for any fluent English speakers out there, it’s a very similar situation if you want to start teaching English abroad.
20-25 teaching hours a week, sign up bonuses, airfare reimbursement, at least a couple months of vacation per year, much lower cost of living in most countries, with maybe the field-specific benefit of thousands of job openings currently available.
Plus you get an adventure the whole time you’re in another country, new experiences and new cultures.
Definitely why I never went back to the work culture in the US.
2 weeks off for the easter holidays, then 6 weeks of work, followed by another 2 weeks of holidays. Those start tomorrow officially, as Monday is a national holiday.
Are you tough enough to handle 6 whole weeks with only the weekends off?
Not OP, but I taught English in Japan. You need a bachelor’s degree to get a visa there. It doesn’t need to be related to teaching/language, but that will help make you more competitive.
some countries and schools require a TEFL certificate or prefer candidates with an associate’s degree depending on the position, but if you want to teach English, all you need is to be a fluent English speaker.
some English teachers i know aren’t even native speakers. they are very good at English and have a minimal accent.
If you care a lot about where you teach, get a TEFL certificate. this is the one I got. All PDF tests, lifetime certification, internationally accredited, valid for any ESL job globally, plus TEFL certificates automatically give you access to the higher end of the pay scale.
You’ll be able to teach in your country and school of choice with this certificate.
That said, you don’t need a TEFL certificate to start teaching and if you fly to China on a tourist visa tomorrow and are a fluent English speaker, you will get a job in one of the first schools you inquire at. Someone might even stop you on the street to offer you a job if you look like a foreigner.
If a job doesn’t feel right, keep looking. There is a large, constant demand for English teachers globally and there is zero reason to take a job you aren’t comfortable with or a job that doesn’t provide the compensation and benefits you’re looking for.
DavesESLcafe is one of the original TEFL sites, and will give you an idea of what job postings look like online(that’s the China job board page), although typing “English teaching jobs in _______” whatever country you want is going to net plenty of job postings you can apply for.
I could go on, but I don’t want to overwhelm you.
If there’s anything specific you want addressed or you have followup questions, I’m happy to answer them.
TYVM. Im still amazed about it all. So I don’t really have specific questions. Feel free to go on, I won’t be overwhelmed. I may take a while to answer, but that’s unrelated to the topic at hand 😄
To clarify: I’m not in the US, but Europe. Yet I’m still very much interested. I’d be working for a European company that does business in other parts of the world? Why are the hours so agreeable? Is it just the demand? China wouldn’t be my first choice, but other parts of S/E Asia or South America perhaps.
for any fluent English speakers out there, it’s a very similar situation if you want to start teaching English abroad.
20-25 teaching hours a week, sign up bonuses, airfare reimbursement, at least a couple months of vacation per year, much lower cost of living in most countries, with maybe the field-specific benefit of thousands of job openings currently available.
Plus you get an adventure the whole time you’re in another country, new experiences and new cultures.
Definitely why I never went back to the work culture in the US.
Teaching here is a 20/20h for a fulltime job and you get around 90 days off, but you can’t choose when to take em.
2 weeks off for the easter holidays, then 6 weeks of work, followed by another 2 weeks of holidays. Those start tomorrow officially, as Monday is a national holiday.
Are you tough enough to handle 6 whole weeks with only the weekends off?
Is anything more necessary than being a fluent speaker?
Not OP, but I taught English in Japan. You need a bachelor’s degree to get a visa there. It doesn’t need to be related to teaching/language, but that will help make you more competitive.
nope.
some countries and schools require a TEFL certificate or prefer candidates with an associate’s degree depending on the position, but if you want to teach English, all you need is to be a fluent English speaker.
some English teachers i know aren’t even native speakers. they are very good at English and have a minimal accent.
Very interesting. You seem to be quite knowledgeable about this. Could you give me a few pointers before I go searching - if it’s not too much to ask?
Sure. Some general recommendations:
You’ll be able to teach in your country and school of choice with this certificate.
That said, you don’t need a TEFL certificate to start teaching and if you fly to China on a tourist visa tomorrow and are a fluent English speaker, you will get a job in one of the first schools you inquire at. Someone might even stop you on the street to offer you a job if you look like a foreigner.
If a job doesn’t feel right, keep looking. There is a large, constant demand for English teachers globally and there is zero reason to take a job you aren’t comfortable with or a job that doesn’t provide the compensation and benefits you’re looking for.
DavesESLcafe is one of the original TEFL sites, and will give you an idea of what job postings look like online(that’s the China job board page), although typing “English teaching jobs in _______” whatever country you want is going to net plenty of job postings you can apply for.
I could go on, but I don’t want to overwhelm you.
If there’s anything specific you want addressed or you have followup questions, I’m happy to answer them.
TYVM. Im still amazed about it all. So I don’t really have specific questions. Feel free to go on, I won’t be overwhelmed. I may take a while to answer, but that’s unrelated to the topic at hand 😄 To clarify: I’m not in the US, but Europe. Yet I’m still very much interested. I’d be working for a European company that does business in other parts of the world? Why are the hours so agreeable? Is it just the demand? China wouldn’t be my first choice, but other parts of S/E Asia or South America perhaps.