Job Discussion Forums

[cptgulliver]

Anyone in Vietnam now or has been? Could someone suggest some good schools to contact? What is the difference in supply/demand between the North and South?

[skarper]

Many many threads on this if you comb through the back pages of this site. I doubt anyone will bother opening up this topic again when so much is already there.

[mark_in_saigon]

I totally agree that it is much better for the organization of the site for any new poster to first do a search. He will almost always find the info there. If the relevant, existing thread just needs a bit more of an answer or an update to answer his very specific question that is not in the thread, he should still use that existing thread. It will then move to the top, so everyone will see it. More importantly, for every one person posting there is also a much larger number of readers who do not post but still want this info. Those readers can then also see all the other info from the previous thread, rather than just seeing this tidbit of new info that reluctantly gets answered. I personally am always far more motivated to respond to a thread of that nature, one that already has a large amount of info on it, rather than these little brand new ones that have already been well covered several times.

Finally, not following this process rather implies that the poster finds it easier to just ask than to search, implying his time is more valuable than the time of the people who respond. They likely have already put their valuable time into responding to this same issue in the past.

[VietCanada]

I thought new posters couldn't use the search function? In any event I've been using Dave's ESL cafe since May 2000 and I found that I cannot use the search function in Dave's latest incarnation.

Maybe a sticky with links would help?

I cannot answer these questions with absolute authority or accuracy. I can only provide an opinion based on my experience and that of others I've read, talked to, befriended or associated with. Pick another country if money is a serious concern.

If you have a teaching certification (B.Ed., M.Ed.) and a couple years teaching experience in your home country then you can work pretty much anywhere. If you have a B.A. or B.Sc. and additional certification- specifically CELTA, DELTA, TESOL or a 120 hr TEFL then you could find work here for $15 an hour provided you do a demo that satisfies the target school. It's possible to make more- $18 and even $30 perhaps but you would likely find that experience teaching here, contacts and a better demo are necessary. You might also get a work permit.

Just a bachelors or just an EFL/ESL certification is not enough for a work permit. Some doors would be closed to you. You probably have to leave the country every three months to renew your tourist visa and re-enter. This costs money of course.

In either case one school likely would not provide enough hours to generate much of an income. You'll need to work at two or three. You'll need to work 6 or seven days a week and or work shifts that start at 7am and finish at 9pm M-F.

You might be asked to do teaching duties such as prepare and grade tests and exams, progress reports but you won't be offered pay for this. Your pay is just contact hours. Holidays are unpaid. You'll need to save to support yourself and pay your bills during the two or three week TET holiday and perhaps X-mas week. Not to mention that public schools close during the summer which decreases the market for work in the summer.

Did I mention that this was not a great place to make money for your basic EFL teacher?

Hit the pavement to find work. E-mails just don't get much response. They probably can't read them.

This is a pretty good place to work for people with savings and/or a some other source of income. It is not such a terrific place for people trying to pay off debts back home or hoping to save money.

I'm not saying it can't be done. There are countries where you have to make a lot of mistakes not to save money or pay off debts then there is this country where you definitely need a variety of skills to make money.

[Durian Tango]

VietCanada:

I was under the impression there were a significant number of teachers here making $1800-2000 at the larger language schools like ILA, Apollo and VUS. That combined with a pretty low cost of living should mean that folks could save 100-500 dollars a month doesn't it? To clarify, this is about living and working in HCMC.

I've just arrived so I'm not up to speed yet on the realities on the ground.

[VietCanada]

[TimkinMS]

[Durian Tango]

Thanks for the replies.

TimkinMS:In my experience, many teachers work a full time job and then tend to throw in a few well paying private students on the side to top off their monthly income. Is this happening?

Also, is it common for teachers/other expats to rent a house together and share the rent, which would surely bring the cost down? I know older teachers may not be into this, but those in their twenties would surely prefer this.

VietCanada:You didn't recommend ILA - why not? And for teachers at Apollo, could they get more hours at their school or it maxes out at 20? Why wouldn't the school just hire less teachers and let their teachers work more?

[1st Sgt Welsh]

[VietCanada]

[1st Sgt Welsh]

[VietCanada]

[deadlift]

I know many teachers who share housing. It's extremely common, especially among the younger crowd. You can frequently see flatmate wanted ads on facebook groups and other websites. Some of my colleagues have lived in simply amazing houses by virtue of sharing the rent among 4-5 people.

I've never heard of anyone paying 3 months rent as a deposit on their house. If you really needed three months to find one, I really don't know what to say.

As far as the police go, it is necessary to register all occupants of a residence, both locals and foreigners. If the landlord doesn't have the right "relationship" with the ward police, they won't be able to register and thus you won't be able to live there legitimately. Having said that, it's not like entire neighborhoods are off-limits and I've never heard of anyone being refused or kicked out of a place.

[1st Sgt Welsh]

[sigmoid]