What Can I do With a TESOL Certificate?

Places of Employment

Students pursuing a TESOL certificate develop skills that are highly valued by employers. These skills include: critical thinking, research, analysis, oral/written communication, presentation, & problem solving skills. Students and alumni may find employment in government agencies, nonprofits, educational institutions, and businesses depending on their skills and experience. Internships or relevant part-time jobs may be a prerequisite to finding employment.

The following list of employers and job titles was derived from Advising and Career Services' jobs database where employers indicated an interest in recruiting students with a certificate in TESOL. This list does not reflect all potential places of employment or kinds of jobs for students with a TESOL certificate. This list does not reflect current openings.

• Abercrombie & Fitch – Manager in Training
• AIT Laboratories – Account Manager/Account Executive
• American Red Cross – Territory Representative
• Aon Corporation – Early Career Development Program Associate
• Book News – Editor
• Capital Financial Planners – Associate Investment Advisor/Financial Planner
• Cascadia Behavioral HealthCare – Behavioral Health Counselors
• CollegeNET – Sales Assistant
• Consolidated Federal Credit Union – Loan Servicing Specialist
• Crafts Americana Groups – Product Line/Brand Manager
• CTC Consulting – Research Analyst
• De La Salle North Catholic High School – Development Director
• De Paul Treatment Centers – Alumni Association Coordinator
• Dunkin and Bush – Junior Estimator
• ECONorthwest – Research Assistant
• Friends of the Children – Professional Mentor
• Frito-Lay – Sales Associate
• Girl Scouts, Columbia River Council – Community Program Coordinator
• Hacienda Community Development Corporation – Microenterprise Developer, Portland Mercado Project Associate
• Indian Health Service – Contract Specialist
• Inside Track – College Success Coach, College Admissions/Enrollment Coach
• Integral Consulting – Document Processing Specialist
• Intel – Strategic Program/Project Manager
• Intercall – Event Specialist
• IXL Learning – Educational Sales Consultant
• Kaiser Permanente – Healthcare Data Analyst
• Kaplan – Student Advisor
• KeyBank Oregon – Management Associate
• Kittelson & Associates – Project Management Assistant
• Knowledge Universe – Customer Relationship Specialist
• KOIN TV – News Director, Account Executive, Assignment Editor
• Legacy Health System – Manager Employee Health
• Lingo Systems – Project Manager
• Lutheran Community Services Northwest – New Youth Perspectives Bilingual Youth Specialist
• McCullough Research – Research Associate
• McKenzie Books – Human Resources Administrator
• Mercy Corps – Assistant Program Officer
• METRO – Assistant Transportation Planner
• Metropolitan Family Services – Family Involvement Coordinator, Assistant Transportation Planner
• Oregon Food Bank – Appeals & Proposals Developer, Donor Services Coordinator, Statewide Services Coordinator, Public Policy Advocate, Major Donor Manager
• Oregon Museum of Science & Industry – Executive Assistant (Development)
• Outside In – Housing Specialist
• Portland Business Alliance – Inside Sales Account Executive
• Impact Northwest – Resident Services Coordinator 1
• Portland VA Medical Center – Program Support Assistant, Research Assistant, Research Assistant 2
• PSU Admissions, Registration, & Records – Admissions Counselor, Program Support Assistant
• Schneider National – Fleet Manager
• Sherwin Williams – Management/Sales Trainee
• Sustainable Northwest – Policy Program Assistant
• The Hertz Corporation – Management Trainee
• The Nature Conservancy – Administrative Assistant
• Thetus Corporation – Training Developer
• Unitus Community Credit Union – Compliance Specialist
• Urban League of Portland – Academic Coach
• US Bank – Manager in Training, Relationship Manager
• Waggener Edstrom Worldwide – Account Executive
• Warm Springs Community Action Team – Healthy Foods Program Coordinator
• Wieden + Kennedy – Macintosh Support Technician
• YWCA of Greater Portland – Energy Assistance Coordinator

For additional ideas, review this list of employers who posted jobs for students majoring in Arts and Letters:

