tefl general

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Anon05/11/26, 23:02No.2881366

Won't count for much on a resume if you come back home. Flights home are long. People who've never done it like to shit on it online. Outside of that, I've had worse jobs for sure.

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Anon05/12/26, 01:24No.2881383

>I'm a loser so I'm going to Vietnam Another one! No wonder people there watch and shit talk foreigners.

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Anon05/12/26, 01:40No.2881386

It's way harder than being a burger flipper wagey and pays less. If you're bad with money it's good because it puts you in a low cost of living location where you can't spend it. If you're good with money it's better to be a sous chef at Wendy's in Portland or whatever and be totally free when you travel

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Anon05/12/26, 03:41No.2881403

The golden years are long gone. The weebs that do it in Japan are in absolute poverty. Because the cost of living is so low in Vietnam, you might be able to afford a better life there. Even then, you will still be pretty poor. I'd be surprised if you'd break 2k USD there. That being said, I'd rather have 2k in Vietnam than Japan. I tutor online full-time at $24 hr which is decent as long as you don't live in a western country. I'm planning to start an online master's program in the fall for either Instructional Design or Education Technology.

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Anon05/12/26, 10:23No.2881430

I work in Thailand. I make about 120k baht after tax and get quite a bit of vacation. My job is pretty chill; four hours of teaching per day (I usually give them breaks and end up teaching less), no office or admin work, I can come in late and leave early, and don't have a supervisor. Thai labor law also gives us 30 sick days no questions asked, so I just take off if I don't feel like coming to work. It's a great job but they have high requirements and do expect good results. I have a DELTA and a masters. Bangkok is a bit of a concrete jungle. I like it here but I wouldn't want to settle down.It's a great job/lifestyle if you upskill and distinguish yourself from the riffraff. Otherwise you're stuck in burger flipping hell for the rest of your life. Vietnam is okay if you're just starting out but the cities will wear you out after a while. I lived there for 4 years and my wife is Vietnamese. Wages are getting worse and a lot of the better jobs have dried up. International school teaching can also be a good option if you're willing get the qualifications, but it's getting increasingly competitive and there are probably more shit international schools than language schools.Anyways I would say just go for it and see what happens. If you're unhappy you can always go home.

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Anon05/12/26, 12:14No.2881440

Does burger flipping anon have a point? I'm very frugal but I can't deal with being at the bottom of the hierarchy at my age of 30. I *feel like less of a loser over in Vietnam. I'm a hard worker but my body is falling apart. ADHD.

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Anon05/12/26, 18:59No.2881514

I am thinking about going to Asia to do TEFL, only thing is idk about handling being away from home for a year, i'm 32 so I feel like my clock is ticking for this sort of thing, and I have done a few 2 month stint trips abroad. I work freelance so nobody will give a shit if I disappear for a year in Asia. Anons who have done TEFL before, what was the experience like? Good? bad? fun? Need a little reprieve from the US for a while.

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Anon05/12/26, 20:49No.2881536

My balls stink up whatever room I'm in

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Anon05/12/26, 22:13No.2881549

I got offered a TEFL+history teacher job at an elementary school in Beijing, 22k RMB/month which is like 3200 dollars I'm 22 and graduated this year, don't really want to do it because it seems like a dead end

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Anon05/13/26, 01:37No.2881569

OP here. I'm starting to get cold feet. I don't want to come back even more unhirable than now. Is staying here in the US working as a hotel night desk staff for $13/hr better? I can live with family.

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Anon05/13/26, 14:57No.2881669

Does a year of tefl look better on a resume than fast food or retail?

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Anon05/13/26, 17:54No.2881686

Does Tefl even gove you enough time to venture out on the weekends or days off to explore the country you are in? From what I have read the cram schools in asia work you like a dog all week until you are so tired you can't do anything but sleep. How true is this?

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Anon05/14/26, 07:27No.2881789

Well I ended up doing this unintentionally because I got private gigs and could network with them to get more students and at 40 to 50 per hour I made a good salary working part time. I'd use this experience to get certification and then try tutoring richer kids, that's where the money is.For example you work for one wealthy family playing and monitoring their children, they provide housing, travel, and on average 6k monthly. Most I've seen go from 4-8k.But it's hard to secure this job And if you are a loser well...

