TAPIF Alternatives

Alternatives To TAPIF

Maybe you have an interest in living abroad, but you want to consider all your options or maybe your French isn't good. Whatever the case, there are a number of other programs and opportunities to teach, work, study, or volunteer in several countries. Here are a few to give you some ideas.

1. Teaching

If you are interested in teaching, but for some reason cannot speak French or would like to explore other countries, there are a ton of different options to go abroad and teach. 

Government Programs most similar to TAPIF

• TaLK: Korea 
• Language and Culture Assistants Spain
• SITE Lombardy Italy
• Fulbright

TaLK, Language and Culture Assistants in Spain, and SITE are the most similar to TAPIF with 12-16 teaching hours per week and no previous teaching experience required. If money is an issue for you, the TaLK program definitely provides the most benefits including a 3 week orientation, roundtrip airfare allowance, housing (not including utilities), and a monthly stipend of over $1,200 all for working only 15 in classroom hours per week. You don't even need to speak Korean. The downside is that TaLK placements are only in rural locations, and unlike TAPIF TaLK participants have far fewer breaks and still have to "work" during many school holidays. 

Fulbright is an exchange program funded by the U.S. Department of State which includes numerous English Teach Assistant Awards. In general you can bet that Fulbright positions will be fairly competitive, but it really varies by country. In some countries like Brazil, Bulgaria, or Malaysia, over a third of applicants succeed. In other countries like France, less than 10% of applicants succeed. Many countries' awards do not require knowledge of the host language. Fulbright's French ETA awards are actually part of the TAPIF program, but all Fulbright awards are for secondary schools in underprivileged areas. Winning a Fulbright comes with extra benefits such as paid airfare, an increased stipend, and additional activities.

Full Time Job positions

• EPIK, GEPIK, and SMOE Korea
• JET Japan
• NET Hong Kong
• Teach and Learn with Georgia
• Princeton in Asia
• CETP Hungary
• CIEE 
• EF: English First

The programs on this list are just a sample of reputable options and they provide different benefits. Unlike TAPIF these programs more closely resemble full time jobs and may require qualifications such as TEFL certification, prior teaching experience, or possibly a bachelor's degree in a related field (English, Linguistics, Education, etc.). 

2. Other Work

If you can get a company to sponsor you, you could work abroad or conduct an internship assuming that you have the necessary skills to acquire a work visa. For those without special qualifications and are students and/or aged 18-30, there are currently five countries where US citizens can get "Working Holiday Visas" which allow you to work for six to eighteen months abroad. If you don't have any particular skills you could try working in a hostel or do other simple jobs that you might get at home. 

Currently you can get a Working Holiday Visa from the following countries:

1. Australia
2. New Zealand
3. Ireland: Must be current student / recent graduate
4. South Korea: Must be current student / recent graduate
5. Singapore: Must be current student or recent graduate from a top 200 University
1. (Check out Shanghai ARWU, Times World University Ranking, or QS World University Ranking)

3. Study

Studying abroad is a great way to live abroad and also gain new skills. The extra resources and support network available at a University also make studying abroad a more comfortable first step into living abroad. 

Even those who have already graduated can still choose to study abroad. Tuition abroad generally costs far less than in the US so pursuing language study or a graduate degree abroad can be very affordable. In France, you could study for a little over $3,000 per year plus living costs. Many other European countries' public universities charge even less. Outside of Europe there are additional options. For example, the top public Universities in Taiwan offer 3 month language programs for just over $1,000 per term, and some offer dormitory housing for less than $1,000. 

4. Volunteer Teaching

There is a fine line between teaching programs and volunteer teaching programs which generally comes down to how large the stipend is compared to the number of working hours. The teaching programs below generally provide housing, and a small living stipend, but require that you provide your own transportation to and from the country. In addition, you will be spending a lot more hours working than you would in TAPIF.

• WorldTeach: Samoa, Marshall Islands, and more

Variety of teaching opportunities in different countries. Consistently offers teaching positions in American Samoa and the Marshall Islands. The Samoa and Marshall Islands programs provide housing and a living stipend covered by their respective department of education or public school system. Flights to and from the islands are your own responsibility, and the flights are indeed expensive, likely over $2,000 roundtrip. Other available yearlong programs may or may not have fees to participate, but usually housing and a living stipend are included.

• English Open Doors Chile

Official government volunteering program to teach English in Chile. Homestay and living stipend included. Teach 24 in-classroom hours plus 4 extra curricular hours per week. Travel to and from country is at your own expense.

5. Other Volunteering

• Peace Corps

Fully funded US Government program for US citizens to spend 2 years and 3 months volunteering in countries around the world with 3 of those months being an intensive orientation. This includes opportunities for English teaching.

• WWOOF

Homestay in exchange for volunteering on Organic Farms.

• Workaway

More informal volunteering helping with gardening, childcare, English tutoring, housekeeping, painting, etc. in exchange for accommodation and sometimes meals. A lot of these volunteer opportunities are offered by families so these can be a good way to get to meet and live with friendly locals.

• Princeton in Africa and Princeton in Latin America

Similar to Princeton in Asia, variety of fellowships throughout Africa and Latin America. Requires an application and in-person interviews at Princeton.

Domestic Traveling Gap Year

I assume that most of you are probably interested in TAPIF as a way of traveling and seeing another country, but maybe you actually just want an interesting gap year experience inside the country. There are a lot of choices, but one option that piqued my own interest is Americorps. Americorps is the U.S. federal government organization which funds and oversees a multitude of volunteer programs. There are a lot of residential "corps" programs involved in volunteering with education/tutoring, conservation, disaster response, and others.

The most notable Americorps programs are NCCC and FEMA corps. These two volunteer programs for ages 18-24 involve living and working in a group of 8-11 people, traveling the country and volunteering wherever needed for 10-12 months. The program also provides a small living stipend and all yearlong programs come with a $6,000 education award upon completion of your service. The education award can be used for future education or to pay back federal student loans.