Job Discussion Forums

[davpoolpro]

Hello everybody! Been a lurker for years, posting for the first time.

I'm having the hardest time finding out whether TEFL is required or not for university positions, even with the wealth of information out there.

My friend and I want to go to China to teach English at a university, preferably in Guangzhou, and most sources say that you only need a BA and 2 years teaching experience. I do have TEFL myself but my friend only has an MA and 4 years teaching experience but no TEFL. Can he get a teaching position at a university? Or have we hit a wall?

The reason I ask this is because during one of our interviews the HR person at a university said TEFL is a government requirement but we don't see this listed officially online. He went on to say that their university itself does not require a TEFL but, to get a Z visa, the government needs him to have it.

Please, see if you could help us out. Thanks in advance.

[OhBudPowellWhereArtThou]

Nobody has said anything to me about getting a TEFL certificate. I have an MA and an MFA and many years of teaching experience.

Just apply for jobs and see what the schools require. Find one that fits your qualifications.

[Non Sequitur]

I found my TEFL cert gave me a benchmark to judge how my lessons were going. Basic awareness of how much time I was speaking v student talk time.
Also judging when to go to the rescue of a student struggling to answer, but not crowding in too soon.
Worthwhile but not essential.
That said, rather than hold up your plans, look around for places that don't require a cert.

[james s]

Only have an MA. That makes me giggle. It's like china is the UAE or something...

Get the tefl as it is easier, a little experience helps. Degrees are the edge in places where spats are abundant. The ma may hook onto a uni and u at a language mill.

You can also market as a team. Depends on the school though.

[jimpellow]

I believe in the ever changing landscape of China's requirements that a recognized certification is now required at the government level. However, I believe "recognized" includes even an online TEFL. They are rarely deemed important in the PRC by employers.

Do NOT fall for the TEFL in China. I would just look for a decent online TEFL so at least you do learn something. Then you have it and need not worry about it.

[JeremyDay]

I'd go with an online TEFL. Try checking with groupon.com because they have some insane discounts for TEFL (i.e., $5).

I paid $50 (I think) when I did mine. I would have paid $5 if I had known about the groupon TEFL craze.

[davpoolpro]

Thank you all for the kind response. Even here, in these few comments, there seems to be opposing views.

The thing is my friend is working at two universities right now and can’t commit to 120 or more hours of online training which he believes, rightly, would bore him out of his mind. So he’s willing to join me in this journey only if he doesn’t have to get the certificate.

I understand some of you think he’ll still benefit from it. But the time constraint are serious at the moment. And with his 4 years of successful experience at two universities, I am confident to assume he’ll do well.

So, with the information regarding the TEFL requirements so uncertain, we’re left where we were. Is there any websites we can we check to get up-to-date info? Or is going to a Chinese embassy the only option?

Thanks again for all your help.

[doogsville]

With the new questionnaire type A, B or C visa, the TEFL cert may mean the difference between getting a visa or not. A 120 hour online course can be done in much less time than that. For each module you watch some videos and read some material and then submit an assignment. i to i do a 60 hour course which would be fine for visa purposes and which could probably be finished in half that time. How bored your friend gets depends on how much time he wastes on going through the material when all he really needs to do is submit the assignment for each stage of the course.

Of course, since your friend has so much experience already he doesn't necessarily need to do a course, but any newbies reading this should know that there is some value to doing a TEFL course if you've never taught before.

[spiral78]

[nomad soul]

[jimpellow]

This is related to the other recent TELF thread which you should look at.

Searching on this pops up the most information on recent job postings by recruiters. There certainly seems enough to think that the 120 hour certificate is now required. Some would argue that these are not official posts. My rebuttal would be that recruiters and most schools in China could care less about a certification, they only want to put a white face in front of the students. This is originating from above.

It is hard to know the specifics of what is required, but the biggest factor will be the province as to how this seemingly latest requirement is implemented with time.

"TEFL / TESOL / or CELTA certificate (of at least 120 hours) (*If CELTA only 3-6 months of teaching experience required.)"

"-At least two years solid classroom teaching experience.
- TEFL/TESOL/CELTA Certificate (120 hours)."

"More than 2 years teaching experience or 120 hours TEFL/TESOL/CELTA "

This sample shows you how they can vary, and being a new requirement, are likely to change. Some provinces likely do not require it all - as of now.

No mention if it can be done online. Knowing how deluded the Chinese are, my gut feeling is they will require it to be in-class eventually.

I tell everyone considering China the same thing these days. You need to have very strong reasons to teach in the PRC to go through all these hoops and expense for a payoff that generally includes low pay, stifling pollution and perhaps the world's most treacherous, inconsiderate and selfish human beings.

Best!

[JeremyDay]

I did mine in about 3 to 7 days? I can't exactly remember. I was able to get it done fairly quickly. Perhaps even faster than that.

As a piece of paper, I believe that it is helpful.

And it is even, as some have mentioned, helpful if you have never taught before... to some degree.

If your friend doesn't want to waste a few weeks on a $5 TEFL course online... do they really want to teach? At that price, there is no reason not to do it.

I have been asked once whether my TEFL was online or classroom based.

[Edward-SoCal]

I'm glad to see so many helpful posts in my friend David's thread. (Thank you, David, for starting this thread.) People here who seem to speak from experience and are so incredibly kind and generous with their time to help us out.

Obviously, I'm the guy he is talking about and I needed to join the discussion to clarify the reasons why I am trying to avoid getting that certificate, because the impression here seems to be that I'm either too lazy or don't care enough about this project... That's not really the case.

Here's what's going on.

David and I are both lecturing at a university in Eastern Europe and are good friends. We've been lecturing here for 4 years and have developed good teaching methods, inspiring each other through successful collaboration. We thought it would be fun to go and do this sort of stuff in some exotic place like Southern China for next year. So, we applied and now have an offer from a university in Guangzhou. We passed their interview and are about to sign the contract.

But here's the thing. During the job interview, we were told that the university itself does not require TEFL. The same person said I would need it to get the visa, though, but he didn't sound sure about that. Now the only rational thing to do for me is to find out whether I would need it for the visa or not from official sources. If I don't need it, then why bother getting the certificate?

I am not pursuing a career in teaching English to people in exotic countries, to be sure. Going back home (California) in a year to settle down with my wife and the two-year-old daughter. China is supposed to be one year of adventure, to get to know a new culture and to experience things...

Am I being unreasonable?

[jimpellow]

I always thought the original question was a wise one and showed good forethought.

As I mentioned above, these new requirements are often discovered once they start affecting people such as yourself.

Doing a quick search for Guangzhou I was able to find a few recent job ads that state a TEFL, CELTA etc... This makes me of the definite opinion that you will need to get a TEFL. It is going to be a real pain to do all the requirements being out of the US. This will add to the great expense in terms of time and money. I really don't think it is worth it for a one year commitment in particular.

The reality of how non-exotic China actually is will hit you as the airplane flies over the gray bleak landscape.

Why not try a more exotic locale with opportunities and simpler visa processes; Vietnam, Armenia, Japan, Colombia etc...

Best

[Edward-SoCal]