I wanted an opportunity to change my career path from a dissatisfying corporate job to a rewarding career that can take me traveling around the world and enable me to gain cultural experiences in different diverse countries whilst helping others in learning a 2nd language to enable better job opportunities.
Alumni Spotlight: Richard Lovegrove
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Richard is a lover of life, including food, wine, travel, hiking, fitness and language to name a few. He has a passion for teaching and helping in the community.
Why did you choose this program?
What did your program provider (or university) assist you with, and what did you have to organize on your own?
The Maximo Nivel program provided me with top quality information travel assistance, support staff and teachers who were extremely knowledgeable and made the whole experience extremely worthwhile.
They organized my volunteer program and also the accommodation at my host family, and assisted with holiday and activity options.
What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone going on your program?
If I were to do the course again, I would definitely choose a professional organization that is well-credentialed and respected like Maximo. It makes it so much easier having a strong support base and experienced team.
I would definitely allow for more travel time either before or after the course, so you can get to appreciate the country you are visiting.
What does an average day/week look like as a participant of this program?
The program is very solid and lots to fit in every day, as it is a compact course.
Having said that, there were still afternoons off and a couple of free days to chill. And an average day consisted of about 8 hours at school with a mixture of theory and practical class observations and activities.
After school, you would generally need to do 2 hours of homework or reading.
Going into your experience abroad, what was your biggest fear, and how did you overcome it? How did your views on the issue change?
I guess my only fear was not finishing the course or not being able to do the assignments and lesson plans in time. But the course structure and support of the teachers was a huge benefit in allaying my fears. This made a big difference in my ability to manage the course effectively and get everything done.
Any last thoughts?
This is a really fun and rewarding opportunity. It is full-on but satisfying in so many ways. You learn so much about yourself and build up comradery with people from all over the world, with diverse backgrounds and age ranges. It will give you great confidence and belief that you can do whatever you want to set your mind to.