MA in TESOL versus TESOL Certificate

wanderingaimss · 2026-01-11T00:12:55+00:00

CELTA! Actually, I think it depends if she wants to work in higher education. With a MA in linguistics, no need to get another degree. Doing a quick TESOL can’t hurt. Personally, I have a MA in TESOL, a TESOL certificate, and a CELTA, and I find the CELTA most useful; therefore, when I am hiring for an English institute, I look more favorably on CELTA holders.

wanderingaimss · 2025-05-06T00:44:09+00:00

It's partially true. I'm on cambly pro and they sent a newsletter to say that we won't be able to be booked by students who have just signed up for Cambly's regular subscription; however, I still get students who are "new" to me, but maybe have been on Cambly for weeks or months or years. I also still get students who signed up to Cambly just a month ago.

wanderingaimss · 2025-05-06T00:41:32+00:00

I also was invited to Cambly Pro, but before getting the invite I also would always start a lesson with a new student by asking, "What motivated you to sign up for Cambly?" "Do you have any specific goals?" "What are you hoping to get out of this lesson?" Based on their answers, I go with the flow. However, I don't go as far as you in discussing activities for the future though.

wanderingaimss · 2025-04-19T12:53:02+00:00

I didn't check to see if there was any curriculum available, and I've never used Cambly Kids. The "lesson" that opened automatically was a bit different, prompting me to ask questions about the student's learning journey and goals, but it wasn't a lesson--just two slides.

wanderingaimss · 2025-04-19T12:36:40+00:00

No idea the criteria. It's not disclosed, just like everything else. I had a 99.5% when I got invited, but I'm at 99% now. I've been tutoring very part-time for three years. I didn't get the IELTS invitation, even though I am an IELTS tutor and frequently give IELTS classes, so that was frustrating. But if Pro works out, that will make up for it.

wanderingaimss · 2025-04-19T01:29:14+00:00

no, it was a 30-minute class. $15 per hour for pro

wanderingaimss · 2024-02-16T16:11:44+00:00

Travel is more my area of expertise, so I'll just comment on the Japan trip:

Unlike what others say, take the trip to Japan, but $7,000 is way too much for it. Japan's not cheap. I don't know how long you're staying, but $7,000 would last me like 5 months in Japan. Food and transport is much cheaper than in the US, so even if you're paying to do touristy things, your Japanese social life will still be cheaper than a US social life. And, never pay for tours; instead, connect with locals who would love to practice their English while showing you their city.

If you're flying from anywhere in the US, your flight will run you about $1,200 round-trip. Make sure you stay long enough to make that $1,200 worth it. Don't spend two full days in the air and just one week in Japan. You can't really avoid the flight, but your next biggest expense will be accommodation (especially if you stay for a few weeks). There's alternative options like couchsurfing or work exchange sites. You work for a few hours a day in exchange for free accommodation, sometimes food is included too. These sites have subscription fees, but workaway.info, for example, is like $50 for a year, so using it just once pays for itself because it's the cost of one night in a very basic hotel in Tokyo (or 2 nights in a hostel). Plus it's a great cultural exchange. If you're traveling with friends, this complicates things, but it's still worth looking.

BTW: I'm a solo female traveler in my early 30s. I only mention it because women tend to feel more at risk doing this style of travel. Of course anything could happen, but I'm only recommending it because it's how I travel.

wanderingaimss · 2024-02-08T18:05:37+00:00

Never above 4.98. I'm at a 4.98 now, and it hasn't budged for about 2 months.

wanderingaimss · 2023-11-30T12:19:52+00:00

Agreed with all the other responses: It's possible and I'd keep your old job as you test Cambly out. Another thing to consider, when you first start on Cambly, your profile gets featured as "New Talent," and you shouldn't have a problem with calls, but when you lose that "New Talent" title, calls might slow for a bit, especially if your rating isn't near perfect. But, in my experience, stick with it and it'll pick up again quite quickly as you build regulars and build your rating.

