Try out teaching in Italy and Austria!
Spend your summer in Italy or Austria staying with host families and teaching English through fun outdoor activities and games.
Our programmes in Italy and Austria usually last six weeks, with teacher training, accommodation, and meals all funded.
If you complete the TESOL Primer route, your flights or Interrail ticket are also funded. Full info on funding is below.
Our programmes in Italy and Austria are only open to those who on funding routes two or three. If you are joining with university funding, you should check out our programmes in Poland or Spain.
This programme’s orientation usually takes place in Italy before you run camps in smaller towns in Italy or Austria, staying with host families.
The programme is intended to help you to launch a career in teaching abroad, and to develop and gain transferable skills to teach in Europe – or anywhere in the world.
Along the way, experience a fascinating new culture and language, and gain valuable qualifications and skills.
Upcoming intakes:
Our Europe summer camp dates are now listed at the bottom of this page. Read on and join us!
What does the programme involve?
This programme offers you an introduction to teaching abroad, while staying in host families to immerse yourself in local culture. You will gain knowledge and experience in teaching by running fun games and activities on a North American-style summer camp, while studying towards a TESOL certificate. During the programme you will:
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Gain valuable teaching and work experience, including references for future jobs -
Interrail to and from camp (Interrailing is optional but highly recommended!) -
Run fun North American-style summer camps in beautiful settings with lots of games and outdoor activities -
Teach English by leading activities with Italian children and teenagers and your fellow Gotoco'ers -
Learn about Italy and Italian or Austria and Austrian culture from locals -
Stay with host families in smaller towns and villages who will show you around the local areas and cook you delicious home-made meals -
Move between towns between camps so that you get to experience more than one location -
Enjoy a post-camp trip in a city in Italy or Austria -
Receive on-going TESOL training, with certification completed after you return to the UK (over 3-6 months) -
Access continuous professional development support and mentoring to guide you in your teaching and with your future career
Whether you join camps in Austria or Italy will be decided by our programme partners following orientation. We cannot guarantee that you will definitely be in Italy or Austria, but we can guarantee that you will gain valuable teaching experience, stay with local host families, and have a brilliant time in either country.
Why Italy and Austria?
Our summer camps in Italy and Austria allow you to develop your teaching skills by leading fun and silly games and activities, so that you have a lot of fun as well as gaining work experience.
In both countries, you will stay with local host families in smaller towns and villages, allowing you to immerse yourself in the local culture and language and to be shown around by people who live there.
All the camp locations are in interesting areas of Italy and Austria that are rich in culture and history (and delicious food!). These include the Austrian Alps, and areas around Assisi, Rimini and Venice.
You will visit more than one area of Italy or Austria during the programme, giving you the chance to explore and compare different parts of the countries.
We offer support and advice from a team that includes both experienced travellers and qualified teachers, on top of the support that is offered by the camp you are on.
Don't just take our word for it...
How can you secure funding?
We want to make teaching and travel more accessible, so we arrange funding for all our programmes.
Our programmes in Italy and Austria are only open to those on our TESOL Primer or TESOL Direct Access funding pathways. It is not open to those who are securing funding from one of our partner universities.
Unsure which programme to do? Read this FAQ.
Why Interrail?
Interrailing allows you to traverse the continent on your way to and from your summer camp. Turn your summer work experience into a real adventure.
And if you are complete the TESOL Primer or TESOL Direct Access funding pathways, you will be reimbursed up to £250 towards your Interrail ticket: this will buy you a pass that lets you travel for 10 days over two months.
If you are on your university funding and meet your university’s widening participation criteria, then you will also receive funding towards your travel.
How is your final camp location confirmed?
On the form below, you can confirm your interest in our programmes in Italy and Austria, and also put your other preferences for programmes in Europe. You can see all our European programmes on this link.
We will then speak with our partners across Europe and invite you to interview with the right camp for you. Some camps will require you to complete a pre-interview task as well to help them to get to know you better.
Please note that team selection is a competitive process with our European partners and selections are made based on a range of factors, including a balance of skills and experience within a team. This means that your first choice cannot be guaranteed, but we will work with our partners to match you to one of your top five choices, and all of our camps will provide you with valuable teaching experience, the chance to backpack across Europe, and the opportunity to immerse yourself in a local culture.
Please select your preferred options on the form below. Places are filled on a rolling basis so the sooner you make your selection, the better!
You can apply right now, just login!. If you don’t have an account yet, you can apply now on this page!