May 8th, 2018
How to Become an Online English Teacher
Many people have asked me about this so I have decided to make a post about it. There are two things you can get that will increase your chances of finding a good online ESL job; an ESL certificate (TESL/TEFL/TESOL or CELTA) and a bachelor’s degree.
The CELTA certificate is given by “Cambridge English Language Assessment” and it has a good reputation, I have heard that some companies require you to have this certificate and not the TESL. The course to get the Cambridge CELTA is more intensive and usually more expensive than a TESL course. There are many options for getting these certificates. The CELTA course is a face-to-face class whereas you can take TESL course online. Click here to see where you can take the CELTA course. The University of Toronto offers one of the best online TESL courses. They have a great reputation and the prices are comparable to most other organizations. The International TEFL Academy offers top-of-the-line accredited TEFL training courses online & in 25 locations worldwide. They also provide comprehensive lifetime job search guidance with incredible resources for finding employment opportunities both for teaching English online and teaching English abroad. Learn more & download your free guide to teaching English online here.
A bachelors degree is also quite useful when looking for a job. Many companies require that their teachers have this. I won’t say that it is mandatory but your chances of getting a good job are dramatically increased with a university degree.
The other factor that will determine what kind of job you can get is teaching experience. In fact if you have a lot of English teaching experience, a company might not require you to have a TESL or CELTA certificate. Experience teaching children or online teaching experience could be even more valuable depending on what company you are applying to.
12 Comments
Kondelelani Jofinis
Hi
I’m new in this online teaching. I would like to take part and assist learners in English. I’m a non native English speaker from Zimbabwe with 10 years teaching experience. I have a BEd in English and in the process of attaining a TESL certificate. Would anyone hire me.
mikedveenstra@gmail.com
Hi Knodelelani, your options are limited if you live in Zimbabwe. However, it never hurts to send out some resumes. Try applying to companies on this list: https://www.goodairlanguage.com/non-native/
Best of luck!
sandra trailovic
I have been teaching English in a primary school in Serbia for 11 years. I have a degree ( Master professor of the English language and literature) I would like to teach English online. Would anyone hire me? 😀
mikedveenstra@gmail.com
Yes I think companies would hire you. You have a lot of experience and a university degree, so why not try applying to some companies who hire non-native English speaking teachers?
https://www.goodairlanguage.com/non-native/
Thirza Moore
Hi there
I have applied to a number of Chinese companies for an online teaching job, but without success. I have a degree, a Postgraduate Certificate in Education as well as a 150hr Master Tefl/Tesol certificate. I am 59yrs of age, and a South African. I am wondering if my age is counting against me, or what can I do to improve my chances?
mikedveenstra@gmail.com
It is hard to say why you are having trouble finding a teaching job. Some of these companies are ageist others don’t hire South Africans because of internet speed or electricity issues. I would recommend trying some European companies.
raymond a ringhoff
I am new at this online teaching so I am doing some research to get answers. I do have my 120 hour tosel certificate an a BBA degree. also I am a native English speaker.
any help will be much appreciated. need to know how to find out such places who want to have teachers for them an then they get clients. My background is quite diversified only because of my age which I hope will not be negative. I feel having worldly experiences is a key for teaching. need some guidance if that’s possible
mikedveenstra@gmail.com
Hi Raymond, it really depends on the company. Some companies require a bachelor’s degree and a TESOL certificate, other companies only want native speakers. It also depends on who you want to teach; children or adults. Your schedule is also important as there are many companies in China.
Checkout our main list of companies: https://www.goodairlanguage.com/teaching-english-online-2/
And the list of companies that are definitely hiring now: https://www.goodairlanguage.com/now-hiring/
Stefaun Holland
I have an associates degree in Korean and can speak it quite well. I really want to teach english to koreans but I don’t know who will hire me with just an AA. Can someone please help me?
Jannine Umana
Hello I would like to teach English on line. I do not have a bachelor degree. I am about to start a Class with Cambridge
CELTA in Noosa. Australia. Will this be enough to get me a job?
mikedveenstra@gmail.com
Hi Jannine, I think many companies will hire you because you are a native speaker. There are some who are looking for university students to teach at least… check the main list here http://www.goodairlanguage.com/teaching-english-online-2/ and send out some resumes and see what happens.
Elizabeth Esther Rosenbaum
I m currently studying TEFL course and keen to do this while studying.