Hi!
I have an official bachelors degree as a second language English teacher. Whilst looking for jobs to teach English in Japan I found that a lot of them require a TEFL certificate. My degree is technically the same as a TEFL certificate just not officially marked as such. Do I have to get a TEFL certificate separately or would my Bachelors degree be enough?
8 comments
If you want to be a teacher in Japan. You need a teacher’s license for either public or international school.
If you want to be ALT/eikaiwa, all you need is proof of degree for visa.
Yeah, I’ve got a TESOL certification because I was told it’d help me get a job, but it’s mostly been a waste of money. If I could go back, I’d get some kind of teaching certification because then you can teach at actual schools instead of eikaiwas.
No, but your qualifications will set you apart
For dispatch companies and Eikaiwas you just need a heartbeat and be able to speak some English.
Who is the fool downvoting every post on here? Some bitter ass people.
If you are from en eligible country I’d be applying for JET
Like what was already mentioned, you only need any bachelor’s degree and 12 years of your education to have been taught in English. You don’t even need to be a native speaker or have accurate grammar.
But if you want a job that pays anything half decent, you’ll want a teaching license and experience. Perhaps getting a year or two of experience in an IB school in your home country would be good.
If you provide more info like your exact degree and home country, I’m sure other people can give you better advice.
No. If you can speak English and have that degree you are a shoe in. Most of my coworkers are not native English speakers.
Japanese people suck at English so if you have the on paper job requirements you can be hired.
Depends on various factors. TEFL is an asset, a Bachelors is a must, a Master’s is extremely helpful. There are many options. Earlier somebody asked about families and couples, Couples are a possibility for some positions; I’ve known couples to work as a pair. Short term positions are not likely but you might fill in for somebody who suddenly left in the middle of the year. Caution on age. People over 35 will begin to have significant trouble in Japan as a number of Eikaiwas clearly specify 35 or under, and others don’t say it but do it while hiring a few token “geriatrics” (35 and up) for appearances. Additionally just before retirement age, many people are found to be suddenly let go, or are caused to have trouble (not being informed of meetings, being misled as to dates, having issues with the computer links to the school or uni, not getting mail, etc) often not long before their retirement is set to happen, and they end up in a bind. There are token oldies and some Eikawas are absolutely wonderful and will hire on merit, or for your uniqueness, and there are also universities that will stand by their teachers, not destabilise them but support the teacher to recognise the teacher’s years of efforts and also to give the students a better experience. Destabilising teachers and making them anxious does not help the students over all. So carefully look into the positions before you apply. There are many absolutely fantastic positions and places to work in Japan. The country is diverse and overall, though extremely expensive to get started in, it is also extremely reasonable for what you get after the initial start up costs. A good plan might be a three-year stay to recoup the startup expenses and have some savings to be back at home; some people need five or six years to recoup expenses and save while being able to see Japan, but be careful as many people get stuck forever once they hit the five-six year of work mark, and when discarded as “geriatrics” (usually around 50,..not my teachers at high school worked until their 80s and 90s so 50 seems young to me but i know it’s ancient for a 20something normally, but watch out as sometimes 35 is the cut off, as it is for some less expensive guest houses). So you might get kicked out of your job by various excuses, such as the student numbers are low (only to find new teachers were hired) before saving up to retire or before receiving retirement, and end up having to go to an unexpected country, to live with lower wages and continue work much longer than expected, maybe forever. If that’s okay with you, then risk the stay. Get permanent residency if there is any chance you might stay longer and start your own business to get by … before… you’ve been discarded. Note, most businesses fail but not all and it will give you a reason to be here and keep you active. Again, most jobs are good and life is interesting in Japan (in brief..it is mostly FANTASTIC in Japan) but there are enough miserable stories that you need to be careful and plan well. Do well on the job search. If you are young or youngish under 30, but at least under, have two legs, can speak and read English, have a degree from an English speaking country and studied most years there (the rule may be 12 years now but please check with immigration), you should be able to find something and options expand greatly with a Masters or TEFL/TESOL. Enjoy the country of Japan. It’s mostly a dream world, and better if you are an anime fan or enthusiastic about other aspects of Japanese culture. Good luck!