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Non-native's chances in TEFL?

Posted: 08 Jun 2013, 13:19
by VincentMIR
Hello all my name is Vincent i am 26yo and come from France.
I just returned from a 6 weeks volunteering project in Xi'An,China.
Helping with basic education of autistic children.

I enjoyed my time in china and was wondering what were my chances,as a non native speaker with only a TEFL (which i plan to get very soon) to find any type of english teaching jobs in Asia..

I already know that my skills would be too limited in order to teach in universities or such,so i was thinking about lower grades/lower age students.
For the basics of english i assume.
Even though i am not teaching in France.

I did not graduate from high school in france back then (1 year missing)
But having spent a year in the USA and a year in London i do believe i have a strong english,at least for a non native.

I met a Texas native teacher in XI'An who told me i shouldnt have a problem finding jobs,but i also heard from local english teachers that being a non native speaker it could get pretty difficult..

So,will i be able to find a good working conditions in asia ?
or am i doomed to the worse jobs anyhow?
(i am mostly interested by cities over country side towns)

Any suggestions?advices?

Thanks in advance
Cheers

Re: Non-native's chances in TEFL?

Posted: 10 Jun 2013, 11:36
by VincentMIR
That does sound comforting...for non native =)

Is this the case,in China,in Japan?

A huge part of the job offers ask for "Native speakers (Born and brought up in english speaking countries)
Reading this gets me scared on my chances to find what i would like to do

Re: Non-native's chances in TEFL?

Posted: 11 Jun 2013, 20:21
by Alex Case
I'm afraid in your case, it's not so much being a non-native English speaking teacher (NNEST) which would reduce you to the worst jobs out there, but not having completed high school and only having an online TEFL. There might be some jobs in China that no one else would want, but there is no chance of getting a visa to work in South Korea or Japan (and working illegally is very rare indeed in those places).

If you are really serious about getting into TEFL, you first need to pass Cambridge Proficiency (CPE) to prove your language level and be able to get on a good TEFL course like the Cambridge CELTA (though they usually also ask for education equivalent to A levels). You'd also probably be better off sticking to the EU or trying to get temporary work as you are backpacking around somewhere like SE Asia. You may also be able to build up relevant experience by teaching online and doing specifically TEFL volunteer work.

Re: Non-native's chances in TEFL?

Posted: 12 Jun 2013, 17:13
by VincentMIR
Thank you for this straight forward answer.

I could indeed think about a "better/higher proof" of my english level as you mentionned.I guess it won't be as easy as some others but with what i ve seen back in china,it would hardly be impossible.

Does having a working visa for teaching with TEFL grants the possibilities to work also "on your own" ?
Giving private lessons for example,in the case my skills only land me a work with thin hours or so poor salary

(To give private lessons in France for example,being a French i do not need ANYTHING to start this on my own,in China,this might be seen as illegal work...)

thanks
Cheers