TEFL Heaven: Paid teaching job in Madrid, Spain

Not a moment of regret!

My name is Sharmani, from Melbourne, Australia. I moved to Madrid January 2019 to complete my TEFL course. The course ran for 4 weeks, Monday to Friday, it was thorough and well structured. I was placed in good hands, my trainers were knowledgeable and experienced as they themselves have done the course, so they knew exactly what the students had to go through.

Before making the big decision to pack my life into a suitcase and move half way across the world, I had doubts and concerns about: making new friends, the new environment, accommodation, costs, finding a job...and the list goes on! However, these all proved to be unnecessary stress when I arrived in Madrid.

Everyone in your course will be in the same boat, so making friends were super easy, to this day we are like a little family in Madrid, we travel and do everything together!

Once I was successful with TEFL Heaven, they put me in contact with the housing coordinator in Madrid who helped me with accommodation, alternatively there are websites out there like Spotahome which I found really easy to use.

Finding a job was also very easy, at the school they helped me with my CV and I also looked for work online. By the second week of graduating I had already began teaching.

I have to admit, during my first month, the language was an issue as English is not widely spoken in Madrid. You will get by but I definitely recommend taking lessons or participating in language exchanges! I have also learnt a lot from my students, it's definitely a two way learning! I have been here for 2 months now, and my Spanish has definitely improved!

Three things I love about Madrid:
1. The weather, it will never disappoint, the sun is ALWAYS out!
2. The culture and the people. The Spaniards love living life, they know how to enjoy and relax.
3. The food and drinks, cheap and tasty!

Three reasons why you should just book yourself into the program already!
1. You will meet people from all over the world and become lifelong friends
2. Once you are TEFL certified you can pretty much teach anywhere in the world
3. You will always be wondering "what if" if you never give it a go!

I decided to do this TEFL course as part of my gap year before I went to university. It was quite a strange experience to move to Spain by myself at just 18 years old but it has been amazing! Before I completed this course I thought that it might be hard to get a job afterwards, but I had no problem at all! The course trainers fully prepare you in how to get a job once you leave with your certificate. For example, they helped you with writing a CV suited to what English teaching companies are looking for, as well as other things such as mock interviews and actually preparing you to teach English in the real world with observing other people teaching lessons as well as teaching your own and receiving feedback! This gives you and advantage over other TEFL courses because it gives you teaching experience, which was something I lacked.

Overall, I had a lot of fun during the course - both with the other students and the teachers themselves. I definitely recommend undergoing this course because it is easily one of the best TEFL courses you will find out there!

Teaching abroad is something that I dreamt about doing for a long time, ever since I taught abroad in college in 2012. After a few years of teaching in the states I decided it was finally time to take the plunge and I am so glad that I did. After much research and knowing that I wanted to teach in Spain, in hopes of becoming bilingual, I decided on TEFL Heaven.
TEFL Heaven was a great way to connect with the teaching world abroad. They were supportive from the day of the interview and even followed up with me once the program was complete. For the Spain program TEFL Heaven sets you up with a sister company. The classes are all taught by experienced educators who have previously taught in Spain. Each one is extremely knowledgable in what they are teaching. The best thing about this program is that you will definitely be prepared to teach English as a foreign language. I think I learned more about grammar and the English language in this 1 month TEFL course than I had in my 18 years of education in the states. The teachers are also extremely supportive and go above and beyond the duties of just a teacher to help you with all your needs.
Tips:
- If you have flexibility of when to come I would recommend coming for the July or August course as there are tons of job opportunities starting in September, or do the November course as again many jobs open up again in January. (There are jobs opening up constantly year round though, these are just the most popular times)
- The course is intense, but it does its job well as it will prepare you for teaching English as a second language, and remember it's just one month!
- If you need support, ask for it! There are people in place to help you, so ask the questions that you need answered and don't ever hesitate to ask!

"This is your moment. You've let excuses hold you back long enough. Today, take the steps to accomplish what is in your heart"- Joel Osteen.

I know that before I moved abroad, a huge factor holding me back was fear of the unknown. Looking back now, I am kicking myself because after moving to Madrid, going through the TEFL course, meeting all these amazing people and making tons of new friends, I´m left asking myself, ¨Why did I not do this sooner??¨ I can honestly tell anyone who is unsure, hesitant or scared (if you´re reading this) about moving to another country, you will be pleasantly shocked at what you discover about yourself, if you just do it.

Now, don´t get me wrong, I attribute a lot of my success here to the fantastic program that TEFL Heaven provides. Without my completion of this course, the wonderful staff and supportive people in the program, I would not have succeeded the way I did. The staff, from day one is here to support you, answer any questions and thoroughly prepare you for teaching English in Madrid. The course is intensive, but it´s exactly what you would want and what you would need to be confident and prepared to teach English. Whether you have experience or absolutely none, this program will have you 100% ready.

