Job Discussion Forums

[Kaixinsi]

Hello! My name is Kelsey and I have a Masters in TESOL. I also have an undergrad degree in Science/English education and Spanish. I have prior study abroad experience in China. My heart is in China and I would love to teach there.

I have been contacted by Wall Street English and they were interested in hiring me. But they told me I needed "two years of teaching experience." As hiring is frozen in the US and I have found it IMPOSSIBLE to secure full-time teaching employment, what can I do?

I have over 600 hours of tutoring, volunteer, and student teaching experience, which I may try to waive. EF was interested in me and they said if I can get a letter signed saying that I have the equivalent of two years teaching experience, they would accept it.

Any help here? Does anyone know how the heck to get around that "two years of teaching experience" requirement?

I have heard of people getting English jobs in China with NO experience. What the heck did they do?????!!!!

[MedellinHeel]

Not sure if srs.

Apply apply apply.

[Kaixinsi]

Yes, serious. Well, technically, I am almost done with my M.Ed in TESOL. I was hoping it would count for something in China, but I haven't been able to find ANY full-time teaching experience (hiring is FROZEN where I live, no one is hiring teachers) to take care of that requirement.

Still have no idea how the heck people got around that "two years experience" requirement...

I am also fearful of being scammed.

[choudoufu]

[Kaixinsi]

Thank you for the info! I am worried about being scammed but I will continue to look for teaching jobs in China.


Where is the best place to look for (reputable) jobs? What places in China are hiring most? Wall Street English turned me down, as I mentioned earlier.

[johntpartee]

[doogsville]

[Dan123]

[MedellinHeel]

you obviously are doing 1 or a combination of the below

1) Only looking for a certain type of job
2) Only looking for a job in x location
3) Not exhausting every search option
4) Coming off in some ill light (appearance, personality, etc)

[Bud Powell]

"...I have over 600 hours of tutoring, volunteer, and student teaching experience..."

Bingo. There's your experience. Get one or two professors to write letters of recommendation on university letterhead, and ask them to mention your tireless energy as a tutor and student teacher.

If you were a TA and a GA in college, that's well over two years' experience. That 600 hours tutoring equals OVER one year of class room experience. It's more difficult.

Get moving on the request for letters of recommendation. Most profs like to write them for good students, though they seem to put them off for as long as possible. You can probably write two separate "guidelines" and send them to your profs to help them out. BE SURE to get the letters of rec on university letterhead, and make sure that no addressee appears on the letter so you can copy it and use it over and over again.

[SledgeCleaver]

If you seriously have an MA in TESOL, then you should have student-taught. I mean, that's what it takes to get a license to teach ESL in the United States at public schools, which is certainly what an MA TESOL should qualify you to do.

Student-teaching is experience. Big-time. You should have been working full-time at a professional school, with a trained cooperating teacher, a trained principal, someone from the university observing you occasionally, etc. You can paint this as WAY better than someone who did an online TEFL and then happened to survive for two years at some school somewhere. If you have been trained as an educational professional, then make that impression (ie. play up your education and training) and you will find a job eventually. If you're qualified to teach in a U.S. public school, then it's hard to believe that any but the most picky Chinese language school would find you sheerly inadequate.

Your applying does seem a bit haphazard. Read up more about application and job search techniques, make sure your resume/CV is really professional (some job centers in U.S. cities will offer free seminars on this), learn how to write a "cover letter" (ie. basically the body of your email when you send your resume). Most of all, PLAY YOURSELF UP. Be positive about your experience and skill. Make shit up if you have to. Claim you do America Reads and read books to Mexican children twice a week. Claim you do Big Brother Big Sister and volunteer at school events. Then you talk about how you're excellent at working with children from many different cultures.

You speak Spanish? Did you study abroad? Even if not, claim you spent a summer teaching at a summer camp in Costa Rica or something. Or teaching your host family's children in English classes twice a week.

etc. etc. ...

Some schools are also just weird. I have well more than two years of teaching experience, but Wall Street English in Shanghai didn't want to hire me at first. They emailed me back several months later, asking me to take a job. In other words, don't take rejection too seriously. Maybe the hiring manager just didn't like you that day. Maybe they're flush. Don't put all your eggs in one basket.

[Big Worm]

You have experience. But anyway...


http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=106440

[Bud Powell]

"... that's what it takes to get a license to teach ESL in the United States at public schools..."

That and passing the Praxis test.

[thechangling]

With those Quals why not go apply to Saudi and get some decent dosh! And as others have said, pad out the C.V first!

[RWA1981]

You could get work in anywhere in China assuming you not missing any limbs, are not black nor muslim, don't weigh over 300 lbs and are not a wanted pedophile. But from you say you could get a much better paying job in Korea, Singapore, or 38 other countries that pay a lot better than China. See here and below http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2568362