Please note, this site hasn't been updated for, oh, two years or so. Please also refer to current sources.

TEFL Certificates

Many prospective teachers do, or at least consider doing, some kind of TEFL certificate before they come to China. Is it worth it?

I think it depends on how long you plan to teach English for, and how seriously you plan to take it. If you only want to do it for a year before continuing your real career, it may equip you with the knowledge and skills that will make your teaching more effective and rewarding, but you won't recoup your financial investment. The market for TEFL teachers in China is not yet at the point where having a TEFL certificate makes a great deal of difference in your first job - the vast majority of schools are happy with a native speaking graduate - and even the university degree isn't always essential.

However, the TEFL certificate can come in handy after a few years, when you are starting to look at higher-level work - not just the better paid jobs mentioned above, but also Director or Assistant Director of Studies jobs, course design, textbook writing - all of these jobs are available in China, and this is where the extra qualification comes in handy.

It's also worth remembering that the TEFL certificate is much more valuable in more mature markets - many European language schools would regard this as an absolute minimum. If you think you might teach elsewhere in the future, get your certificate early - teaching experience after certification is highly regarded - experience before isn't.

Finding out more

The most important thing is to make sure that your TEFL Certificate is endorsed by either UCLES or Trinity College, London. These two institutions moderate courses run worldwide, and while independent courses may be equally well-run and useful, the simple fact is that they won't be recognised by many schools - have a look at job ads for English teaching positions in Europe, and you'll see many specify the kind of certificate they want.

Some will tell you you don't need to pay the extra for the recognised courses, as no employers in China care anyway. This may be true, but in that case, why bother paying anything at all? The investment of time and money should be part of a plan that goes beyond one year in China.

See the two sites above more lists of course providers. At the time of writing, the first TEFL course in China was in process. It remains to be seen if this will be a regular occurence.