I hinted earlier at some potential TEFL employer red flags with employers with promises of more details later. I try to be a man of my word.
Remember, hiring processes are both a chance for you to sell yourself to the employer. It’s also a chance for the employer to sell themselves to you. And in the same way it’s not good to lie to a potential employer, it’s not good for the potential employer to lie to you.
If you are new to TEFL teaching, you may not know what is normal for the industry. You may also not know that there are several things you will want to be on the look out for.
Possible Employer Red Flags
You might be desperate to find a job overseas and be willing to settle for just about anything. That is something bad actors will take advantage of. Does it happen? Not a lot, of course. But it does happen even in seemingly safe countries, and it’s something you should be aware of.
Some things to look out for, either in the job ad itself, or during the interview process:
Red Flag #1 – Vague or Generic Job Descriptions
The simplest employer red flag is to watch out for vague ads. They may use phrases like “Teach English in a fun environment!” or “Great opportunity to travel!”. It sounds nice, but they have no mention of curriculum, age group, working hours, or contract details.
Legit schools know what they want and describe it clearly. It may not be in the ad because ads cost money. If not, then it will be mentioned during the interview process. Look in ads for specific teaching responsibilities, age or ability levels, schedules, class sizes, etc. Or make sure they can easily and readily answer these questions during the interview.
Red Flag #2 – No Mention of Visa Support
Another employer red flag is if a job ad doesn’t explicitly say they’ll sponsor or assist with a work visa. One exception is if it’s an ad for part-time work. They usually can’t sponsor you and they’re expecting applicants in-country who already have a valid working visa. That’s not sketchy, but it’s also not a good fit for you.
But if it’s for a full-time position, though, watch out. If they don’t mention anything about visa sponsorship they may expect you to work illegally or as a “visitor.”
If they say they’ll handle it when you get there, be very suspicious. A reputable employer will usually try to get everything squared away before you start. Look for ads saying something to the effect of “We provide visa sponsorship” or “We assist with visa applications.”
Red Flag #3 – Unrealistic Promises
Watch out if a job ad uses phrases like “No degree? No problem!”. Other phrases to watch for are about pay, like “Earn $5,000/month teaching part time!”. You also should look out for guarantees, like “100% guaranteed job placement!”. These employer red flags usually lead to scams or substandard working conditions.
Legit employers will almost certainly need a degree to get you that work visa. If they tell you it’s OK if you don’t have one, they’re probably expecting you to work illegally.
No legit part-time job is going to pay $5000 a month. You also need to consider the area you’re looking at. Generally speaking, full-time entry-level TEFL teaching positions abroad will generally pay decently compared to the local economy; you won’t get rich, but you should be able to live comfortably on your income in your locale.
Well, that might depend on your definition of comfortable. But, assuming no debts or other financial responsibilities back home, you should be able to make ends meet, go out with friends from time to time, do a bit of domestic traveling, and probably have a bit of savings left over.
For a full-time job $5000 a month might be possible, but that’s not going to be an entry-level position.
And any place that offers 100% guaranteed job placement is a place desperate for workers. Why would they be desperate if they were a good place to work? Look for transparent pay ranges, realistic benefits, and no “too good to be true” claims.
Red Flag #4 – Housing Tricks
Generally speaking, companies hiring from overseas know you’re coming in and you won’t have a place to stay. Housing assistance of some sort is standard. Most frequently, it’s that they’ll help you find and set up an apartment, or they may have company housing. That’s usually legit.
But one employer red flag to watch out for is job ads that mention free housing. That sounds great, but remember that there’s no such thing as a free lunch. There’s almost certainly conditions attached. Is it shared? Is it remotely located? Is it tied to your contract? Does it come with a reduction in salary? Does that reduction in salary match the cost?
Also, one thing to watch out for is that some companies use that aforementioned company housing to control teachers or fine them for early departures. Look for “Optional housing,” clear rent terms, and ability to choose your own place with no penalties.
Red Flag #5 – No Mention of Training
Even experienced teachers need some time to adjust to a new school. New teachers often need even more help; orientation, materials, or class observation. Those should be a part of any new employee onboarding.
