Where Language Becomes A Passport At HPU

Special to The 'Ohana 

December 01, 2025

Teaching English is much more than grammar exercises and worksheets. It’s an opportunity to see and experience the world. Students interested in living and working abroad and meeting people from across the globe are diving into the myriad career possibilities in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) at HPU.

In HPU’s TESOL programs, students learn how language works, how people learn, and how to teach with clarity and heart, graduating ready for classrooms either domestically or internationally. There is an opportunity for everyone, everywhere.

HPU offers both a Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Master of Arts (MA) in TESOL, as well as BA-to-MA concurrent registration and two certificates, the TEFL Certificate (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) and the Graduate TESOL Certificate. The graduate level offers both an in-person track and an online synchronous track. The curriculum in all programs balances applied linguistics, teaching methodology, and hands-on practica so students do not just study language; they put it to work.

“We tailor our teaching to our students,” said HPU Professor Hanh thi Nguyen, Ph.D. “In small classes and with individualized practicum experiences, our students get to know their professors and peers well.” Nguyen also pointed out that “TESOL is a well-kept secret field in a way; not many students know about it, but TESOL provides graduates with a lot of fun in their careers and gives them a lot of opportunities as well. In either direction, working domestically or internationally, there is a great demand, and graduates will get to work with international students.”

HPU Assistant Professor Burgel R. Maria Levy, Ph.D., echoes that sentiment, sharing that HPU students learn to “teach and to present their work with HPU professors’ support, publish with guidance, and build the kind of confidence that translates into the classroom for an exciting  career.”

Across the two degree levels, students study the English sound system and syntax, second-language acquisition, teaching methods, assessment, materials development, and technology-enhanced teaching. Students in the BA and the MA programs typically complete two practica: first observing classes on and off campus, then serving as assistant or autonomous student teachers under close mentoring. Students also engage with the TESOL Working Paper Series, a long-running, refereed, open-access journal, where they can become published authors even before graduation.

“Choosing HPU’s MA TESOL program felt like a calling, the next step after years of figuring out what direction to take in my educational and professional journey,” said current HPU master’s student Samantha Arroyo. “My mom’s work in English language education back home in the Bronx inspired me to follow in her footsteps, and after years of visiting my own hānai family in Hawai‘i, I knew I wanted something that made me feel the same sense of belonging I found on the island. Balancing a mainland schedule and work, the program gave me the flexibility I needed to succeed. Small classes, supportive professors, and linguistics courses that deepened how I see culture and communication made it all click. My graduate assistantship let me apply what I was learning right away. After graduation, I hope to teach alongside my mom in the Bronx, or maybe overseas, working with learners of all ages.”

Arroyo’s trajectory speaks to durability and direction, not detours. Flexibility paired with meaningful experience creates momentum toward long-term roles at home or abroad, directly countering any notion that TESOL may be a short-term stop or “gap year.” This is a calling, a true career to serve learners of English and international education institutions across the world.

HPU alumna Brittany Roa earned her BA in TESOL and shared her experiences working in Japan since graduating. “The TESOL program was fantastic,” she said. “I seriously appreciated so many of my professors. They were supportive, understanding, and genuinely invested in my success. I faced a few personal challenges along the way, and they went above and beyond to accommodate me. Studying during COVID was difficult for everyone, but the faculty made the experience smooth and encouraging. I would like to especially thank (HPU Instructor Emerita) Jean Kirschenmann, Dr. Hanh Nguyen, and Dr. Maria Levy. They offered helpful feedback on my papers and even helped me with recommendation letters more than once. I’ll always be grateful for their unwavering support and kindness. I enjoyed the academic challenges and learned so many practical teaching strategies that I actively use in my classes today. I look back on my undergraduate experience at HPU with real fondness.”

Today, Roa teaches children and university students in Kitakyūshū, Japan, and leads community English clubs. She also teaches once a month at a bucolic countryside community school where most of her students are elderly women. Her career demonstrates how TESOL quickly becomes stable, growing work with varied responsibilities and income streams over time.

For HPU master’s student Anaïs Smeyers, the experience has been equally exciting and valuable. “HPU’s MA TESOL degree offers so many opportunities, including a variety of classes, conferences, and professional experiences,” she said. “It allows us to build a strong foundation in English linguistic skills, while exploring connections with other languages. The program also fosters open-mindedness toward concepts, theories, and approaches in language teaching and linguistics in general. Graduate students are quickly encouraged to engage with English learners and take on teaching responsibilities through opportunities within the University or through partnerships with schools and programs. This environment gives us the space to create and refine new pedagogical tools through iteration. These experiences help us develop professional confidence and, thanks to the courses we take, gradually shape our own teaching philosophy through continuous practice and reflection.”

HPU alumni say those foundations really pay off. HPU alumnus Chris Ferry earned his MA in TESOL and shared that the program “greatly deepened my day-to-day practice by connecting it with research-informed theoretical approaches.” Entering the program while teaching full-time, he said it also strengthened his research skills, “keeping the Ph.D. path open,” and revealed how vital professional learning communities are. “That mix now guides my work as an English language department coordinator: building a dynamic program with strong academic foundations, ongoing action research, and a culture of collaboration.”

For HPU alumnus Justin Brice, who earned his MA in TESOL in 2012, the degree became a true passport—one that keeps getting stamped. “This career path that began in Honolulu has led me to teaching in Japan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Texas, and now Germany,” he said. His HPU master’s degree is fully recognized by the German government, allowing him to teach English in public schools. “I’ve taught everyone from business professionals to fifth graders, and many of my former learners still stay in touch.”

These alumni’s experiences in the TESOL field demonstrate the potential for compensation and advancement , where students and graduates see a breadth of roles and opportunities in K–12, higher education, nonprofits, and international programs, and how knowledge and skills learned in the program (from lesson planning to assessment  and curriculum design) open doors to benefits-eligible positions and leadership over time.

“Our graduates don’t just find jobs, they build careers,” Nguyen said. “You see them move from first teaching roles into leadership positions across schools, universities, and international education.”

TESOL’s toolkit of language expertise, cultural agility, and learner-centered design travels well. For some, it leads from the classroom to the broader ecosystem of international education.

Students are charting different paths through the program and that’s what makes it so exciting and fresh. The BA in TESOL provides a four-year foundation in applied linguistics and teaching methods, anchored by in-class practice and community-based experiences. The MA in TESOL, typically completed in about two years, is offered in person and synchronously online and culminates in a capstone chosen to fit the student’s goals: portfolio, exam, thesis, or project, after two progressively more independent practica.

For students in other majors who want strong preparation for teaching overseas, the 15-credit TEFL Certificate delivers in-person training and real classroom feedback that signal readiness to employers. And for bachelor’s degree holders seeking focused graduate-level preparation without the full MA, the Graduate TESOL Certificate provides a rigorous, practice-forward path, with online access for added flexibility.

HPU’s location in the Pacific makes it a natural crossroads for ideas and people. Recent years have brought visiting scholars, Fulbright scholars, and participants in the International Group Programs to the TESOL program. HPU students have also been participating actively in Hawaiʻi TESOL events. In and beyond the classroom, students develop as reflective practitioners who can work across cultures, collaborate with schools and community organizations, and contribute to the scholarship of teaching and learning.

To learn more about the BA in TESOL, MA in TESOL, TEFL Certificate, and Graduate TESOL Certificate, visit www.hpu.edu/tesol.

Source:  The ʻOhana, HPU's Daily News, December 01, 2025