English teachers and literacy

Postbox letter from Rob

Basic spelling mistakes and horrendous grammatical errors give teachers away every time.

Finding work in Isaan

How easy is it to get jobs in this region?

General Internet searches tend not to provide a very complete picture of employers because many of them don’t have websites. Those that do are unlikely to show any interest unless you’re in the immediate vicinity.

Speechless

Passing the dreaded job interview

There does seem to be one thing that an overseas teacher can do to add luster to the resume... learn the language. Easier said, than done (though language is less done, than said). For those planning on living overseas for a long period of time language skills are invaluable.

Writing resumes 101 for dummies

Postbox letter from Rebecca

Forget my standards of wanting someone with a BA in teaching, a TEFL certificate, a native-speaker of English, and some experience teaching in Thailand - I'm to the point where I will recruit anyone - qualified or not - who will take the time to submit a decent cover letter and resume.

How to land a job

The very basics

If you send your application and don’t get a reply, it means that you didn’t make the shortlist. It’s usually useless to call the employer and try to find out why you weren’t contacted. There a big chance the employer found someone more qualified for the job or maybe you didn’t meet the job requirements.

Arranging an interview

Getting your foot in the door

Once an interview is scheduled, KEEP YOUR APPOINTMENT! You put yourself in a bad light by canceling an interview, or even changing the time, unless you give ample notice and have a very good reason for doing so. Changing your appointment time with a prospective employer even once is unadvisable; do it twice and you have effectively killed your candidacy.

Teaching scams

Legendary scams, blacklists and the midnight run

I tested my marketability and checked the options available. My recently acquired TEFL certificate definitely opened up new opportunities. University job offers poured in from China, Japan, Latvia, Poland, Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand.

Career services corner

Help in finding a job

As the head of a well-regarded English program at a government school in Bangkok, Thailand for the last 1.5 years, I have been largely appalled by the thousands of resumes I have seen, e-mails I have received, and the lack of interviewing skills of most teacher candidates I speak to.

First impressions

Korea's EFL roots

If you scratch the surface of many English teachers in Thailand, underneath all that fine polish of discount dress shirts and shiny veneer of silk ties, you can often glimpse a trace of Korea. English teachers have either sacrificed their prized cherry of lecturing in a dusty classroom floor of a Korean hogwan, or they are fleeing to the country from Thailand to refill depleted bank accounts with a 2.1 million Won monthly salary.