Free Short-stay TEFL Placement (Colombia, Bali, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Europe)

Please tell us about some of your most enjoyable moments of the trip?
I enjoyed that I learned so much from the students as much as they learnt from me. I enjoyed learning how to live in a new city very different from london.

What was the best thing about your experience?-Trip to the Amazon
-Teaching at my wonderful school
-Learning Spanish
-Discovering a new culture
-GOTOCO trips to the fruit market and Villa de Leyva
- Our GOTOCO coordinators were incredible.

Would you recommend participating to a friend and if so why?

Yes:GOTOCO is an amazing program and what I love as well is how as a corporation you make space for people who aren't super well-of financially and you provide as much support as you can.

How would you say the overall experience has benefitted you?The program has helped me get (hopefully soon after marking) a TEFL qualification, taught me indirectly how to deal with my social anxieties and allowed me to do something fulfilling and worthwhile whilst travelling!

It was a truly great experience and gives young people the chance to travel and work abroad. It is well organised, and they fund the flights and provide a stipend for food making it very accessible. It was a life changing experience and I would recommend it to anyone who likes travelling. You also get a TESOL qualification at the end of it, and meet lots of amazing people there. There is a great introduction week where you get taught how to teach, meet other teachers and get used to living in another country which I really enjoyed. Overall, would highly recommend.

I had a great experience! One of the highlights of my experience was the people. I really enjoyed meeting all the other volunteers and living with them, and also going on excursions and trips on weekends and when we had free time off from teaching. This program has definitely benefitted me by increasing my confidence and ability to adapt and improvise in uncertain and new environments. I also learnt more about the world and new cultures. I had a really great time with Minga House. The staff were friendly and helpful, and the house was amazing and so was the school. I really enjoyed this specific programme.

It was an amazing chance to experience a different culture. Fully funded and immersive, great activities and supportive when needed. Would 100% recommend to anyone.

The accommodation and food was fully funded throughout the entire programme, we had support from the staff on Whatsapp if we needed it. It's a great opportunity if you want to see 'authentic' Thailand, not through the touristic lens. Would recommend for university students, solo travellers and people on they gap year. It's also affordable if you are on a budget and not planning on travelling after!

I have recommended this program to a few people, it was a great experience and learning experience. Met the most amazing people and made long life friends. I feel like as young person the way it was formed and the layout of the program was really good. At times I think it could’ve been a bit more structured but overall it was really good. Especially the friends that you make and things you can do. I would definitely consider doing it again but not in Thailand as I struggled with the food in Vietnam.

This program is a brilliant way of travelling affordably and in a purposeful and worthwhile way, and of meeting new people easily while doing it. It is also a great lesson in leaving the comfort zone and gaining a really special experience you cant find in many other ways. It has made me realise how much I enjoy teaching, which I didn't have much experience with before, and has opened up lots of opportunities to pursue this further and tie it into travel with the experience and qualification I have gained. I loved it, I would highly recommend!

The program offers an opportunity that is very unique, I genuinely haven't seen something that matches up to it in terms of the value provided - yes it is really fully funded ! I was initially worried about doing a rural Thailand program as the lifestyle would be very much outside my comfort zone but luckily I was allocated to teach at the loveliest school and had an amazing host which massively determines your experience on the placement. Our host was so invested in our wellbeing and always took us out to explore during our placement. We were also able to travel around on the weekends and spend our free time as desired. The orientation week and end of trip program to Koh Samet island was so wholesome with the whole cohort!
The program has allowed me to experience my passion for travelling and working with children as a fusion and I’ve created beautiful memories. It has been very rewarding to do something impactful in a fun and enjoyable way with a great cohort! I took the risk and in my personal experience, it ended up being totally worth the adventure! Definitely one of the best things I’ve done!
Room for improvement: for placements to be more standardised in terms of accommodation, hosts and school placements so there won’t be significant disparities in participant experiences.
Also expect information and communication before the program to be somewhat limited as most of the specifics get confirmed and organised closer to the time.

Going to Colombia with GotoCo was a once in a lifetime experience. Before we left, GotoCo supported our application and gave us informative presentations and Q&A sessions which made the process less daunting. The coordinators and the rest of the group were so lovely and supportive, I felt that I could bring up any concerns easily. A fully funded trip is so hard to come by, and GotoCo was the only organisation that I found which paid for flights and accomodation. Trying teaching for the first time whilst gaining a fully funded TEFL qualification is a great opportunity after university or school and I feel like my CV has now got a boost.