Professional Development
In the Sookmyung TESOL MA we provide many different opportunities for self development and professional development. Obviously such development occurs within the classroom and the different things students will be expected to do as MA students and at an acceptable level. Within the program we offer many other opportunities for professional development that are either part of the course work, special events, or voluntary projects.
Student Symposium
We culminate every semester with a student symposium. Essentially, this is a poster presentation festival in which each student presents the work she or he has done from one class. It provides an excellent opportunity for students to get a feel for the collective work of the TESOL MA community. Students also have a chance to present their research in a simple, creative way and in an informal setting. Although this may seem like a simple thing it is an important step in helping MA students develop as professionals in their field. During the symposium show the students get to show others what they have done and that should be a very empowering experience. The attached file has some basic guidelines for the symposium poster sessions and the design of the poster.
Symposium Poster Sessions
Pictures from recent, past symposiums and the posters presented can be seen in the gallery section of this website.
Student Union
In the MA an important organisation is that of the Student Union. The Student Union is comprised of a president and vice-president, both of whom are current MA students. It plans, organises, and helps run all official departmental events. The two positions in the Student Union are both voluntary but come with certain benefits, chief among them is the opportunity to get the see the working of the program from the inside.
Assistanceships
In the program there are several assistanceships available. Essentially, these are jobs but are not very well paid compared to what our students can make in the open market. Students do these jobs in order to get experience and develop themselves in new and often unexpected ways. The different jobs vary in their focus, pay, and specific responsibilities, but all of them help students develop new skills that can help them later on in their careers.
The Final Thesis/Practicum Semester
The final semester is where the students in the program really get to develop skills that they have been improving over the previous four semesters. It is the culmination of the program and pushes students to their limits, but in different ways. The Sookmyung TESOL MA offers students the rare opportunity to decide between two equally engaging options. While there is some overlap on the skills learned through the process of doing the practicum or the thesis, there are also some major differences. Students need to consider carefully what it is they want to learn and how they will move forward in their career path.
Issues in EFL
Each semester the students of the Sookmyung TESOL MA publish a journal, Issues in EFL, which includes student research as well as other pertinent issues to the Sookmyung TESOL community. It is a student-run, student-generated enterprise which provides students with a multitude of different real-world types of activities. Essentially, working on Issues in EFL allows students to see the research and writing process from the other side and this can be a very helpful step in one's professional development.
A student's experience in the MA and what they learn and how they develop as a professional teacher and researcher really comes down to the investment that student is willing to make. You only get out of the program in accordance with what you put into it. We have designed the Sookmyung TESOL so that there are many different opportunities for professional development. It is up to the students themselves to take advantage of those opportunities.
Student Symposium
We culminate every semester with a student symposium. Essentially, this is a poster presentation festival in which each student presents the work she or he has done from one class. It provides an excellent opportunity for students to get a feel for the collective work of the TESOL MA community. Students also have a chance to present their research in a simple, creative way and in an informal setting. Although this may seem like a simple thing it is an important step in helping MA students develop as professionals in their field. During the symposium show the students get to show others what they have done and that should be a very empowering experience. The attached file has some basic guidelines for the symposium poster sessions and the design of the poster.
Symposium Poster Sessions
Pictures from recent, past symposiums and the posters presented can be seen in the gallery section of this website.
Student Union
In the MA an important organisation is that of the Student Union. The Student Union is comprised of a president and vice-president, both of whom are current MA students. It plans, organises, and helps run all official departmental events. The two positions in the Student Union are both voluntary but come with certain benefits, chief among them is the opportunity to get the see the working of the program from the inside.
Assistanceships
In the program there are several assistanceships available. Essentially, these are jobs but are not very well paid compared to what our students can make in the open market. Students do these jobs in order to get experience and develop themselves in new and often unexpected ways. The different jobs vary in their focus, pay, and specific responsibilities, but all of them help students develop new skills that can help them later on in their careers.
The Final Thesis/Practicum Semester
The final semester is where the students in the program really get to develop skills that they have been improving over the previous four semesters. It is the culmination of the program and pushes students to their limits, but in different ways. The Sookmyung TESOL MA offers students the rare opportunity to decide between two equally engaging options. While there is some overlap on the skills learned through the process of doing the practicum or the thesis, there are also some major differences. Students need to consider carefully what it is they want to learn and how they will move forward in their career path.
Issues in EFL
Each semester the students of the Sookmyung TESOL MA publish a journal, Issues in EFL, which includes student research as well as other pertinent issues to the Sookmyung TESOL community. It is a student-run, student-generated enterprise which provides students with a multitude of different real-world types of activities. Essentially, working on Issues in EFL allows students to see the research and writing process from the other side and this can be a very helpful step in one's professional development.
A student's experience in the MA and what they learn and how they develop as a professional teacher and researcher really comes down to the investment that student is willing to make. You only get out of the program in accordance with what you put into it. We have designed the Sookmyung TESOL so that there are many different opportunities for professional development. It is up to the students themselves to take advantage of those opportunities.
