Finding a Job in TESOL

Before accepting a job, thoroughly investigate your prospective employer. The internet is a good place to start. Type the name of the institution or organization into a search engine and visit its website, if it has one. Look at several other websites where its name appears, such as the news media, chat boards, association websites, and government websites.

Consider contacting the department, bureau, or ministry of education (or a similar government office) in the institution's home country for information about the institution and the educational system. If the organization is privately owned, you might also contact that country's chamber, bureau, or ministry of commerce or a similar, business-oriented agency. Your home country's embassy in your host country may also be able to provide information about the institution that it may have gotten from your fellow citizens.

Consider contacting the department, bureau, or ministry of education (or a similar government office) in the institution's home country for information about the institution and the educational system. If the organization is privately owned, you might also contact that country's chamber, bureau, or ministry of commerce or a similar, business-oriented agency. Your home country's embassy in your host country may also be able to provide information about the institution that it may have gotten from your fellow citizens.

An organization interested in hiring you will probably ask you for references. Consider doing the same thing. Ask to be referred to a former employee who can tell you more about the working conditions there. You might also ask for photographs or literature that will tell you about the facilities and work environment. If an institution offers a sizeable contract completion bonus, ask how many of its teachers typically receive it. Never count on a contract completion bonus for return airfare. If one party or the other cannot complete the contract, you will need other resources for returning home.

Different countries and fields of teaching may have differing ideas about what teaching materials and resources they will provide for the teacher and what they will expect the teacher to supply. Find out what teaching materials you will have to supply, as well as what resources the institution and the host country will provide.

You can get general information about living conditions in various countries from the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency's The World Factbook. If you are not a U.S. citizen, the consular and customs information and some of the safety and security advice that these sources provide may not apply to you, but they are still excellent sources for country descriptions, climate and terrain information, environmental and natural disaster risks, population and demographics, health concerns and access to medical facilities, government and legal systems, economic and commercial statistics, transportation, telecommunications, and any ongoing civil or transnational disputes.

Working conditions vary widely throughout the world. Much of the discontent that arises in ELT jobs stems from differing cultural assumptions about what is appropriate in the workplace. Before accepting a job in a country where you have not spent enough time to understand the culture, consider investigating:

• Typical wages or salary and whether you are paid hourly, weekly, or monthly.
• Usual number of working hours in a day.
• Usual number of working days in a week.
• Normal length of contracts.
• Typical amount of vacation or leave time and whether or not it is paid.
• Any benefits (insurance, housing, moving allowance, etc.) you might expect.
• Whether or not medical insurance is available.
• Expectations concerning employee demeanor both during and outside of working hours.

Ask for a sample contract from the institution and verify that this information is stipulated and that it is in keeping with local norms.

Many teaching jobs include housing for employees, but housing conditions vary widely worldwide and may vary within a particular country. If the standard of living in the host country differs significantly from that in your home country, be sure to find out what to expect concerning size; appearance; furnishings; cleanliness; security; access to heating, ventilation, and air conditioning; access to electricity and telecommunications systems; technology (including Internet access); cooking facilities; and toilet and bathing facilities. If an employer does not provide housing, investigate the cost of housing in the host country. Housing is often your largest personal expense, and you need to verify that you can afford to live near your workplace.

If a person is found living or working illegally in any country, they may be subject to substantial fines, imprisonment, and deportation. Remember, generally speaking, you are subject to the laws and norms of the host country, not your home country, and you should be wary of any employer who asks you to work in another country without a work visa.