After sending all of your documents to your recruiter, assuming that she doesn't find anything that you missed and have to correct, you will now wait. You're almost done! There are only a few more steps to this process before you're set to fly to your designated country to work.
During the wait, you would be wise to do a little more research on the country where you will be staying. I will be staying in South Korea, so I got my hands on this book and a Korean dictionary. The Culture Smart series is great for me because I'm awkward enough in settings where I have a good idea of the customs, so reading up on them beforehand makes it less likely for me to embarrass myself completely.
There are other cultural sources to rely on aside from books. For example, Youtube can provide examples of music from that country, or maybe even short documentaries from people who have been there before. Google can bring up blogs from other people who are also teaching abroad, where you can read to compare and contrast their experiences. From here on out, aside from the final bit of processing to go through, it becomes a rather anthropological experience.
There are other things to plan as well. For example, if your recruiter has told you when to be at the designated country, now is the time to book your flight. Planning ahead means you have the time to compare prices and figure out which airline is the best for you, and whether it will be a direct flight or you will be making a stop in between. It's generally cheaper to use an airline that's native to the country. For Korea, I bought my ticket using the Orbitz website with Asiana Air, choosing a direct flight because it will save time. Considering it's a 13 hrs flight, you can also plan on getting some reading material or games to pass the time.
As I mentioned a few paragraphs before, there's also a tiny bit more of paperwork to do once the recruiter gives you your VISA number. That will be what my next entry is about.
I also used this time to tell everyone concerned where I'm going, why and to say my goodbyes. I reassured everyone that I will be coming back, and it was kind of heartrending all around. My words here cannot justify the depth of the emotions to be felt: how much I will miss everyone, especially my boyfriend, and my anxieties and excitement concerning the future. I feel alive.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
College Diploma and Transcript
It takes a college degree to be an official teacher. That is, if you're going to be paid for being a teacher, then you're probably going to need a college degree. I'm going to assume you have a college degree, and therefore a diploma. Now we're going to talk about how to get a duplicate diploma if you lost yours, and how to retrieve an official academic transcript.
I also just realized that I wrote the previous entry assuming that everyone would know where their diplomas are after they graduated. But if you couldn't get the copy of your diploma notarized and apostilled as suggested in the previous entry, here's some information about how to get a duplicate diploma.
Your college or university registrar takes care of all the information regarding diplomas. They have records involving when you were there, what courses you took and when you graduated, so getting a duplicate should be no problem as long as you pay the fee and fill out the right forms. For everyone who went to my alma mater Umass Amherst, you can contact them through the information to be found here.
The same office also takes care of your transcripts, so this is a one stop shop and you don't have to go far. There's also usually a form involved when requesting transcripts as well. They ask for your name, address, date of birth, student number or social security number, and when you attended school. The transcript request form for Umass Amherst students is here.
It takes about two weeks for them to get copies of your transcript and mail it to you. When you get it in the mail, DO NOT OPEN IT. For the purposes of applying for your teaching program, you may notice that they ask for an official sealed transcript. I made this mistake once - if you open it, the record is no longer valid, and you'll have to send for another one. They probably just want to make sure that you didn't tamper with the courses you took, your GPA or your grades to satisfy their requirements or something.
I also just realized that I wrote the previous entry assuming that everyone would know where their diplomas are after they graduated. But if you couldn't get the copy of your diploma notarized and apostilled as suggested in the previous entry, here's some information about how to get a duplicate diploma.
Your college or university registrar takes care of all the information regarding diplomas. They have records involving when you were there, what courses you took and when you graduated, so getting a duplicate should be no problem as long as you pay the fee and fill out the right forms. For everyone who went to my alma mater Umass Amherst, you can contact them through the information to be found here.
The same office also takes care of your transcripts, so this is a one stop shop and you don't have to go far. There's also usually a form involved when requesting transcripts as well. They ask for your name, address, date of birth, student number or social security number, and when you attended school. The transcript request form for Umass Amherst students is here.
It takes about two weeks for them to get copies of your transcript and mail it to you. When you get it in the mail, DO NOT OPEN IT. For the purposes of applying for your teaching program, you may notice that they ask for an official sealed transcript. I made this mistake once - if you open it, the record is no longer valid, and you'll have to send for another one. They probably just want to make sure that you didn't tamper with the courses you took, your GPA or your grades to satisfy their requirements or something.
Labels:
diploma,
facts,
official documents,
paperwork,
teaching,
transcript
Friday, August 6, 2010
Notarization and Apostille
As mentioned before, this entry will be about your state level criminal background check and the documents you will need from your college and university as part of your recruiter's application for an E2 visa for you to teach abroad in a foreign country.
While the process varies by the state you live in, you can retrieve your criminal background check for Massachusetts at the Criminal History Systems Board. If you scroll down to the middle of the page, there is a subtitle that says "Requesting Criminal Records" and then under that, "I Want to Request My Own CORI". Whether you click on adult criminal history or juvenile criminal history depends on your age. (I knew someone in high school who went to teach English in Mongolia for a summer, so this job opportunity is available to minors - the main difference is that younger people are only allowed to do this in the summer for school reasons.)
