Can we guarantee that you will land a teaching position after getting TESOL certified? We receive this question time and time again. The short answer? NO. No TEFL or TESOL Training Institute can guarantee that you will get a job after becoming qualified.
? Consider the following, let’s say you graduate from any university – locally or abroad – does the university guarantee you a job afterwards? The answer is no…
? Their job is to qualify you and give you the tools to land your dream job – and for TESOL training institutes, our job is the same. We qualify you to teach English abroad or online – and give you the tools to find a job.
? In the end, it’s up to YOU to apply professionally and do your best to stand out and get the job.
? So… How do we help you land your teaching position you may be wondering? We at iTTi South Africa do our utmost best to prepare you for the job search by providing you with our free job-support course where we:
1. help you create an industry-worthy CV,
2. guide you with your introduction & demo videos,
3. prepare you for what the interview process involves,
4. provide you with daily job offers on our exclusive alumni group,
5. offer ongoing support since we offer lifetime job-support!
? So what do you need to do on your end?
1. Put tremendous effort into following our advice and making a CV that STANDS OUT from the crowds.
This means that there should be NO spelling, grammar or punctuation errors.
This means that your past employment history should be noted in such a way where you spotlight how whatever experience you have gained, has actually in some way prepared you for teaching online and abroad. (You can do this with ANY job, even in completely unrelated industries!)
This means it should be beautifully laid out and lastly, make sure you use keywords that you know that recruiters want to see.
2. Write a SPARKLING cover letter!
So many people are under the impression that since you have a qualification, companies will just hand out a job to you. No one is entitled to a job – no matter how qualified you are.
When applying for a job, ensure that your cover letter stands out! This means that you can’t talk about “how you want to teach online/abroad” – as this makes the companies feel as though you want ANY job and don’t actually care about which company you get hired by.
First, introduce yourself and explain why you are SO EXCITED to work for their SPECIFIC company or school. This means mentioning key points about their company, such as their stellar reputation, excellent branding, new and innovative teaching technologies or whatever stands out to you about them.
Yes, you will need to do individual research about each and every company that you apply with to ensure you can point out keynotes about them and why you want to work with them.
Then, go onto explain why YOU would be a great fit considering x, y, z. Tie it into their company culture that you have pointed out above, make it seem like you are the perfect candidate considering this.
Tell them you would be honoured to hear back from them and would love to do a demo lesson for them (suggest the topic & age group to sound prepared) so that you can show them you are willing to work for your position.
Let them know that you have attached your CV, but that you are happy to do an interview so that they can get to know you a little better.
Make them feel as though you want to work at their company only! Be extra sure you have not made any technical, grammatical, punctuation or spelling errors in the cover letter or you can consider the job gone.
3. Attach an introduction video or demo lesson CATERED to the type of company THEY are!
If they teach kids, attach a video catered to kids. If they train adults, a more serious video will do. Remember to speak slowly, clearly and with a neutral accent.
4. Take note of each and every company you have applied with, their contact and more.
After about 3 working days, send them a follow-up message. If possible, find one of their recruiters on LinkedIn and get in touch with them too. Follow up emails make a big difference as they can see how interested you are!
5. Be persistent and have a thick skin!
Many companies will decline your offer, some won’t even bother to reply. Do not let this turn you away, keep applying to more companies. If you ask each and every person who is teaching online or abroad, they will tell you they faced tremendous rejection before landing their dream job. This is the way of the industry!
6. If after all of this you are still not landing the job, it is up to you to contact our recruitment department so that we can evaluate your applications (please keep each and every application + cover letter on file) and help you to determine where it is that you are going wrong.
The TEFL and TESOL industry job search is NO DIFFERENT to the rest of the world. We will do our utmost best to assist you, and as long as you follow the above steps you WILL land the job you are dreaming of! ?
Don’t believe the lies people are telling you about the industry being too saturated, not hiring South Africans, not hiring people without a degree and more. The cold hard truth is that these people did not put their utmost best effort into being a stand out applicant or did a sub-standard course for free or little funds.
We are here to help you each step of the way, you just need to follow our advice or get in touch when you aren’t coming right. ?
We hope this provides clarity!
Be sure to check out our blog on Who should become an online English Teacher?