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Anon05/14/26, 22:46No.2881899

are there any good entry level TEFL countries in europe?almost all the asian countries will take anyone with a bachelor's degree and a pulse but most of the european countries seem to want people with more experience and extra credentials

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Anon05/15/26, 20:46No.2882046

Is it actually easier to get a TEFL job in a Tier 2 Chinese city than in HCMC? I have honestly some of the worst work experience ever.

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Anon05/16/26, 01:12No.2882086

it's good. probably the easiest way to have a career abroad. as long as you have a bachelor's, and at least get a CELTA, Vietnam is definitely the place to be. you can earn at least $3,000 a month and work your way up from there

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Anon05/16/26, 13:44No.2882172

is non-JET english teaching in japan really the nightmare that people online make it out to be? i've almost been convinced that you shouldn't bother teaching english in japan if it's not with JET, but they're notoriously competitivei know i won't be making a lot of money, i just want to experience living in japan for a year or two while working a fairly chill job.

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Anon05/18/26, 19:58No.2882700

AHHH Chatgpt and Gemini have completely opposite answers to this question. Is TEFL or fast food for a year better for getting a seasonal tax prep job in the US?

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Anon05/20/26, 13:26No.2883125

AHHH WTF. BOTH DEGREE AND BACKGROUND CHECK NEED TO BE FEDERALLY APOSTILELD? FUCK THIS SHIT. HOW DO YOU EVEN MAKE A PROFIT

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Anon05/20/26, 13:54No.2883131

Not OP, but this seems like a better place to ask than killing another thread. I should be finishing up my Bachelors either at the end of this year or the end of next (there is some admin stuff on the backend that may push a unit to Semester 2 2027) and am considering applying for JET. Degree is in Professional Writing and Editing with a minor in Japanese. However, I have some concern that my application may look poor as I have been in unskilled blue-collar work while working through this degree part time (trucking specifically, previously worked in a computer shop and various service jobs) and while I see a lot of talk of "JET don't just want professional students they want people with life experience," a lot of the examples that I see cited for "life experience" are things like exchange student trips, volunteering in an office and the like. Additionally, as my university work has been non-contact (at a top 200 university, not just a diploma mill, but still online study) I am concerned about my referees being a trucking office boss that I see maybe three or four times a year and lecturers that couldn't pick me out of a police lineup. How do I go about addressing this? I need to work to support myself towards the end of this degree, I seem to meet the description of what JET looks for in an applicant (long-running interest and some experience with Japan and the Japanese language, broad range of life experience, not a weeb or pest, would like to work in Japan for a few years but then likely return to my home country and start climbing the government ladder) but I hold serious reservations about how I may convince them that I am not just a truck driver with a degree.

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Anon05/28/26, 02:51No.2885053

Is a Master's in TESOL worth the effort?

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Anon05/30/26, 16:51No.2885708

Wanted to post in this thread and get opinions on my situation.I currently have an MA in Film Studies (I know, don't worry, it was fully funded and I'm in no debt). My BA was in Creative Writing and Film Production (Double majored).Starting in August, I am going to take a program to get a second master's degree that will also give me a teaching certificate in teaching Literature for grades 7-12. After that I'll have to do at least 3 years of teaching school to get the professional certificate (That's how New York State works, although I can just substitute teaching for all of those 3 years). I'll be about 34 when I complete all of this.Depending if I am able to get a good job in a good school or not, I think after I might do TEFL. I think after I'm done with my second Masters and during those 3 years of required teaching I'll get the CELTA.I know there's international teaching, but as other anons said in this thread, it can be pretty competitive. I'm curious if I just do TEFL how good a job I would get with my degrees and experience. I was thinking of doing Japan first but with how bad the economy there is, I think my goal would be China. But I'm not opposed to any of East Asia.Give me your opinions.

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Anon05/31/26, 16:42No.2885925

is being a TEFL teacher abroad generally a chill job? I really want a break from the stressful corporate world, I don't want to have to think about project deadlines or attend teams meetings

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Anon06/02/26, 04:54No.2886223

What is the tax and banking situation like for an American who is working in a foreign country and earning in foreign currency? Working in America seems much simpler from that respect, even if it does mean the dreaded ordeal of physically returning to America every year to scrounge around for work. Tax filing for a simple job in America takes about 20 minutes. Refund, bam! Finished.And if for some reason you do get deported and blacklisted from a country, what happens if you have a bunch of foreign currency sitting in a local bank account?

