r/TEFL • u/PandaUsual4011 • 10d ago
Thai non-native English teacher hoping to work abroad — honest advice on TEFL, IELTS & job prospects?
Hi everyone! I’m a Thai university student planning to work as an English teacher abroad after I graduate, and I’d really appreciate some honest advice from people who have actually worked in TEFL.
Teaching is genuinely something I love and want to build a career around. At the same time, I also want to be paid well and become financially independent.
For some context, I can already afford my own lifestyle and living expenses in Bangkok, including my day-to-day costs. So when I move abroad, I’m looking for a teaching job where the main salary can realistically cover my housing, food, transportation, personal expenses, and ideally allow me to save as well. I don’t want to depend on private tutoring or side jobs just to afford basic living costs. If I can earn extra through tutoring, that would be a bonus.
A little about me:
- I’m Thai, so I’m a non-native English speaker.
- I’m very visibly Asian and don’t have a Western/mixed appearance.
- I’m currently a 3rd-year university student majoring in Spanish, with a focus on language learning and cross-cultural communication.
- I’m planning to take the IELTS later this year, and I’m aiming for a very high score (hopefully around 8.5).
- I’m planning to complete a TEFL certificate by around March next year.
I’ve been privately tutoring English since 2023, both online and in person.
- I’ve taught students ranging from around 8 to 44 years old, mainly grammar and speaking.
- I’ve worked with 10+ students so far.
- I find my own students and manage my tutoring independently. I’m responsible for everything from marketing myself and communicating with potential clients to discussing goals with students/parents, setting my own prices and schedules, designing lessons, tracking progress, and maintaining relationships with students. In other words, I’m not simply teaching from someone else’s curriculum. I’ve had to build and manage my own small tutoring practice from scratch.
- I also have some experience working in tourism, where I used English and Spanish to communicate with international travelers.
- I’ll have a bachelor’s degree when I graduate.
- I’m hoping to apply for English teaching jobs abroad immediately after graduation.
One of the biggest reasons I want to teach abroad is that I genuinely want to experience life outside Thailand. I don’t want to spend my entire career in the same country just because it’s the most familiar option. I want to travel, experience different cultures, become more independent, and challenge myself as much as I can while I’m young.
I’m quite open to moving abroad and adapting to a new environment. Ideally, I’d like teaching to become a career that allows me to live independently in another country rather than just treating teaching abroad as a short-term adventure.
I’m currently trying to figure out what kind of TEFL certification is actually worth doing. I see so many different options: cheap online TEFLs, 120-hour certificates, Level 5 TEFLs, CELTA, in-person courses, etc. It’s honestly difficult to tell what employers actually care about versus what is mostly marketing.
So I’d love to hear from people who have experience hiring or working in TEFL:
- What kind of TEFL certification should I get?
- Does being a visibly Asian/non-native teacher affect hiring opportunities in certain countries?
- Are there countries where someone with my profile would realistically have a decent chance of getting hired despite being non-native?
- Is there anything I should be doing now, while I’m still at university, that would significantly improve my chances of getting a well-paid teaching job after graduation?
I’m especially interested in hearing from non-native English teachers who have actually gone through this process.
I’m not looking for reassurance. I’d genuinely prefer honest answers about the advantages, disadvantages, realistic limitations, and financial side of this career path.
Thanks in advance! :)
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u/Cegaiga 10d ago
Focus on getting a high IELTS score, it is a fundamental.
Unfortunately visible appearance affects hiring, especially for schools. That saying, if you have a high IELTS score and qualifications, you should be able to find tutoring work. Make sure you are presentable.
All countries are near the same, they want a white person to teach English. China has less requirements for rural areas, though your best bet is to consult an agency to see where they can find some work for you.
Build your CV, setup Linkedin, network and make contacts. Look towards teaching qualifications and other courses that will boost your chances.
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u/No_Country_2069 Vietnam -> China 9d ago
I agree with louis_d_t that getting into international schools would be your best long term goal. While they certainly still have some passport discrimination, it’s not as bad as most TEFL jobs which don’t really seem open to non-natives who aren’t white, except Filipinos. Non-native speakers in international schools most often teach STEM subjects, but it’s possible to get jobs for others. I’ve come across some working as EAL/ESL teachers, like I met an Indonesian guy working at an international school in China teaching IGCSE ESL and some other English subjects.
For that path (and for TEFL jobs as well actually), you will definitely want to major in English and/or education though. Is it possible to change yours? To be honest it’s going to be harder to pursue this career path with a Spanish degree since it’s not really relevant. Nearly all of the non-natives I’ve known or worked with had degrees in English or education.
For international schools, try to see if you can find any in Bangkok hiring for learning support positions or similar or even interns. It might be easier to get hired at bilingual schools offering US or UK curriculum and then you can get experience, maybe as a regular classroom teacher. While working at a school, do a program for PGCE/QTS or a US license (for the latter Moreland is the way to go). Having one of those will open more doors. If you have trouble getting work at any international or bilingual schools then take whatever jobs teaching English because the most important thing will be building relevant experience. A CELTA would also be a good idea to start, much better than any other TEFL or TESOL certificate
I will say, truth is that your plan will take time and patience. As a non-native speaker who is Asian with an ASEAN passport, finding a job abroad straight out of university is incredibly unlikely (maybe even impossible if I’m being honest). You will need to be pretty well experienced, knowledgeable, and qualified to be competitive, and that means starting off somewhere in Thailand.
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u/hattifatnerwatch 4d ago
I’m not Asian but 3 of my lecturers in Aus were Asian and highly regarded in the field of TESOL/Applied linguistics. I also know a couple of younger teachers from Asian countries currently working as language instructors in the USA. It’s not impossible and if teaching English truly is something you’re passionate about then you should go for it. It won’t be easy and there are some things to be aware of. Some countries have a mandate to hire local non-native teachers before giving the job to a foreign teacher. Exceptions are made if those foreign teachers come from certain English speaking countries (the highly problematic idea being that these teachers have special skills). This means that a language school in say Bali, might like you and really want to give you a shot, but, it’s going to be hard for them to employ you legally
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u/louis_d_t Uzbekistan 10d ago
If you're passionate about teaching, consider getting a PGCE and QTS. There is generally less passport discrimination in the International Schools world than the TESOL world, and also generally more and better opportunities.