Where can I teach English as a non-native speaker?

Don’t focus on the countries where you CANNOT get a job

Another thing that I’ve seen ‘non-native speakers’ focus on very often is TEFL jobs in countries such as China or South Korea, for example. And of course they’re very nice countries to go to. I’d love to go and teach in China! Why not?

But these are one of the few countries (China, Taiwan, Indonesia and South Korea is the full list) in the world where by law visas for English teachers can only be given to those who come from ‘native-speaking’ countries. 

So while I do understand people’s desire to teach in, say, China, it puzzles me why ‘non-native speakers’ tend to focus so much on these countries where you will NOT be able to get a visa.

But this does not mean that you cannot teach English abroad as a ‘non-native speaker’. After all, there are another 180 or 190 something countries where you could potentially do it!

And I don’t mean to say that these visa policies are right. They’re completely wrong, and I think we should do everything in our power as an ELT profession to try and change these. For example, Gerhard Erasmus has been working very closely with Taiwanese politicians to try and change the law that currently prohibits ‘non-native speakers’ from getting a work visa. 

What I’m saying, though, is that as a ‘non-native speaker’ looking for jobs it really does NOT make any sense at all to focus on those few places in the world where you will never ever be able to get a job as a non-native speaker. If you want to teach abroad as a non-native speaker, if you want to succeed, then you should be focusing on the places where you CAN teach.

And there are plenty of them.

Where can I teach English as a non-native speaker?

So rather than look at the glass as half empty, let’s look at it as half full.

Aside from these few countries mentioned above, there is a whole world of opportunity out there for you.

Just to give you one example, Belgium is a great destination for a ‘non-native speaker’. I recorded a video about it here.

Another great place to go is Thailand. The TEFL industry is booming there, and there are plenty of opportunities for ‘non-native speaker’ teachers. Check out my article about it for specific information about how and where to apply. 

These are just two examples, but I prepared a whole list of countries and schools for you. You can view it here.

Which schools should I apply to as a non-native speaker teacher?

You might think that this is perhaps counter-intuitive, but you should really focus on very well-known and well-established language school chains. In here I’m thinking about a language school chains such as the British Council, for example, or International House, or Bell.

But you might be thinking: as a ‘non-native speaker’ I would never stand a chance of teaching in those schools. Surely an institution like British Council would only want to hire British teachers.

This couldn’t be further from the truth. Actually these institutions really value diversity, and they hire teachers not based on where this teacher is from or which language they speak as a mother tongue, but based on their ability to teach.

I would encourage you to go to for example British Council job site and try to find one job ad which would specify a native speaker.

You’re not going to find these job ads at all. They’ll specify the proficiency level that they want, and as a non-native speaker you might need to prove your proficiency, so it’s always a good idea to pass something like IELTS, CPE or CAE.

So language school chains such as the British Council, International House, or Bell are a great place to start searching for a job as a ‘non-native speaker’. 

There are also many other independent language schools where you can teach English as a ‘non-native speaker’. Take a look at this list here.

If you want to learn how to get TEFL jobs as a ‘non-native speaker’, if you want to tackle native speakerism, then definitely check out my TEFL Equity Academy courses.