CIEE Teach in Spain & TEFL

Teaching in Madrid has been an incredible experience so far. Moving to a new country can be daunting, but CIEE provided plentiful resources, guidance, and pre-departure support. They provide an online course which provides a broad overview of Spanish culture and the education system in Spain, as well as resources for things you will need once in Spain such as comparing rent in various neighborhoods, phone companies, electric, wifi, etc. The online course also included information about the visa process and other important documents that was super helpful.
In addition to the pre-departure online course, there is a four day in-person orientation once in Spain. The in-person orientation basically repeated all the information that was in the online course, however, it was an opportunity to meet other people who were also moving to Madrid which I found invaluable. If you are worried about finding roommates and don’t have anything set up by the time you head off to Spain, do not stress, you will definitely find people you connect with during the in-person orientation.
CIEE also offers an online TEFL certificate course with various start dates. If you have no background in teaching it is a great way to feel more prepared before stepping into the classroom. The course relays teaching methodology, has mini grammar lessons, and strategies for teaching. I tend to over prepare and took the course even after receiving my Masters in Teaching in June before leaving in September. If you have a background in education, the TEFL course is not necessary and you will get all the information you need from the pre-departure course. However, I still learned new strategies and have used some of the materials from the course.