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Anon06/13/26, 12:56No.2888805

will people think i'm a loser for doing a TEFL stint in my late 20s? I feel like it's mostly fresh grads in their early 20s

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Anon06/16/26, 16:23No.2889380

How much for this one

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Anon06/17/26, 13:05No.2889556

China pays the most out of all of Asia. Only setback is the risks involved, if you’re american. But it’s more humiliating dancing monkey stuff, unless you get a serious teaching job like subject teaching, high school, university (usually low paying), etc.Vietnam is similar. I got a job at one of those dancing monkey English chains a long time ago and got fired right after my ‘training’, lel. I don’t know what the CoL is like in Nam these days, or what the salaries are. I’m assuming they haven’t changed much and it’s slightly more expensive but still affordable.From what I’ve been told, South Korea has little to no dancing monkey crap but the salaries are low. Never taught there.

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Anon06/18/26, 15:44No.2889851

The only worthwhile place to do it is China. Nowhere pays good now except there. I saved 1k a month without trying, came back home with over 20k GBP.I did it in Taiwan too and it was hell. The kids are cunts and they're locked in school 24/7. Money is dog shit and you'll have to work at 3 or 4 different companies just to make ends meet. You'll also pay 20% tax for 6 months every year. There's also a ton of unpaid work you're expected to do.I had to share a house with Taiwanese people. It was fucking abysmal. I didn't go there to live as I lived back home. Salaries haven't changed in 10 years. If you think money doesn't matter cos you're abroad and it's fun, wait until you can't afford to buy more booze or go out to restaurants and you're miles from home in an alien land.

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Anon06/30/26, 13:05No.2893305

>vietnam lol lmao even

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Anon07/04/26, 15:09No.2894165

I did TEFL in Europe so my answers will differ from Asian TEFLs. Most of the older teachers I met in my stint told me the glory days were pretty much over in the EU and the only place you could still make and save money was in Asia.If you're a native speaker and a woman you'll probably get pigeonholed as a nanny or kindergarten tier teacher for rich parents who want their kids to speak with an English/American accent. Working with kids is the worst imo, if you're somewhat competent you really want to teach classes for adults but the expectations are much higher. If you're a man with other work experience it's pretty easy to specialize in business English which guarantees you more regular work.I did the latter and the TEFL schools I "worked" for ended up just being my "agent" that set up online classes for me and Spanish engineers, programmers or MBAs. I just taught online, made my own lessons and went to pick up an envelope of cash every month instead of dealing with retarded ESL administrators. I had a couple in-person one on one lessons as well and in all business English lessons are the fucking best and easiest if you're a competent teacher. I even parlayed my experience as an "Business English consultant" with some major corporations to get a normie corporate administrative job later on.Another TEFL space you'd want to corner is Cambridge exam preparation. Academies only want native speakers because ESLs are limited by whatever their certified proficiency level is so teaching the highest tiers (C1/C2) can only be done by native speakers in practice. Your first class will fail (RIP to my first exam students lmao) but if you were good at taking tests in school you'll figure out the macro quickly and just drill students until they pass.

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Anon07/04/26, 15:21No.2894172

Teach privately for actually good money, parents network and beg you to take on their kids

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Anon07/05/26, 01:47No.2894247

I just got my tefl cert. USA citizen currently goofing off in Thailand. Have applied to various tefl jobs here in Bangkok but the pay is definitely on the low end and the selection isn't great. Lots of smaller language schools feel somewhat unprofessional and most of the real schools just want kindergarten teachers.Anyway I'm applying to tefl jobs in China now. Pay is much better there. I don't have experience yet, we'll see where this goes. I didn't have much going on back in the states. 29 years old.Pic related was sent to me by a Chinese recruiter, not gonna take this job and the pay is low compared to training centers in bigger cities but it gives you an idea.

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Anon07/09/26, 21:22No.2895233

ching chong

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Anon07/09/26, 21:58No.2895241

How good or shit is China to do tefl? I talked to some schools there, seems like the pay is good, will I just be a dancing white nigger monkey? What cities should I try to teach in and is it even worth doing?

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Anon07/24/26, 06:49No.2898415

pov you're teaching english in japan

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