Moving to a new country can be scary, particularly if you're going at it alone. I felt the same way. Now I know that being scared or nervous was completely unnecessary because coming to Madrid to complete my TEFL has been the best decision I could have possibly made!
From the moment you register your interest on the TEFL Heaven website, when the thought of moving abroad is simply a tiny seed in your mind, the team are there to help you, answer any question you may have and make the whole concept a lot more simple and less intimidating.
After sending my CV, I very quickly received an invitation to have a Skype interview; a chat with a member of the team where you can really showcase to them why you are a perfect TEFL candidate. From the moment I knew I had a place on the course, I had immediate contact with the centre in Madrid where they were preparing me for the move and were always on hand to punctually answer any question, no matter how big or small. The company help you out with housing, VISAs, Spanish classes, what you need to bring with you and everything in between.
Once I arrived at the course centre, I immediately felt welcomed and at home. The team are the most friendly people, it really is a big family that grows every month as the new course starts. I had a wholly positive experience and felt fully supported throughout. The intensity of the course is balanced by the way the team assists you in managing your workload and encouraging positive attitudes whilst the people you meet during the experience make everything so much more fun and worthwhile.
Whilst watching a demo class on my first day of the course, I said to myself 'I'm never going to be able to teach like that in just four weeks' and now, a week after my course finished, I am working in companies across Madrid teaching Directors and CEOs; the course fully prepares you to be a professional teacher in many environments.
Getting legal in Madrid was a process that was fully supported by the centre and any forms that looked intimidating were explained and they would help you fill them out and tell you where to go to get appointments, SIM cards or metro passes.
I am so happy to be here and I am so pleased that I made the decision to come to Madrid through TEFL Heaven. It is an amazing and life-changing experience which no one should have a second thought about doing!

The course was very well-managed and organised; I was pleasantly surprised, and the staff were always looking to offer you support.

In terms of post-course employment opportunities, there is certainly no shortage of demand. I've received a tonne of emails within 48 hrs of completing the course. I think this is largely due to the program provider having an abundance of great contacts and also helping us to write CV's.

The only downside is that the course is time and energy intensive, which means little energy is left for learning Spanish during this month of training. You can make up for this in following months however.

In terms of travel, Madrid is a beautiful city. For anyone looking to experience a new place, I couldn't recommend this program and Madrid more highly. The food, culture and people are great and there are plenty of amazing bars, cafes and restaurants. I love the back streets and the squares here. The clubs are nice as well!

Enjoy!

The 4 week course provided by TEFL Heaven was a fantastic experience and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to teach English as a foreign language here in Spain.

The training staff are extremely friendly, down to earth and offer as much support to you as they can before, during and even after the course! As somebody who has not been in full-time education or a classroom for nearly 10 years it took me a few days to get used to the pace and intensity of the course. However, the trainers and my fellow classmates were very supportive and understanding throughout, we all worked as a collective and had lots of fun!

The course itself is very well organised and planned out, classes are really fun and it is rare that you will find yourself disinterested at all. The materials are excellent and the teaching methodology really helps you understand the structure of the English language and how to teach others in the process. If you have any reservations or difficulties the trainers are always happy to offer advice and any additional support that you may need.

After you've graduated the training centre will assist you with finding a job that suits you, also helping out with any class or interview preparation you may need. Whilst you'll have access to all the materials in the library to get you started!

My life has gone from a boring office job to living in a great European capital and teaching really enthusiastic and friendly people my native language. The experience of learning a new culture and practicing Spanish is also a great experience, and it goes well with teaching English too and meeting new liked-minded people.

If you enjoy travelling, want to live & work abroad, learning new cultures & languages then this course is for you! :-)

I came into this experience very excited but incredibly apprehensive. Moving to a new country and trusting a TEFL organisation to help you work through the legal aspects of a visa while completing a TEFL course and worrying about finding a job is not easy, however this program is amazing. The staff members were incredibly helpful and supportive through out the entire process. The also did not hesitate to answer any questions or provide students with any resources that they made need after the program. The staff members made me feel very at home in a foreign country while also providing a great TEFL education. I feel very prepared to teach on my own and began teaching private classes a week after receiving my certification.

This TEFL course was something I was unsure about at for a while, I didn't know if it would be for me and was worried about how we would be taught. The first few days leading up to the course I was extremely nervous and apprehensive. However after the first day of the course I felt so much better! The teachers were lovely and made the learning process extremely fun with lots of laughs along the way. It probably sounds like a cliché but I have made some great friends in such a short space of time. My advice for anyone on the fence is to give it a go because the chances are it will be an experience that you love! I feel a lot more confident about teaching having completed the course and it is not as scary as I thought it would be! It is hard work but definitely worth it!

The TEFL Heaven Spain program has been incredible. I have had the opportunity to travel and live in another amazing country, teach people of all ages a new language, and grow as an individual. Even though I have finished my TEFL, TEFL Heaven has still been amazingly helpful- checking in to make sure everything is going smoothly and asking about my work in Spain. I felt personally taken care of during the entire process- all of my questions were answered, no matter how crazy they were. I made lifelong friends from day one and have had fantastic experiences. I know I definitely made the right decision coming to Madrid with this program and I wouldn't take anything back! :)