Job Discussion Forums

[Vaxa]

I am currently sitting my exams for my TEFL, 120 hours certificate, some of it face to face.

I have experience with young learners and teens, over 2 years however it was almost 5 years ago now.

Most of the positions I find require a degree of BA and above... However I read that it is easy to find a good teaching gig without a degree.

And this maybe so... But none of which I am able to obtainn the Z visa with. They all keep hitting out with tourist or student visas after a few chats with them.

Am I perhaps looking in the wrong cities where this matters more so than say a smaller province?

So I ask, does anyone know any good agencies for maybe more rural parts of China or places that do not require you to have a degree as much as the larger cities?


Thanks guys.

[SH_Panda]

Yes, you should be looking at smaller cities.

In my small city there are several teachers working at language mills who have no degree.

In small cities the language mill bosses are usually cosy with the local government and, well... guangxi means a lot here

[Bud Powell]

"... However I read that it is easy to find a good teaching gig without a degree..."

Sure. Give it a try and see what happens. Take a gander at ESLJobs.com. You may need to register.

[IWTFanAT]

The law REQUIRES what they call a four-year degree or its equivalent (since 3-year degrees come from that lame country, Britain).

Why do you think you should be able to sidestep the law or acquire special permission to do something in a country that isn't your own?

The law requires a degree - live with it. Why are you so desperate to go to China knowing you will already be in violation? Why can't you work at home and what makes China "the place to be?"

Work on the grammar of that post title/subject before you consider "teaching" English.

[The Voice Of Reason]

[Shanghai Noon]

Try Cambodia.

[kev7161]

IS there any jobS that do not require a degree?

I don't know; maybe a degree could be helpful.

[likwid_777]

It's not looking good for you if you want the Z visa. I did it a few years back, without a degree or TEFL certificate, and ended up on the tourist (and later business) visa.

I got booted out of China.

The gents here are giving you grief because your title should read "Are there any jobs that do not require a degree?". Perhaps the title of your thread could be "Is there a job for a teacher with no degree in China?".

"Are there any potatoes left?"

"Is there a potato left?

I'm studying a degree in B.Ed now. It seemed like a massive undertaking at its beginning, from a time perspective. Indeed, I've been poor for about three years whilst getting it done. But the time has gone quickly, and I'll be setting myself up for virtually any ESL job out there. My writing has improved so much that it's not funny. I had never been to university before, so my literacy had degraded, or at least not improved since high school. Now my English is much better, though not perfect. So it will be nice not to feel like a charlatan, to have a proper visa, and to have something more to offer professionally thanks to study. Additionally, you'll get to spend time with young people whose whole high school career was supplemented and/or dictated by social media, and as a result are seemingly from a different planet than slightly older people. Though perhaps you are younger and will find them more on your level.

In my case, I probably should have done a degree in a different field, gone and taught again, and then completed a Graduate Diploma in Education. That would be if I decided later that I really wanted to be a teacher. Because remember, while most people on this board seem to spruik having a B.Ed as the proverbial "duck's nuts", you can still teach abroad with almost any degree. If I had a Chernobyl meltdown after teaching abroad for a year or two, and was subsequently sworn off education as a result; I'd prefer a more financially viable qualification than an education degree. You can teach on an engineering degree abroad, get sick of teaching and come home to get a good paying job. However, if you end up despising teaching and have an Ed degree, you'll probably be rather peeved.

Cambodia, as mentioned by Shanghai Noon, might be the place to go. However, I'm not sure if I'd really want to teach in Cambodia. I haven't been there, but it sounds pretty crazy. It seems to attract pork chop expats, and there even seems to be quite a few deaths among the expat community there. It will probably give you some wild stories to tell later in life, but to participate in a scene such as this will probably burn you out, give you a bad impression of teaching, and possibly an opiate addiction. Apparently, you can still teach in Laos without a degree, and that's a place which I've been to. I think it will be difficult for you to get a well paying job there without a degree though. Laos is already awash with a rather peculiar mix of travellers, and is not without its problems. The problems associated with Laos are basically the polar opposite of the (reported) problems of Cambodia, or at least a "less developed" or toned down version.

Apparently all ASEAN countries will require teachers to have degrees by 2015. So if you want to do this, get in quick. As with all things in (most of) Asia, there will still be back doors and side entrances. But, if it's already this difficult to secure a job without a degree in Asia, how appealing do you think those "under the table" jobs will be?

[Buckeye Bob]

Why not start your own business in China tutoring or teaching sports, or becoming a vendor? Find someone to get you an invitation letter and work as an intern for 90 days and then use that time in China to register a HK company and employ yourself. What experience and skill sets do you have? What is your budget (You will need some money to open a bank account and deposit 'registered capital" ) You may or may not want to seek out a Chinese business major student as a local Chinese minority partner and he/she can help you with all the bureaucratic forms, permits, etc.