If there’s no training or support, expect to be thrown into a classroom blind. That just plain sucks. Believe me. Look for mentions of onboarding, mentoring, training, teacher meetings, or professional development in the ad or during the interview process.
Red Flag #6 – Short or Sketchy Contracts
A legit employer is going to offer, as standard, a 1-year contract to a brand new employee. Some employers may offer a 2- or 3-year contract. This is usually legit, but it could also be intended to trap you into a position where you can’t leave.
One red flag is the offer of a contract under 6 months. These are often bait-and-switch gigs or trial schemes. In most cases, an employment contract less than 1 year is usually not capable of getting a work visa. While a probationary period of 30 to 90 days is common, and even 6 months is not unheard of, some companies may try to get teachers to work “trial weeks” unpaid.
Look for 1-year renewable contracts, probation periods with pay (slightly reduced pay during the probationary period is not unusual for entry-level positions), and specific exit clauses, particularly in longer contracts. It might also be good to bone up on labor law in the country in question. Unscrupulous employers may try to hide things in a contract that are blatantly illegal, but they’re counting on the employee to not know about local labor laws.
Red Flag #7 – Non-standard Pay Practices
Be cautious if:
- You’re paid in cash only.
- This is usually done by employers looking for under the table work, or to avoid paying employment taxes.
- It’s probably fine (if not exactly legal) if you’re working at a bar your expat friend owns one night a week for some extra scratch. It’s not fine if your full-time employer wants to do it, even if they say it’ll save you a lot of money.
- You have to pay the school upfront. This is a huge scam red flag.
- A potential employer red flag is if there’s a huge delay between work and pay (e.g., “We pay 60 days after you start”).
- This can depend on what the normal pay period is, though, and may require some research.
- In Japan, for example, salary is routinely paid once a month. If you start on the 1st of the month, you might have to wait until the 15th (or 21st, or whenever), of the following month, which could be 45 days or more. That’s standard practice in Japan. It’s not at all sketchy, but it means you’ll want to come with some extra savings to tide you over.
- If the country you are going to or your company routinely pays salary weekly or biweekly, on the other hand, you should start getting paid within the first 2-3 weeks.
Look for clear pay dates, contracts that follow labor law, and while there might be a small bank fee, there should be no other “processing fees.”
Red Flag #8 – Bad Reputation Online
When things are good, people talk. When things are bad, people talk a lot. If you Google the school and find dozens of angry blog posts, Reddit threads, or blacklists, take it seriously. I have avoided multiple jobs because of a quick search that revealed some worrying things.
Having said that, one or two bad reviews happen; some people don’t mesh well with a company, the people there, or its culture. But patterns of abuse don’t lie. Look for a balance of honest reviews, neutral feedback, or even what your potential employer says about that criticism. If you mention to them you heard X bad thing, how do they respond?
Red Flag #9 – They Won’t Let You Talk to Current Teachers
An employer who is proud of their workplace and workforce will want you to talk to the people working for them; they want to show off how happy their employees are. Another employer red flag is if they dodge a request to speak to a current foreign teacher. If they do that, you should probably assume they’re hiding something.
Look for a willingness to connect you with someone already working there, or people who have worked there in the recent past.
Red Flag #10 – Unpaid “Prep Time” or “Office Hours”
Some places demand 40–50 hours/week “at school” but only pay you for in-class time. It’s bad enough if they’re requiring you to be at school without pay, but it is even worse if you can’t use the time meaningfully.
Note that some respectable employers may require you to be on site for the entire day, but you will be paid for your time. You see this most commonly in Assistant Language Teaching or other “proper” salaried school positions.
On the language school side of things, the best employers will generally only require you to be on-site ahead of time enough to be prepared for lessons. Look for contracts that pay for all expected time — teaching, meetings, admin, etc., or are paying a flat salary with a clearly listed number of class hours.
Possible Employer Yellow Flags
While the above issues are warning signs that you should probably stay away, there are a few other things that you should look at when going through the hiring process. These may not be deal breakers, but they may mean you want to give the position a second thought, especially if there are a few of them.
