Teaching English isn’t all about teaching abroad. In fact, you can do the opposite and teach English online from the comfort of your own home. Teaching English Online is a fantastic way to earn money without needing to spend your hard earned cash and your precious time commuting to and from your workplace. How often do jobs offer its workers immense flexibility? If you really want to relax, you can work while wearing your PJs. Just don’t make it so obvious that you just got out of bed!
However, we are always asked questions when it comes to teaching English online. The doubt gets to too many people, and they think that teaching in your PJs is too good to be true. They ask; Am I too old? Does it matter if I’m not a native English speaker? And last but not least, can I teach English online without a Degree?
Can I Teach English Online Without a Degree?
The answer is yes, you can teach English online without a degree! However, there is also a longer answer. Some companies and platforms in particular may have a strict requirement that their English teachers also hold a Bachelor’s Degree. However, just as many platforms are lenient when it comes to hiring online English teachers.
One thing you should note is that more often than not, the platforms that hire English teachers without a degree will pay less. This is because these platforms have less strict requirements when it comes to qualifications.
That doesn’t mean that there isn’t room to grow, however. There are many successful online English teachers who earn a great salary, despite not having a Bachelor’s Degree. Instead, they supplement this with enthusiasm and a strong work ethic.
Do I Need a TEFL Certificate?
Technically speaking, you do not. Just as you don’t need a Degree, there will be online platforms who hire English teachers who do not hold a TEFL certificate. However, it is highly advisable that online English teachers obtain a TEFL certificate.
Obtaining the TEFL certificate is like investing in your own TEFL future. This will boost not only your employability but also your salary potential, giving you an incentive to work longer hours and earn more. It will also improve your overall TEFL experience if you are getting what you deserve for your services.
Additionally, you will learn about the potential challenges of managing a classroom, and how you can guide your students towards learning to their fullest potential. Without a TEFL certificate, how is the employer supposed to know that you can lead an ESL classroom?
When it comes to getting TEFL certified, there are an overwhelming number of options. However, you don’t need to go beyond Premier TEFL. At Premier TEFL, we have a vast range of course options. Whether you want to choose a Level 5 TEFL course which is entirely self-paced and online, or a course which includes valuable live teaching practice, the choice is yours.
Tips to Improve Your Employability
So of course you can get a job teaching English online without a degree. But, the fact is that you will be competing for jobs with other teachers who may have a Bachelor’s Degree. But don’t worry, this doesn’t mean that they’ve instantly secured the job. It just means that you need to make a statement in your application and interview. So, you need to improve your employability in every way that you can think of. How can you become more employable, aside from becoming TEFL certified?
Spice Up Your Online Teaching Background
Before you work for an online teaching company, you will need to complete an introduction video. Or, maybe you’ll go a different route and you won’t be doing an introduction video at all. Either way, spicing up your teaching background is key to presenting yourself as a more engaging teacher.
The classroom background can have a significant impact on the way that your classroom feels and how your lesson goes. If your background is bland, your student will be bored, or your interviewer unimpressed. If your background is exciting, however, filled with a range of props, intriguing flags, and a colossal map of the world, it will look much more like an engaging classroom than just having a black white wall. Want some more inspiration? Here are the many ways you can jazz up your classroom background!
Upskill
Just because getting the 120 hour TEFL is the norm these days, doesn’t mean that you need to settle. While everyone is settling for the absolute minimum, you should be aspiring for more. By going the extra mile and investing your time into obtaining a more reputable TEFL course, your employers will be impressed.
Rather than going for the standard 120 hour TEFL course, why not go for a 180 hour Ofqual Level 5 Regulated TEFL Course? Or better yet, you could gain live teaching experience with DELTA qualified tutors in order to attest to your skills leading the classroom. This can be done by undergoing the 10 hour Virtual Teaching Practice or you could choose a Hybrid TEFL course which includes both the theory and the practice.
Use High Tech Equipment
Without spending too much, of course! We’re not asking you to spend your savings on Beats by Dr Dre or a gaming chair which costs $3000, but it’s important that your equipment is good enough to evoke professionalism towards teaching.
Your webcam should be of a good quality, as should your webcam. Cross-cultural communication can be hard enough as it is without your webcam obscuring every single word that you’re trying to say. Additionally, you will need to make sure that your internet connection is secure. Disconnecting during your interview and every other lesson you have will not make a very good impression to your employers.