Either link will take you to a form, which you will print to fill out. The second page on of the form for adults is titled "Affidavit of Indigency" which basically means a fee waiver, so you only need to print those pages and fill that out if you cannot pay the $25 dollar fee. Again, specifics vary according to state. IMPORTANT: DO NOT sign the form yet. This note does not apply to the juvenile form.
After you filled it out to the best of your ability without signing it, you will prepare a self addressed stamped envelope (SASE). SASE means that you take a long white envelope, the kind for business letters, and write your name and address in the center of it, then put a first class stamp on the top right hand corner. Write a check or money order for $25 if you can afford it; if not, the Affidavit of Indigency will waive it. Put these aside in a safe place.
Now, do you have your diploma on hand? If not, then you should contact your college's registrar for them to pull up your information and they should be able to print another one for you. You'll need to prove your identity with a license or student ID, as well as pay them. The information for Umass Amherst alumni is here.
If you do have your diploma, take that and your filled-but-not-signed criminal background check form to the local town or city hall. Show the clerk your form and ask for notarization. You will swear an oath as per her instruction, and then you can sign your form, and she will stamp it with something like this. After she is done with the form, you can ask her to photocopy your diploma and then notarize the copy. In Massachusetts, each notarization costs $3.
When you are ready to mail it, write your name and address on the top left corner of a manila envelope. Then address the envelope to your state's criminal systems board; the address should be on your criminal background check form. Now put your signed and notarized criminal background check form into the envelope, along with that SASE and your check or money order (unless you filled out that Affidavit of Indigency, then no payment). Send this out. With first class or priority mail, it should take them about a week or two to send back your criminal background check using your SASE.
When you get your notarized criminal background check - if it's not notarized, make sure to call or email your criminal systems board - it's time to apostille both the copy of your diploma and your criminal background check. You can do that in your public records building, which is usually located in the capital of your state. The specific addresses are right here. An apostille is a gold stamped sticker, and should look like this. For Massachusetts, it costs $6 to stamp one document.
These two documents are now ready to be sent to your recruiter. It's up to you and your recruiter whether to send all the documents at once, or to send them one or two at a time. I sent mine in all at once to save on postage, but mistakes are less noticeable and harder to correct if you do it this way.
While the process varies by the state you live in, you can retrieve your criminal background check for Massachusetts at the Criminal History Systems Board. If you scroll down to the middle of the page, there is a subtitle that says "Requesting Criminal Records" and then under that, "I Want to Request My Own CORI". Whether you click on adult criminal history or juvenile criminal history depends on your age. (I knew someone in high school who went to teach English in Mongolia for a summer, so this job opportunity is available to minors - the main difference is that younger people are only allowed to do this in the summer for school reasons.)
Either link will take you to a form, which you will print to fill out. The second page on of the form for adults is titled "Affidavit of Indigency" which basically means a fee waiver, so you only need to print those pages and fill that out if you cannot pay the $25 dollar fee. Again, specifics vary according to state. IMPORTANT: DO NOT sign the form yet. This note does not apply to the juvenile form.
After you filled it out to the best of your ability without signing it, you will prepare a self addressed stamped envelope (SASE). SASE means that you take a long white envelope, the kind for business letters, and write your name and address in the center of it, then put a first class stamp on the top right hand corner. Write a check or money order for $25 if you can afford it; if not, the Affidavit of Indigency will waive it. Put these aside in a safe place.
Now, do you have your diploma on hand? If not, then you should contact your college's registrar for them to pull up your information and they should be able to print another one for you. You'll need to prove your identity with a license or student ID, as well as pay them. The information for Umass Amherst alumni is here.
If you do have your diploma, take that and your filled-but-not-signed criminal background check form to the local town or city hall. Show the clerk your form and ask for notarization. You will swear an oath as per her instruction, and then you can sign your form, and she will stamp it with something like this. After she is done with the form, you can ask her to photocopy your diploma and then notarize the copy. In Massachusetts, each notarization costs $3.
When you are ready to mail it, write your name and address on the top left corner of a manila envelope. Then address the envelope to your state's criminal systems board; the address should be on your criminal background check form. Now put your signed and notarized criminal background check form into the envelope, along with that SASE and your check or money order (unless you filled out that Affidavit of Indigency, then no payment). Send this out. With first class or priority mail, it should take them about a week or two to send back your criminal background check using your SASE.
When you get your notarized criminal background check - if it's not notarized, make sure to call or email your criminal systems board - it's time to apostille both the copy of your diploma and your criminal background check. You can do that in your public records building, which is usually located in the capital of your state. The specific addresses are right here. An apostille is a gold stamped sticker, and should look like this. For Massachusetts, it costs $6 to stamp one document.
These two documents are now ready to be sent to your recruiter. It's up to you and your recruiter whether to send all the documents at once, or to send them one or two at a time. I sent mine in all at once to save on postage, but mistakes are less noticeable and harder to correct if you do it this way.
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