#3 My CELTA Entry Interview and Exam Experience

If you're just after my experience then scroll down a little; you're missing out on a fab intro though ;)

Travelling is something I have wanted to do for a long time. Now that my degree is near enough finished I'm thinking towards the future and what to do next. If there's one thing I can firmly say about myself, it's thinking far ahead does not come naturally to me - I'm much more of a 'go with the flow, see what happens' type of person. While I really enjoyed my degree subject and have quite a few 'avenues' I can go down, I haven't got a definite path or plan for the future (I could do a whole post just on this!)

The conflict between having a stable, secure life and wanting to get out there and see the world is something I think a lot of people struggle with. I'm sure I'll want the former at some point, but at the moment I want to make the most of being young and having little responsibility. In a perfect world I'd be able to travel and earn an income, so I searched the internet for ideas - that's when I found the route of 'teaching English as a foreign language'. Teaching is a profession I have always considered going into, so being able to teach and travel? Ding ding ding, the jackpot was hit. *Cue about 18 months of researching and consideration*

There are many types of 'ESL/EFL' teaching qualification, I ended up choosing CELTA (Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults) as it seems to be the most respected and recognised. I had a look online and found a local college that runs the course. I sent an email asking for more info and booked an interview date - eeep!


MY EXPERIENCE
Disclaimer: CELTA interviews and exams vary depending on who is running the course. Some people are given a test before the interview, others on the day. The interview may be in person, via skype or over the phone. That being said, there are definitely similarities in topics covered and I found reading others' experiences useful for preparation, so I thought I'd share mine.

My interview and exam were held at the college where the course is run. We started with the exam and the tutor interviewed prospective students throughout in another room.

While I won't disclose exact questions, the topics covered were:
1. Teaching ideas
2. Phonology - stressed syllables
3. Parts of Speech
4. Differences in meaning between similar words
5. Tenses
6. Meaning of words depending on context
7. Correcting badly written sentences
8. Extended piece of writing (writing about a topic, often to do with teaching).

The exam is not ridiculously hard, but if you haven't studied English Language in a while you will need to study - you cannot bluff your way through the exam (or the course for that matter). It tests various aspects of English language, as well as teaching methods, so grab a couple of books and study them! My college actually gave us a list of topics to revise and books to use for preparation. The internet also has a wealth of information so have a good search (I'll leave a some links at the end).

The interview was pretty informal. The tutor asked me a few questions about teaching and myself, and also explained the course. Many have said it's not necessarily about having the 'right' answers but showing willingness and passion, and I would agree. The course is extremely practical so they need to see that you are confident and willing to take criticism.

The next day I got an email saying I had passed the exam and interview, and was offered a place *woo-hoo!*

The whole process lasted around 2 hours, which whizzed by! It's really not as scary as it sounds; if you have knowledge of English language and show you are willing to learn and teach, there is no reason why you shouldn't get a place. If you're not accepted don't be disheartened, CELTA isn't cheap so it's best to do the course when you're ready - this is a reason why the course seemed so credible, they won't accept you unless they think you can pass.

My course doesn't start until January so I have some time to prepare and study even more. I'm planning on documenting my experience so check back to see how I'm getting on! If you have any questions or comments leave them below and we can have a chat :)

Useful links for studying:
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/knowledgeoflanguage/english/index.asp
http://www.grammar-monster.com/index.html
https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/parts-of-speech-table.htm
http://www.englishleap.com/grammar/tenses
http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/verbtenseintro.html
http://www.passthecelta.com/celta-course/comprehensive-celta-guide

#2 One Month To Go...

It feels crazy to write than in exactly a month today I will have finished my degree. It seems so close yet still far.

I'm in the middle of writing my last assignment at the moment and am trying to make the most of it, because who knows when I'm going to be completing another piece of academic writing. Since October last year I have had endless assignments and a number of times it seemed like they would never end, but I've near-enough made it! Sending off this last assignment is definitely going to be a bittersweet moment; relief for finishing, but also some sadness, and definitely a lot of nerves as I then have three weeks of revision for my exam.

I can feel that pre-exam adrenaline already setting in, which is ridiculous as the exam isn't for another month but ugh, while I've never been 'bad' at taking exams let's be real, they sure ain't fun. Do people exist that prefer exams over assignments/course-work? If so, they must be super-human.

Whenever I have an event ahead that makes me feel nervous I always get stuck between wishing the day was here so I can get it out the way, and also wishing it was further away so I have more time to prepare.

If there's one thing I can take away from all the studying I have done over the years it's to make lists and plans; that way I can keep on track and stop myself from procrastinating and leaving everything for the last minute - I am the worst for doing that. I have a revision plan ready so if all goes well I should be entering the exam hall ready to kick that exam's butt *fingers crossed*.

Anyways enough procrastinating from my assignment, hoping to get another post in somewhere this month to keep up with my 'two posts a month' goal.

Until next time!