Job Discussion Forums

[shoeprozac]

I keep seeing job advertisements where a main requirement seem to be that one is a "native" speaker and/or that one hold a passport from AU, CA, NZ, SA, UK, US

I have seen this requirement for jobs in Middle East, SE Asia, Russia... and the list goes on.

I wonder if these are "legal" requirements, or does it mean that they want your command of English to be equivalent of mother tongue. (I've tried to search the forums for an answer, but may be I should have tried harder)

The reason for asking is that I intend to do my CELTA next year, and I wonder whether my "Scandic" passport will disqualify me for a large proportion of the jobs that are advertised. (I do understand that I have to start "somewhere", but will this become a major hindrance for good employment opportunities after I gain a few years experience?)

Some background: I'm female, 40+. I have a European passport, lived in London for +15 years, and did my undergraduate degree in the UK. If it makes sense I'd be quite happy aiming for a Delta or a Masters in a few years, but not if large segments of the market is closed to me. Career wise I'm not the work hard, play hard type - more the work hard, go faffing for a while

A personal "wish- list", my top areas to work in would be SE Asia, the "-stans" or the Mahgreb, not in a particular order. Long story, but that would be my wishlist

thanks in advance:)

[spiral78]

In some places this is a legal requirement for teaching the language - you might post in, for example, the general ME forum below to find out for certain.

As a European citizen, you're obviously legally eligible to work in the EU. So far as I am aware, there is no EU member country that legally requires native speaker status, and I personally know a number of non-native speaker teachers in the region. In fact, the universities where I work make an explicit effort to keep a balance of native/non-native English speakers on staff, recognizing that each brings different strengths to the table.

So, for Europe, you should have reasonable opportunities. Again, suggest you visit the region/country specific forums below for info on Asia and ME, etc.

[nomad soul]

[Grenouille]

Hi. Our school in Russia is legally only able to apply for invitations to teachers who hold a passport from AU, CA, NZ, SA, UK, US (I'm not 100% sure about SA). If we, for example, apply for an invitation for a teacher who holds a passport from EU or other countries, it would be rejected. Maybe this is something that is decided when the school applies for the quota for the number of invitations they can get for teachers each year. I guess if the school teaches other languages (besides English), they can probably invite teachers from those other countries. I hope this helps you.

[shoeprozac]

Many thanks for replies, much appreciated:)

[MuscatGary]

I'm in Oman in a Higher Ed College and we have loads of non-native teachers of English.