• Beaverton School District — Web Developer
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Washington — Development Coordinator
• Buckle, The — Management Development Program
• Cadmus Group, Inc., The — Marketing Coordinator — Entry Level
• Calypte Biomedical Corporation — Business Development Analyst
• Catholic Community Services — Community Support Specialist
• City of Hillsboro — Volunteer Services Coordinator
• Cmedia-Respond2 Communications — Media Account Coordinator
• Consolidated Graphics — Leadership Development Program Associate
• Con-way Enterprise Services — Lead Instructional Designer/Usability Analyst
• Database Marketing Agency, Inc. (DMA) — Data Processing Analyst
• E3: Employers for Education Excellence — Administrative Coordinator
• ECONorthwest — Research Assistant
• First Investors Corporation — Financial Services Representative
• Fisher Investments — Account Executive
• Friends of the Children — Professional Mentors
• Fund for Public Interest Research, The — Canvass Director, Citizen Outreach
• Federal Bureau of Prisons — Correctional Officer
• Grassroots Campaigns, Inc. — Field Manager, Citizen Outreach Directors
• Hands to Hearts International — Research & Outreach Coordinator
• Harland Financial Solutions — Office Services Coordinator
• Hertz Corporation — Manager Trainee
• Human Services Council — Transportation Screener, Interpreter Services Screener
• Human Services Research Institute — Administrative Assistant
• Iberdrola Renewables — Trading Analyst
• InfiniSource, Inc. — High Tech Administrative Assistant
• Interaction Metrics — Research Lead: Research/Scoring and Presentations
• KATU Channnel 2 Portland — News Reporter
• Knowledge Learning Corporation — Grants Coordinator
• Kohl's Department Stores — Store Management Trainee
• Korean American League for Civic Action (KALCA) — Executive Director
• Kraft Foods, Inc. — Operations Supervisor
• League of Oregon Cities — Intergovernmental Relations Assistant
• Legal Aid Services of Oregon — Administrator
• Massini Group — Database Marketing Specialist
• McKenzie River Trust — Director of Resources
• MENTOR Oregon — Direct Service Employee
• Miller & Zimmerly Real Estate Investment Group — Executive Assistant/Office Coordinator
• Multnomah County Sheriff's Office — Deputy Sheriff
• Multnomah County Sustainability Program — Waste Reduction & Recycling Plan Coordinator
• Nature Conservancy of Oregon, The — Administrative Assistant
• Newell Rubbermaid — National Account Specialist
• Northwestern Mutual Financial Network — Associate Pension Specialist
• Office of Mayor Sam Adams — Art and Culture Policy Coordinator
• Oregon Afterschool for Kids — Youth Development Network Coordinator
• Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) — Land Application and Licensing Manager
• Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) — Program Coordinator, Local Agency Construction Administration Liaison, Construction Contracts Specialist, Research Analyst, Inspector
• Oregon State Police — Oregon State Troopers
• Pacific Interpreters, Inc. — In-house scheduler/ Spanish Quality Assurance Specialist
• Physicians for Social Responsibility — Executive Director
• Pinemeadow Golf, Inc. — Marketing and Sales Representative
• Safeway, Inc. — Assistant Store Manager
• SAIF — Claims Adjuster Trainees, Claims Adjuster, Claims Adjuster Supervisor, Bilingual Claims Adjuster
• Standard, The — Communications Specialist I
• State Farm Insurance — Claim Representative, Underwriter
• State of Oregon — Research Analyst 4, Procurement & Contract Specialist 3
• Teach Abroad — Teacher in China
• TruGreen — LandCare Site Measurer
• Universal Forest Products — Production Manager Trainee, Sales Trainee
• University of Oregon (UO) — Assistant Director for Alumni Relations
• US Border Patrol — Border Patrol Agent
• US Census Bureau — Vietnamese Interpreter
• US Department of Veterans Affairs — Management Analyst
• US Postal Service — Associate Account Manager
• Volunteers of America — Child Care Supervisor, Toddler Interventionist
• Willamette Neighborhood Housing Services — Home Ownership Program Assistant
• Yahoo! — Client Advocate
• Zones, Inc. — Account Executive

Career Center Library Resources
The Career Center Library has a variety of resources to help students explore potential career fields. These resources include information about typical responsibilities, qualifications, career paths, job outlook, salary, and related careers.

Career-Related Books for Applied Linguistics Majors and TESOL Certificates

• Teaching English Abroad
• 100 Jobs in Words
• Careers for Foreign Language Aficionados & Other Multilingual Types
• Jobs for Travel Lovers
• Transitions Abroad

Books of General Interest to Liberal Arts Majors

• Great Jobs for Liberal Arts Majors
• The Best Jobs for the 21st Century
• The Career Guide for Creative and Unconventional People
• Making a Living While Making a Difference

Vocational Biographies
Vocational Biographies describes the career success stories of 1001 real people. Search by career title, keyword, topic, and career cluster. Username: portland su and pass code: 3w9n

• Dialect Coach
• Teacher of English as a Foreign Language
• Interpreter/Translator
• Technical Writer
• Technical Copy Editor
• Electronic Lexicographer
• Documentation Training Manager

Professional Associations

• American Association for Applied Linguistics (AAAL)
• Linguistics Society of America (LSA)
• Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Online
• Oregon Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (ORTESOL)
• Modern Language Association (MLA) ONLINE

Internet Sites with Career-Related Information for Applied Linguistics Majors and TESOL Certificates

• Career Opportunity Briefs: Linguistics — Lists potential job titles, places of employment, and skills for linguistics majors. From University Career and Employment Services at the University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.
• What is Linguistics? — Also includes information on what to do with a linguistics major. From the Linguistics Department at Stanford University, Stanford, California.
• English as 2nd Language — From Kenneth Beare for About.com.

Internet Sites with Job Search Information for Applied Linguistics Majors and TESOL Certificates

• LINGUIST Jobs in Linguistics — Majority of jobs listed require advanced degrees.
• International Job Listing Sites — Categories include: Worldwide, Teaching, Short-Term Jobs, Internships, Volunteer, and By Country From the Career Center at the University of California, Berkeley, California.
• Directory of Work Abroad Web Sites (Worldwide Sites), Region-Specific Sites for Work and Study Abroad, Profession-Specific Sites for Work and Study Abroad, and International Job Listings — From the Overseas Opportunities Office, International Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
• The ESL Job Center — From Dave Sperling, author of Dave's ELS Cafe.
• TESOL: Jobs — From the Internet TESOL Journal.
• JET Programme

Places of Employment

Students who major in applied linguistics or obtain an ESL certificate develop skills that are valued by employers. These skills include: research, analysis, writing, oral presentation, critical thinking, synthesis, problem solving, and teaching. Students and alumni may find employment in business, government, nonprofits, social services, and educational institutions depending on their skills and experience. Internships or relevant part-time jobs may be a prerequisite to finding employment.

Miscellaneous

• Work Abroad — Collection of articles from Transitions Abroad.
• USIA Fulbright Program Menu — Information about applying for Fulbright Student and Scholar Programs.
• Duke University International Careers Page — Provides answers to questions such as: Can I qualify for an international opportunity overseas?, Can I qualify for an international opportunity in the U.S.?, How can I improve my chances for an international career?. Also provides general information about Teaching Overseas.
• The Electronic Embassy — "The Electronic Embassy provides information on each of the embassies in Washington D.C., with links to Web-based resources where available."

Department of Applied Linguistics — Portland State University