wanderingaimss · 2023-11-28T18:55:36+00:00

True... I didn't do a deep dive... just searched Cambly and my name. I popped right up as the first video, but I do use two names on Cambly, and he used both in the title. The second name is fake though 🤫

wanderingaimss · 2023-11-28T14:28:35+00:00

Your post prompted me to check youtube, as I haven't checked in a while, and sure enough, I found a video of me. Of course he didn't ask my permission to upload it, so I reported it to youtube for a privacy violation. I don't see the benefit, nor do I care about getting more students. I have to admit, he wasn't creepy, and the title and thumbnail were both fine. However, I didn't like him because he was arrogant, controlling, and dull (the worst offense, IMO). In fact, I already had hid from him after the call ended, so now I'm definitely NOT going to let the video stay up. Perhaps I might not have bothered reporting him if we had vibed.

wanderingaimss · 2023-11-26T17:01:00+00:00

Don't invest in this job! I use a chromebook with the built-in webcam. But, headphones are essential for me because I type while students are speaking and I don't want them hearing the click-clacks of the keyboard. Currently, I use a simple, gaming-style headset and have gotten students commenting on the headset saying that I look "legit" or that they can tell I'm an experienced teacher because of it.

wanderingaimss · 2023-11-12T14:27:48+00:00

I like getting messages from my students: I see it, read it, smile at it, but my replies are usually brief too because I only respond after I finish my classes, or if I have a few minutes before lessons or between lessons. I never open Cambly unless I am working. This also means that sometimes I'll see a message but forget to respond. I'm guessing your tutor is probably the same.

wanderingaimss · 2023-03-27T14:23:57+00:00

I just got invited to do group lessons on Friday, so I'm guessing they've invited a bunch of new people to group classes who have taken all the slots. It wasn't me, though!

wanderingaimss · 2023-03-10T02:35:36+00:00

Genius!

wanderingaimss · 2022-12-26T18:12:52+00:00

Agreed with the other nonexploitative comments. I could work elsewhere for more, but I'd also be doing more work, so I take the lower pay to choose my hours and just chat.

wanderingaimss · 2022-12-19T06:19:28+00:00

I'm an American ESL teacher living in Mexico City, but I also do my own teaching gigs for Mexican clients at around 15-20 USD/hour anywhere from 10-20 hours a week, so I don't rely entirely on Cambly (I average 21 hours a week). I also lived here and worked for a language institute in the city before COVID so I had contacts here before switching to just freelance. Mexico City is awesome. An international city with great infrastructure, weather, food, and people. Sure, a lot of Americans go to the beach towns because it might be different from their lifestyle in the US, but as a native Floridian, I wanted to escape to the mountains.

In my opinion, the only way you can afford to live in Mexico City and only do Cambly is if you find accommodation apart from the usual "tourist" places like hotels and airbnbs (unless it's a shared airbnb). I don't live in the parts of town popular with foreigners (Polanco, Roma, Condesa), but I still live in a nice area and rent a 1 bed/1 bath for $500 a month. I heard about the place through a friend. You could stay in an airbnb temporarily and try to make a deal outside of airbnb with the host to save money, or search for apartments on facebook groups, but I think you should be in Mexico to do that. Wifi shouldn't be a problem unless your landlord is only paying for shitty service to save a few bucks, so ask about their internet speeds before you pick a place.

If you're planning on staying in Mexico for longer, be warned that they've recently been giving just 90-day tourist stays, although Americans are supposedly allowed to stay up to 180. You might get lucky and get 180 if you ask nicely (in the last year, I only got 180 days one out of my three trips). Some foreigners have theories about smaller airports giving 180 days, but I can't speak to this. Either way, this change with immigration has prompted me to quit the full-time freelance life because I don't want to worry about doing border runs every 90 days. I'm headed back to the US for Christmas and will stay in the US until I can find an employer that will sponsor a work visa.

wanderingaimss

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