Shelby grew up in the suburbs of Dallas, Texas. She has always been an avid student and lover of cultures but only had limited excursions abroad during her childhood to places like Mexico, Jamaica, and other Caribbean islands. Instead, she grew up experiencing travel from the backseat on long road-trips throughout the southern states of the USA. Her mother and grandmother, having traveled the world via the US Airforce, always encouraged her enthusiasm for world cultures and did their best to help her realize her travel dreams. At Southwestern University, Shelby studied world history along with psychology and politics with a hope of putting these skills to use in areas of conflict resolution and diplomacy. During her time in college she studied abroad in Istanbul, Turkey where she met many fascinating people, experienced international politics and conflict up-close, and tested the water for a life of living internationally. After graduating with high honors, Shelby looked into several different avenues to align her with her end goal of working towards international cooperation. It was during this time that she found a means to teach English in Prague and with only a month of preparation, she jumped on a plane and has been having the time of her life.
Why did you decide to get TEFL certified with TEFL International in Prague?
I was approached by United TEFL during my sophomore and senior years of college. Upon graduating, I knew that I wanted to travel either to Washington DC or internationally to pursue a future in international relations. When my attempts to find work in DC fell through, I pursued teaching as an alternative.
I looked mainly at three countries to teach in: the Czech Republic, Spain, and South Korea. I ended up choosing Prague because it was most available to me through United TEFL and because I knew the least about the region.
I feel the best way to learn about countries is to live there and experience life beyond the tourist front. Teaching English is the easiest way for me to initiate an international lifestyle. Although I didn’t foresee this path for myself, I am very happy because I’ve always been passionate about teaching and speaking educated English. Getting my certification here has been wonderfully rewarding already.
What made this teaching abroad experience unique and special?
For me this is my first step into the real world. I’ve always been a student only away from home for limited chunks of time. This experience is unique because I have the freedom of time and money that comes with living and working abroad. There’s a much greater sense of independence when you realize that you can survive in a foreign country on your own.
This trip is also special because I am learning everything from scratch. I came to Prague without any background knowledge of the history, culture, or language and I also did not know anybody else here. This experience is quite the adventure for me as I meet new people and constantly am learning new things.
I keep a blog and am helping to educate people back home about the Czech Republic. It’s very relaxing to not rush about like the tourists or carefully budget like students studying abroad. I have the time to experience Prague at my own pace and to learn the language and culture.
How has this experience impacted your future?
This experience has impacted my future in several different ways. It has always been my goal to go on the graduate school for International Relations and I have a strong interest in joining the US State Department as a Foreign Affairs Officer, but both of those paths are very competitive; very few people straight out of undergrad without international experience are accepted. As such, teaching abroad is not only a great way to build that needed international experience but it also is familiarizing me with languages and the process of learning them. I have to have foreign language skills for both paths.
In addition, getting this certification to teach has turned into a path of its own. Now that I’m working, I’m realizing that I could be very happy continuing as I am. If one or neither of my plans in the USA come to fruition, I am fully capable of staying abroad to teach. I’m very passionate about making a difference in the international community and promoting understanding and now I’m recognizing teaching as another way of doing just that.
What is one piece of advice you would offer someone considering teaching / living abroad in Prague?
Do a test run. Moving abroad is not an easy thing to do. On top of getting your certification and getting hired by a language school you have to adapt to a completely different lifestyle, orient yourself in a vast, new city, navigate without the support of language, work on getting your visa and all other necessary paperwork, and making friends so that you don’t sit in your flat alone every evening.
Before committing to the money and time of getting certified to teach, take a long vacation or study abroad focusing specifically on building skills you’d need to start somewhere new. If you go abroad with friends, focus on making new friends. It’s surprising but your ability to find friends can make or break trip.
Give yourself the chance to experience the learning curve in a temporary setting before jumping into a (traditionally) year-long commitment. Not everyone is cut out to live in a foreign culture whether it’s because of language barriers, being shy, or not liking the food – it’s best to find out how you cope well before making plans to teach.
