Teachers can find work year-round in language centres teaching a range of ages, as well as jobs in private and public schools. It’s possible to secure work before arriving in the country but it’s easier to do so in person, as face-to-face interviews are preferred by many employers.
On the whole, TEFL institutes in Vietnam are professionally run and will treat teachers well. It’s a highly respected job and wages will reflect that. However, try to speak to current staff at a school before accepting a position to get a feel for what it’s really like, and if their wages are commensurate with other local schools.
A common complaint amongst teachers at schools in Vietnam is that the teaching materials they’re provided with for their lessons aren’t up to scratch, even in private language schools. If you’re asked to teach with unsuitable materials or coursebooks, you’ll have to think on your feet to adapt them for your students as schools are unlikely to splash out on replacing them. Adjust your lesson planning accordingly!Public and private language schools hire year-round, and it’s easy to find teaching jobs in high-end institutions within a couple of weeks of arrival if you’re in a major city. The face-to-face approach works much better than looking online if you’re already in the country, and employers will be used to teachers turning up with a CV. Full-time employment is easier to find now than it was in the past, but there are still those who prefer a medley of part-time roles to add variety and negotiate a higher income.
Let’s take a look at each of the different options available to TEFL teachers in more detail below.
Public Schools
If you have a bachelor’s degree, a TEFL qualification and some experience, you might want to consider a teaching position at a public school in Vietnam. They tend to offer good salaries if you're an experienced teacher, along with long, paid holidays and a reasonable number of working hours.
However, it’s worth considering the number of students you’ll feel comfortable teaching. In public schools in Vietnam, it’s common to have up to 60 students in one class. Over the course of a week, some English teachers at public schools in Vietnam can see around 1000 pupils, making it difficult to form strong bonds with your students.
If the numbers don’t put you off and you have the qualifications, you can expect to work Monday to Friday with weekends off, with terms running from August to June.
Language Schools
One of the most popular options for teaching in Vietnam is language schools. There are countless numbers of these schools throughout the country, especially in the big cities where you can spot them around almost every corner. As a teaching destination, a Vietnamese Language school is a great choice for many ESL teachers.
For new TEFL teachers, this makes language schools the perfect first job - competition is low and the schools need to find native-level English-speaking teachers to fill multiple positions. Language schools will also sometimes offer perks that public schools don’t, such as paid overtime, bonuses and training.
You’ll usually work a fixed number of hours over a set number of days per week. While this is great for knowing in advance your working schedule and time off, language schools usually need their teachers to work evenings and weekends.
Language schools will most often provide a curriculum and resources for teachers to use but expect these to vary in quality depending on location and the school’s reputation. On the plus side, you’ll usually have a lot less lesson prep to do, leaving you more time to explore your new city!
International Schools
For many people, landing a job teaching English at an international school in Vietnam is the dream. For those with the right experience and qualifications in English or Education (that goes beyond a TEFL certificate), this may well be the best option. However, for anyone just starting out, it’s unlikely that they would be able to find a position at an international school.
Those who do have the credentials will discover that Vietnam is home to some excellent international schools, especially in big cities, like Ho Chi Minh City. They can usually be found in affluent suburbs, where your students will most likely be the children of expats and wealthy Vietnamese parents.
Salaries and benefits are usually very good, but they come with a high number of teaching hours and even higher expectations. You’ll often be responsible for creating your own curriculum and lesson plans, which can eat into your free time but paid holidays and other perks like relocation packages and discounted tuition for your own children (should you have them!) at the school make International schools a great choice for any foreign teacher.
If you want to find out more about the best international schools in Vietnam, the Good School Guide is an excellent place to start.
Universities
Another option in terms of Vietnam teaching jobs is to work at a university. For the bigger, more well-known campuses, you’ll usually need an advanced degree in a relevant subject as well as a decent amount of previous experience. However, you may find that many of the smaller universities are happy to hire TEFL teachers for required English classes.
Salaries for this kind of teaching job tend to be on the higher end of the pay scale with long holiday periods, making university positions quite competitive. Just remember that while extended time off is great (this can be up to 18 weeks for some universities) that’s time you won’t be getting paid or saving money.