Drew Noblot
Recruiting Coordinator
"A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."
- Lao Tzu
Drew in Boracay, Philippines
I was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. I spent a lot of time traveling to different places in the U.S. when I was growing up, but I did not have many chances to travel abroad. At the beginning of 9th grade, I decided to enroll in Chinese class to fulfill my foreign language requirement. After two years of Chinese class I finally got the opportunity to travel to Mainland China with my teacher and other classmates. It was truly a wonderful and eye opening experience for me. From this point on, I was determined to keep studying Chinese and eventually relocate to China.
After high school, with my determination still burning strong, I decided to attend the University of Kansas and pursue a course of study in Chinese language and culture. During my time at university I studied Chinese language for three additional years and acquired a great deal of knowledge about Chinese history, culture, and politics. This additional knowledge continued to enhance my desire of eventually moving to China and exploring the world. By the last year of college I was dying to graduate and begin a new, exciting journey of teaching abroad.
Drew shrimp fishing with friends in Taiwan
Upon completion of my degree I applied to become an English teacher in China. I was hired and off for a year of teaching English and traveling through Mainland China. During my time in China I lived in a small town outside of Shanghai where I taught high school students. My first year abroad in China was an amazing experience that gave me hands on experience with Chinese people, culture, and language. While I learned a lot about China during my time there I also learned a lot about myself. It was this experience that took my urge to travel and turned it into a full blown addiction.
As my first year in China was drawing to a close I decided to begin looking for another place to teach. I had experienced a lot of what China had to offer and wanted to experience another country, but I still wanted to live in a place where Chinese was spoken. With these criteria in mind it soon became clear what my decision should be. Taiwan! I applied in May and by September I was beginning a whole new adventure teaching English in Taiwan.
Taiwan has been a fantastic place to live and I have enjoyed every second of it. I work at a local kindergarten in Taipei County and it is a complete blast! It is truly a great feeling going to work every day and having a big smile on your face. In addition to having a great job I also really enjoy living in Taiwan for several other reasons. First, the people are some of the most humble, friendliest people you will ever meet. People are more than willing to go out of their way to help you in any way possible and they always seem to have smiles on their faces. Next, Taiwan is such a beautiful place. There are so many mountains, rivers, national parks, and beaches to explore. Finally, Taiwan’s location makes it an ideal place to inexpensively travel around Southeast Asia.
Overall, living and teaching abroad has not only met my expectations, but far surpassed them. I would recommend it to anyone who has an adventurous spirit and loves to experience new places. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the experience of teaching and living abroad. Thanks and hopefully we will be seeing you in Asia soon!
Drew Noblot
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