Yellow Flag #1 – Jerking You Around During the Interview Process
I mentioned before that it’s common for the interview process for many employers to be a multi-step process. Now, it’s never good to add steps just for the sake of adding steps. Some companies will add steps just to see if the applicant is truly interested in the position. They want you to jump through hoops to get it. That could say something about their corporate culture you may not like.
But, having said that, a good employer knows that a good fit is critical to success; they will want to make sure you will be a good fit and will often create multiple steps to see if you are. See if they can give good reasons why they want you to do these things and how it helps in the interview process. If they can, then it’s probably worth the effort.
On the other hand, if they can’t give good reasons why they want you to do these tasks, if they get upset that you’re asking why they want you to perform these tasks, or if they ask you to do them and then say it’s OK if you don’t do it when asked why, it might be a cue to walk away.
Yellow Flag #2 – “Chain” Schools
Working at a chain school, in and of itself, isn’t a bad thing. They are one of the most common entry-level jobs for TEFL teachers. But a proper chain school is either wholly owned and operated or is properly franchised. In either case, the schools are run with clear rules, guidance, and support.
If you go to their website (and in this day and age, they should have a decent web presence), you should be able to find out about all about its curriculum, locations, and probably get an introduction to some of its teachers and staff as well.
If it’s a chain school but the website looks dodgy, watch out. It might be legit, but if each school has it’s own little website instead of a presence on the main company page, that probably means that something is going on there behind the scenes that you, or more importantly your salary, could get caught up in.
Yellow Flag #3 – They’re Always Hiring
It’s not uncommon for an employer to have a hiring webpage. These are often intended to create a funnel for new potential teachers when they need them in the future.
But there tend to be hiring seasons in most countries. In Japan, for example, there tend to be two big hiring seasons for entry-level TEFL teachers, January through March and June through August. That doesn’t mean there aren’t good teaching jobs available outside of those times, but that’s when most schools do their recruiting.
When a school is constantly hiring outside of those times – and particularly if they’re looking for multiple people – you might want to ask yourself (and them) why. If it’s because of growth, that’s probably good! If it’s because it’s a big chain school, that’s probably OK, too.
But what is the turnover like? If turnover is high all the time, with people only sticking around for a year or two (or less), you might wonder what’s wrong and making everybody leaving so quickly. For those entry-level chain school jobs, people staying for 1-3 years before going home or finding another job is pretty normal. For most other schools, if people tend to stay for 3 or more years, then it’s probably also a good place to work.
Yellow Flag #4 – The Hard Sell
While it doesn’t often happen, recruiters may approach you if you’ve got your resume up on job boards with the offer of a job. Or during an interview the hiring person might offer you a job. If they’re trying the hard sell and trying to make you decide NOW and/or say you need to start RIGHT AWAY, you have to ask why. Obviously, they make their money by finding someone for a job, so they want you (or someone, anyway), to take the job they’re offering so they can get paid.
But if the company is good and the job is good, they’re not going to have to push you to decide now. They should be able to wait a couple of days while you think about it. And while, ideally, they really may want you to start within the next week, unless you’re unemployed and living out of a suitcase in the same city the job is in, you need time to get things organized.
They may warn you that the position might get taken soon. They might even be telling you the truth about that. But, as a good rule of thumb, any time anybody tells you you have to decide something now, tell them no. They’re using FOMO (the Fear of Missing Out) to try and manipulate you.
The Checkered Flag
As I said before, I tend to subscribe to the idea that people are generally good. But companies are not people. Companies, and the people inside them, can sometimes lose sight of the idea that it’s usually both cheaper and more rewarding to be good to one another than to try to take advantage of each other.
For that reason, I’ve given you some of the big employer red flags to look out for when looking for a job as a TEFL teacher. If you see these things, perk up your ears and keep an eye out. It could be fine; perhaps they’re just not quite as good at communicating as you might expect. But it could be a situation where you might just be able to avoid getting exploited. Remember; it’s important to be kind and nice. It’s also important to remember that a kind and nice person does not equal sucker. Trust, but verify.