ESL Master's

[bsinsc]

So, I've been doing some thinking during this whole pandemic and might like to retire from my museum director position. I am looking at trying to find a legitimate teaching job from home. Maybe teaching ESL. Does anyone know anything about this? Do I need a master's? Maybe Certificate? Has anyone done this? I have never taught formally before but am ready for something new.

[HogwartsSchool]

So, I've been doing some thinking during this whole pandemic and might like to retire from my museum director position. I am looking at trying to find a legitimate teaching job from home. Maybe teaching ESL. Does anyone know anything about this? Do I need a master's? Maybe Certificate? Has anyone done this? I have never taught formally before but am ready for something new.

You need a TESOL certificate, most of the time its for International countries where there is a high demand to learn English. Pay is limited.

[lmwaters]

So, I've been doing some thinking during this whole pandemic and might like to retire from my museum director position. I am looking at trying to find a legitimate teaching job from home. Maybe teaching ESL. Does anyone know anything about this? Do I need a master's? Maybe Certificate? Has anyone done this? I have never taught formally before but am ready for something new.

You definitely have some options. You can pursue a Masters degree in TESOL or ESL or just obtain a graduate certificate in the subject. There are plenty of colleges and universities that offer them. On Groupon, there are companies that offer an online TESOL/TEFL certification that are inexpensive and takes much less time. Some companies that come to mind are TEFL Fullcircle and International Open Academy (their TESOL certification course). There are plenty of other online and in-person training options in addition to those two options. There is also something called CELTA, which is a top of the line, one month program that focuses on teaching English as a Foreign Language. The CELTA program is in-person and full-time for the month that you take it. If you decide to pursue your TESOL certification online, watch out especially since you haven't taught in the classroom or online. Teaching English is an unregulated industry. Some companies are very good with their online TESOL/TEFL and others aren't. Some claim dubious accreditation and others don't. When deciding which program you want to train from, find out if the online program will show how to create and present a lesson or have you create one at the end of the program and then evaluate you on it. If it doesn't, you may want to pass on it since you've never taught online or in the classroom before. That feedback is very useful to some one new to teaching. With your credentials right now, you could also apply to VIPKIDS or Cambly. If VIPKIDS accepts you, they would teach you how to teach TESOL/TEFL online and you would earn your TESOL certificate through them. Cambly basically takes any native English speaker as one of their tutors regardless of academic credentials but the pay is very low. You will, however, get experience with teaching and talking with foreign students. There are also a few companies that offer free online TESOL training. One of them is on the CANVASS platform. I can't think of the name at the moment; however, if you do a search of the courses on CANVASS platform, it will come up. The other free online TESOL trainings are called TEFL Professional Development Institute and English First Free TEFL certification programs. I don't know how good both of those training programs are but free is a good price to pay--plus, you learn something. Another option is Literacy Volunteers of America, which teaches tutors some English as a Second language technique in a 18 hour course. It is a volunteer opportunity, but after the training, you get a chance to tutor ESL and decide if it's something that you want to do without a lot of investment of time or money.  Well, I apologize for overwhelming you, but it does give you something to think about. Good luck!

[bsinsc]

Ok, that is a lot of information....I guess what I need to find out as well...what does it pay? I still need money but I am hoping to leave my current job.

[lmwaters]

Ok, that is a lot of information....I guess what I need to find out as well...what does it pay? I still need money but I am hoping to leave my current job.

While this list doesn't include all salaries and qualifications for online TEFL/TESOL teachers, it does give you an idea what the going rates are for various companies. 

https://www.teachaway.com/blog/teach-eng...e-best-pay

Cambly is at the low end of the pay scale (about $10-$11 per hour); however, with the Master's degree that you already have, I'm sure that you can expect higher pay elsewhere. I only suggested Cambly or some volunteer opportunities in the previous post so that you get some teaching experience under your belt if you have the time to do that with your current job. However, if you get sponsored through a website such as VIPKIDS, you could earn $22-$25 per hour. A teacher who currently works for VIPKIDS can mentor you during the application process. If you go on YouTube and look at the videos regarding online TESOL/TEFL teachers, you'll notice that some current teachers will sponsor an applicant for VIPKIDS, which helps new applicants get trained, certified, and hired to teach ESL for their companies. I'm sure other TESOL/TEFL companies do the same. I'm just not sure which ones. 

Another thing to know about teaching online TESOL/TEFL: When you work for most of the TESOL/TEFL companies online, you are considered an independent contractor. Many online TEFL/TESOL are not owned by Americans: therefore, you could see a 1099 or 1099 Misc at the end of the year since you're considered self-employed. Of course, this means that you will owe taxes instead of getting a refund and affects your net salary. It's definitely something to consider when determining your salary requirements. 

I hope this helps. Good luck!

[bjcheung77]

Since you already have a Bachelors, that's the main criteria for most online TEFL/TESOL positions, you should be in good shape. The TEFL or TESOL certificates are just icing on the cake, you really don't need to spend too much cash/energy/time on them, I would just get one from Groupon cheap - something like 120-160 hours and leave it at that. I wouldn't spend too much on something that doesn't provide much ROI.

[PrettyFlyforaChiGuy]

I was a teacher after undergrad in several East Asian countries and used to be part of a hiring committee. We cared about if the candidate was personable and eager to teach, so lack of classroom experience won't necessarily be disqualifying. No Master's-level degree is required for online teaching staff since training will definitely be provided--I actually just helped deliver a training program for a large group online teachers based in Australia last night. Having positive energy and patience on-camera will be the most invaluable things for you.

To stand out from the crowd, consider picking up a TEFL/TESOL/IELTS certificate. Even those 120-hour courses that are very cheaply available on Groupon will help distinguish you and show your initial dedication to education. Udemy courses in TOEFL/IELTS Speaking, which is an in-demand skill among Chinese students eager to go abroad, can also bolster your application. Either way, hope to hear more about your exciting new journey soon!

Edit: I'm going to agree with bjcheung77 above about not needing to expend too much time or energy on certificates, since even an affordable Groupon cert can propel you forward.

[bsinsc]

Thanks so much!

[LongRoad]

Don't know if this will appear correctly, but here is another source of information/opinion. https://www.nomadicmatt.com/teaching-english/

[PrettyFlyforaChiGuy]

Don't know if this will appear correctly, but here is another source of information/opinion. https://www.nomadicmatt.com/teaching-english/

The author doesn't mention anything on online education, but if it helps, his info about the industry in Japan is a great overview. I went there through the JET Programme, and the application process took about half a year in total. The great news is that working from home isn't going to require jumping through hoops like a show dog.