Bullet Proof Your CV and Cover Letter
Sounds like a simple one, doesn’t it? However, people still make grave mistakes on their CVs and cover letters which will significantly harm their application. Should a simple mistake have such a profound effect on your application? Yes! Because these documents are supposed to exemplify your skills as a teacher. Should you make spelling mistakes on a revised document while applying for the position of an English teacher, you’re likely to not be taken seriously.
How Can I Teach English Online Without a Degree?
So, there are many ways that someone can operate as an online English teacher. There are three options, and these are to:
- Work for a teaching company
- Use an existing platform to offer your services
- Work independently for yourself
So, let’s take a look at the options and how they may benefit someone who does not have a Bachelor’s Degree.
Working for a Teaching Company Without a Degree
Firstly, it will be more difficult to secure a position with a teaching company if you’re an English teacher without a Bachelor’s Degree. You will need to separate the online teaching platforms who hire teachers without a Degree from those who do not.
Once you finally get a job teaching English for an online English company you will simply be a teacher. What does this mean, exactly? You will be given a schedule and your students will be provided for you. Often, the curriculum is also provided. This makes it much easier to manage your workload if all you have to worry about is entering the classroom and delivering your lesson to the student. Aside from teaching English, you virtually have no responsibilities. Doesn’t that sound great?!
However, there may be a few cons when compared to the other options. These companies tend to offer a lower rate than the others because you’re doing less work. Additionally, while some companies may offer a flexible schedule, others may require that you commit to at least a certain amount of hours per week. Others may require you to work on weekends, for example. While it may be an easy way to work, it doesn’t grant you full autonomy.
Some great examples of companies you can work for without a Degree are Palfish, Cambly (and Cambly Kids), Open English, iTalki, and many more. Typically, you can earn from around $10 to $20 working for an online teaching company. However, it entirely depends on your experience, qualifications, enthusiasm, and so on.
Offer Your Services On An Existing Platform
Advertising your services on a platform is a nice middle ground between working for a company and working independently. By advertising your services on a platform, you can still deliver your own lessons and curriculum, but you’ll have the assistance of this platform to help you attract students.
You can go onto a platform which will advertise your services and you will be able to gain students from here. You will still be responsible for providing and delivering your own curriculum, and whatever fee you charge. However, the only catch is that the platform will take a fraction of your earnings as commission.
A prominent example of this is Preply. Preply allows students to browse through tutor profiles in order to select the ones who will benefit their language acquisition the most. It essentially allows teachers to advertise their services, and facilitates exchanges between the tutor and his or her students. The teachers have complete autonomy when it comes to setting their rates and delivering their lessons. Preply has thousands of online English teachers along with teachers of other languages.
Working Independently: Do It All Yourself!
Working independently has many benefits, and many potential drawbacks. This is the most difficult option of the three. However, it is also potentially the most rewarding.
You will no doubt have your work cut out for you. You will need to take on many responsibilities other than teaching. These include marketing and selling your product to others, managing your accounts, creating your own curriculum, marking your students’ grades, and so on.
However, while it may be demanding, you’ll maximize your earning potential. You will be able to charge whatever fee you estimate your lessons to be worth. You’ll also be able to offer lessons in subjects which you love to teach. Additionally, you will get to work whatever hours you like, and there’s no one above you to tell you to pull your socks up. Should you want a lie every day, so be it.
Teaching English online independently certainly requires a lot of self-motivation. You will need to put in the time to advertise your services and actually acquire your own students. After lessons, you will be the one who has to mark and grade the students’ work. After, you may need to take a look at your accounts. On top of that, you need to actually teach!
This job will be more than just being a teacher. You will essentially be an entrepreneur managing your very own business! Who needs a degree when you can manage your own business?
Teach English Online Without a Degree Today!
Teaching English online is a flexible profession. Don’t worry about how not having a degree will impact your efforts in succeeding! It will only affect your teaching English online career as long as you let it! Many companies will want your signature regardless as long as you display plenty of enthusiasm and professionalism (and a TEFL certificate!) towards working for their company.
And if you do not want to work for a company, you can work for yourself. If you want to work independently as an English teacher, your absence of a degree will be completely irrelevant! You will adhere to your own rules, stick to your own schedule, set your own rates, and deliver your own lessons!
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