Job Discussion Forums

Firearcher · Joined: 04 Jun 2007 Posts: 35

Regarding a typical ESL Job in Vietnam:

Can someone please tell me the details for the following (On Average)

Salary Range:
Hours Worked Per Week
OT Rate if any
Cost of Housing? Free or not:
Pension: Yes / No

I've never worked in Vietnam and many jobs I see fail to mention these things.

Thank You

London Bridge · Joined: 06 May 2008 Posts: 34

We need more information from you.

What is your education? Training? EFL experience? EFL qaulifications?

shanewarne · Joined: 21 Feb 2008 Posts: 146

MrMrLuckyKhan · Posted: Sat May 16, 2009 4:54 am Post subject: Re: Salaries & More

saigon cowboy · Joined: 24 Apr 2009 Posts: 84

I know guys that have been here for years only making 12 or 13 an hour. They like the school and know how to live cheap. As for me I would not work for that salary, but to each his own.

We must all find our comfort zone.

I don't need a 100 million dong honda 150 either, but i have seen a few new teachers driving them. Sheesh....for 100 million dong you could buy 8 new honda waves, or 3 tricked out Attilas with chrome trim.

My point is.... enjoy your money and your time here.

Green Acres · Joined: 06 May 2009 Posts: 260

I almost had a laugh about the pension and other benefits.... Very Happy

It all depends on the job, and your lifestyle. There is no safety net here, and many laws and practices that protected foreigners working and living here in the past have been abandoned.

MrMrLuckyKhan · Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 1:46 pm Post subject:

Magic8ball · Joined: 08 May 2009 Posts: 27 Location: HCMC

Firearcher · Joined: 04 Jun 2007 Posts: 35

[quote="London Bridge"]We need more information from [u]you.[/u]

What is your education? Training? EFL experience? EFL qaulifications?

[quote="Firearcher"]Regarding a typical ESL Job in Vietnam:

Can someone please tell me the details for the following (On Average)

Salary Range:
Hours Worked Per Week
OT Rate if any
Cost of Housing? Free or not:
Pension: Yes / No

I've never worked in Vietnam and many jobs I see fail to mention these things.

Thank You[/quote]

If people ask about salary, then I think teaching is not the priority. Of course, asking about salary is important.

Over-time? We are not in the West.

Pension? This is a cash job. If there was a pension, what pension fund would it be in? The foreign teacher pension fund, administered by whom?[/quote]

I work in another country and wanted to compare Vietnam with it. I was asking for information purposes only. Of course salary is a factor but not the only one.

My qualifications are standard:

TEFL plus a 4 yr University degree. I gather that makes me an average teacher in Vietnam but I don't know.

I have heard that typical salaries are about $1200 USD monthly.

eddiek1syou · Joined: 08 May 2008 Posts: 23 Location: Out there

I know non-native speaking teachers without college degrees that get paid roughly $1200 a month working part time. Unless you're lazy you should be able to manage $2000-2400 if you work at 2 schools, but there's always the shit factor of having split shifts. Or you could just work at 1 place full time.

I wouldn't say the standard qualifications are a 4-year degree and teaching certificate. The standard qualifications for a lot of schools is a.) being white b.) being a liar. Anything on top of that will better your chances of landing a job at some of the more highly regarded schools.

rainman1 · Joined: 07 Jun 2009 Posts: 7

Hi all,

How difficult do you think it would be for me to find a job in Vietnam as a minority?

Green Acres · Joined: 06 May 2009 Posts: 260

Define "minority?"

Anglo-saxons are minorities in Vietnam, and it's pretty easy for them to get jobs.

It's a good question, and I'm not making fun, it's just that there is a relative attitude towards minorities here.

Most schools have a 3 tiered hiring policy, which means that Vietnamese nationals may earn 33% of what Caucasians earn. Some other minorities here, such as Filipinos may earn 50% of what Caucasians earn. One of the schools that I have worked for has employed an African-American male (kudos for them!) and he earns the same as Caucasians (I believe). Even though he is a great teacher, some students will not accept him as their teacher, which decreases his hours sometimes. I know of another school that has employed a gentleman from Nigeria, and I also know a Mexican and a Brazilian who work in the ESL field in HCMC.

Feel free to PM if you have any more questions.