Are you looking to teach English in China, and are you looking for some essential information on how to go about it?
You’ve come to the right place!
Here’s information about the requirements, available school types, and what we look for in candidates.
Let’s dive right in, and start with the requirements
For positions teaching English, you need to be a graduate (any degree discipline) from the UK, Ireland, US, New Zealand, Australia, Canada or South Africa, be able to provide a clean background check, and a have a TEFL/CELTA/TESOL certificate (these are qualifications about teaching English, which you can obtain through us after joining the program).
In addition to positions teaching English, we occasionally offer positions teaching German, Spanish or Italian in China. These positions are open to native speakers in those languages, who have a degree (in any degree discipline). As you will also be teaching English classes from time to time, it’s essential you also speak fluent English, and that you have a neutral accent.
We also offer jobs teaching physics, biology and maths. These jobs are open to applicants from all nationalities that have a degree in these subjects. Here too, speaking fluent English with a neutral accent is essential.
You do NOT need to have any prior teaching experience, or any knowledge of Mandarin.
School types
For applicants that have not taught in China before, there are three key school types on offer:
State schools
State school hours are 5 days a week, from Monday to Friday. Times vary from school to school, though tend to be from around 07:30am or 8am until between 3pm and 4pm. At most state schools you teach 18-25 periods of 45-50 minutes each. You usually see the same group of students twice per week, and the average class size is 40-50 students per class. We offer state school jobs working with all age groups: primary school, middle school, high school, and university.
The school year runs in a similar way as in the UK, starting in September and ending in June/July. Foreign teaches at state schools have a very comfortable schedule, with plenty of time off to explore during national holidays.
At a state school, you earn 8,000 – 15,000 RMB per month (depending on location) plus free housing.
Private kindergartens
Like with state schools, hours at a kindergarten are during regular school hours, for 5 days a week, from Monday to Friday. Times vary from school to school, though tend to be from around 7:30am or 8am until between 3pm and 4pm. The school year is September to July, and as these are private kindergarten, you get a bit less holiday than at state school. But you still get 5 weeks of paid holiday, so there’s plenty of time to travel. The average class size is 15 children per class, who are 3-5 years old.
At kindergartens, you work closely with two other Chinese teachers. It’s your role to lead the class roughly 1 hour per day, with the other teachers leading the rest of the time. When you are not the main teacher, you play with the children and help your colleagues manage the class.
Education in kindergartens tends to centre around playing games and developing basic skills that will prepare them to begin their primary education. Parents send their children to kindergartens where they can take classes and play games with a native English to learn English from an early age. Parents that send their children to international kindergartens are often internationally minded people that speak good English themselves, which means that part of your duties include speaking to the parents at the gate, and during parent evenings.
At a kindergarten you can expect a salary of 15,000-18,000 RMB per month, plus free housing.
Private training centres
Private training centres are schools that offer after school tuition, so the schedule is very different to other schools. Teachers usually work from Wednesday to Sunday, with the work being after school hours Wednesday- Friday, and 9-5 on Saturday and Sunday.
Such schools follow their own curriculum and give their teachers quite a bit of freedom to teach according to their skills and interests. You work as part of a team of 8-10 foreign teachers per school, and the average class size is about 12 students. Age groups vary, but the majority are younger children under 12.
Holiday periods are the busiest for such schools, meaning you are instead given time off at other points in the year. However, you get 5 weeks paid holiday during the year at a time of your choosing.
At a training centre, you can expect a salary of 16,000-17,000 RMB per month, plus a housing allowance of 2500 RMB.
What we look for in candidates
Confidence
Taking on a class as the main teacher can be a daunting task if you haven’t done it before, it certainly was for us! But it’s important to remember that you would have passed several rounds of interviews, and the school chose you, knowing that you may not have taught a class before. They did that because being a native speaker, interacting with you is incredibly beneficial for students. Simply hearing your voice, and having you help them with their pronunciation, helps the students progress. Hearing all about where you are from and your culture, will spark their interest in English, and motivate them to learn more English and practice. So keep that in mind, and walk into the classroom with as much confidence as possible 😊
Initiative & fun
As a company, we offer option for in -person and online teacher training, and we share lots of teacher resources with you. You will also do an online TEFL course with lots of teaching techniques and ideas for games.
When you arrive at the school, they offer an induction and depending on the school, varying degrees of training to get you started.
When you start teaching, they are invested in your success, and you can ask them for help when needed.
However, it’s important to take on as much ownership of your class as possible. Ultimately, it is now your job to make it work and help the students as best you can. Use your initiative, and make sure to make the class interesting for yourself as well. If you get into a routine and starts to feel stale, it’s inevitable it the same (or worse) for your students. So, keep things fresh, read up on new TEFL games and techniques, and keep having fun!
An interest in teaching and helping others
During your time in China, you’ll meet tons of new people, and have the chance to travel all over China and Southeast Asia. It’s a truly incredible and unforgettable life experience.
That said, you’ll be teaching 20-25 hours a week, so it’s important that you enjoy that side of things as well. Over the years, we’ve worked with lots of different people that had different personalities and reasons they applied for our programs, and we’ve seen different types of people excel.
It may be that you’re considering a teaching career, or that you are already fairly sure teaching is not for you longer term. That’s ok either way, as long as that when you get up in front of a class, you’re happy to be there, and that you bring energy and engagement.
Some of our teachers do the program to hone their Mandarin skills, others because they have a deep interest in China’s culture and society. Whatever motivates you, the key thing is that you a desire to have a positive impact on those you interact with, and to help them grow.
We’re passionate about helping people get started in China, and we’d like to hear from you!
If you have any questions about these requirements or teaching in China, give us a call: (00 44) (0)20 3844 2992
If you’d like to see what opportunities are available this year, why not explore our program page or submit an application?
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