to 20 hours a week, and have a teaching assistant and translator in the room with you. Now, the first thing I asked when hearing this was, "why even have a native English speaker there when a translator's chillin in the room the whole time?". Well, the main purpose of having native English speakers there is so the students can hear how to properly pronunciate English words. And what better way to do so than by using actual native speakers in the class room?! And I'm sure the language barrier will be a bit of a set back both in and out of the classroom, but it's all about adapting (and using street smarts CONSTANTLY). All together, it will be quite a change but it will definitely be a great character builder! But if any of this sounds enticing poke around the Canadian Connections website, teachers in Asia are in great demand so if you decide to e-mail any of the program coordinators for further info they will be very happy to help!

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Ready, Set, JET!

So, if South Korea doesn't strike the fancy as teaching destinations, there is another reputable program with the same jist based in Japan. It's called the JET program (The Japan Exchange and Teaching program) and it was started back in 1987. Right now JET sends about 5,000 from 41 different countries to teach in Japanese schools. What's really intriguing about JET is in accordance with offering teaching positions in schools, they also offer teaching positions in governmental jobs as well.

You can either be an assistant Language Teacher (ALT) and their duties consist of:

"Team teaching", or assisting with classes taught by JETs

Assisting in the preparation of teaching materials

Participating in extra-curricular activities with students

There are also work in a governmental office as a Coordinator for International Relations (CIR) and their duties consist of:

Receiving guests from abroad

Editing and producing pamphlets in English or Japanese

Advising and planning international exchange programmes

Teaching English (or other languages) to government employees and local residentAnd Lastly, there are Sports Exchange Advisors (SEA), who help teach English through the participation of Athletics. "SEAs work for local governments, coaching and promoting internationalisation through the universal language of sports." SEAs are sports professionals whose role is to assist with sports training and the planning of sports related projects.

The JET program also provides a monthly salary and a place to stay for the teacher abroad. Sounds enticing? You should go to the website a take a look-see! You can also request for a pamphlet about JET to be sent to your doorstep. Here's a great website about teaching in Japan and specifically the JET program!

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These Boots Were Made for Walkin'

Alright, if neither of the volunteering companies look like a viable option, I stumbled upon a website called Bootsn All Travel and they have some great tips for volunteering abroad as well! They have message boards and tips for those thinking about volunteering, the top places to go volunteer, and even insightful information about how volunteering can mold a “new you”. It’s helpful and chalked full of information! Check it out!

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Volunteering Anyone?! : Part Dos

Besides the Peace Corps there are some other alternative organizations that provide volunteering abroad opportunities. Bunac is a company that helps college grads either work or volunteer abroad. As far as volunteering goes, they have a programs that go to Peru, South Africa, and Cambodia. Unlike the Peace Corps, Bunac allows the applicant to choose the program he or she may want to pursue and you usually work in groups of other volunteers through the Bunac program. They also have various projects available to work with such as environmental and conservations work to education and social work programs. The programs go from five to seventeen weeks, and the requirements are request a background in foreign language (preferably french or Spanish depending on the area) and an undergrad degree. The only down side to the program is the fees it requires the volunteer to pay for living expenses while being abroad (because it isn't a government funded organization like the peace corps). The fees are determined by the length of the program along with the destination. An average cost for a program would be 1300-1540 dollars, not including air line tickets. Though this price is a bit hefty, it does cover everything from food, insurance, local transportation, housing, and orientation. You can also read into the program more on the web site and apply for Bunac online as well!There is a great article from transitions abroad by Katie Kruger that can help someone interested in volunteering abroad gain some more information about the experience.

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Volunteering Anyone? : The Peace Corps

What better way to spend a summer, month, or even a couple of years than to volunteer in a completely new place?! There is a variety of really great programs out there that advertise the very idea of volunteering abroad, but one common trait they share is the life changing experience volunteering can give someone. The first program that comes to mind when I think of life changing volunteering experiences, in developing countries, would be the Peace Corps.

Some quick background info:It was established in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy in order to promote world peace and friendship.

The Peace Corps' mission:

1.) Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.

2.) Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.

3.) Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

Today the Peace Corps works in 74 different countries and the available volunteering work ranges from AIDS work, to teaching, health, business development, technology, and environment. It requires an undergraduate degree but not a background in foreign language. The program lasts for two years and it does provide a transitional stipend when your term ends. Volunteers are usually randomly placed in a country and works independently with the community he or she is aiding. If interested you can visit the website for further information and apply for the program on the site as well. Why not go explore?!

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Well Now What?! : First Post!

Well this is were it all starts, the first post on my new blog. Pretty exciting I guess! Really, all I want to convey from this blog is a bit of inspiration for those searching for it. It's hard to know exactly what to do with life when only being 21 or 22 ( I mean we are just beginning to experience it). But yet these past four years I've been feeling that I'm supposed to have some sort of Master Plan mapping out the remainder of my adult life. At family reunions, when meeting someone new, even at parties it sounds like a broken record of what I like to call The Big Three Questions: "What's your major?", "What are you going to do with that degree", "What are you planning to do after you graduate?". I can't even express how many times I've been asked these, and to be fair they are completely valid questions to ask a twenty-something in college. However, I also can't even express the amount of times I've met those questions with, "I'm not sure yet" and have gotten a look of horror on the inquirer's face followed by the melencholy response of "Oh, well you'll figure it out".

Personally, I wanted to continue my schooling after completing my undergrad. Yet, when mulling over the idea I quickly came to the quandry of, "What am I going to study?". I'm still not sure, but I do know that I'm not going to burry myself thousands of dollars in debt via grad school loans in order to find out. So that left me with the question, "Well now what?". I had no clue, but I knew I didn't want to go back to my parents house in Saint Louis and hang out until I figured it out. I wanted to get out and see what I was made of while still young and unattached to anything. So, one day in my capstone class I heard of a program through my home university where American students could go to South Korea and teach English to kids for a year. At first I thought it sounded insane and right away three quite obvious problems flooded my mind.

A.) I don't have a teaching degree.

B.) I've never been away from home for more than a year.

C.) And oh yeah, the small problem of not knowing a word of Korean might put me at a slight disadvantage! But after doing some research and a TON of thought, I found it would be a perfect program for me. I would be given a translator and a teacher aid in my classroom, my housing would be paid for, and I would be able to take a training course in teaching English abroad. I knew this wouldn't fully prepare me for moving to a completely different country with a completely different culture, but it did make me more susceptible to the idea. Over all, I found that just because grad or law school wasn't on my currrent "to-do list" like many of my other friends, doesn't mean there isn't anything else out there for a college grad to do! As college grads, we are young and full of so much potential. Why not go see what the world and/or the United States is all about? After all we only live once, so might as well make it worth while!

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