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teach english in honduras

Teach English in Honduras

Outranking its Central American neighbours for English proficiency, Honduras is a fascinating prospect for any TEFL teacher!

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A country full of surprises, Honduras could be one of the underrated destinations for teaching English abroad. Right in the middle of Central America, Honduras is a nation of Spanish speakers, but it has some of the most able English speakers in Central or Latin America, a robust agricultural sector, and a distinct, celebrated culture.

With a range of national parks, Mayan ruins, scuba diving resorts and extremely welcoming residents, Honduras is an adventurer’s dream. It also provides opportunities for adventurous TEFL teachers, as there is significant demand for English language education within the country.

Whether you find yourself in the capital, Tegucigalpa, or in one of the various beautiful, coastal destinations, there is plenty of scope to teach English learners from different walks of life, from school pupils to adults seeking career advancement or educational opportunities from English-speaking institutions.

So, where can you find these job opportunities? What can you earn teaching English in Honduras, what qualifications do you need, and what’s the cost of living like? Let’s take a look at Honduras, and how you can get a job teaching English in this fascinating country.

Honduras: an overview

An important thing to know about Honduras is its economic and agricultural heft. While it’s not a global superpower like China or the USA, Honduras holds its own in terms of international trade. Items including t-shirts, coffee, and palm oil bring significant investment. As an island nation with easy access to both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, these exports are key to Honduras’ economic success.

Why does that matter for people teaching English abroad in Honduras? You’re not reading an economics textbook, after all. Well, it’s actually a key reason why Honduras’ English language proficiency is so high. The EF English Proficiency Index lists Honduras as 31st out of 113 countries - that’s higher than France, South Korea or India. As a Central American nation, Honduras’ English proficiency far outranks that of its neighbours, including Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panama. The popularity of Honduras’ exports helps to explain this level of proficiency - port cities and towns are typically more multicultural, with a wider variety of languages spoken. This doesn’t mean, however, that Honduras is an educational utopia, and there are problems.

Attempts have been made to overhaul Honduras’ education system - and English has become a mandatory pre-elementary subject. Overall literacy rates are improving, albeit slowly. State education in Honduras isn’t the most well-funded, especially compared to near neighbours like Cuba (with its extremely high literacy rates), with the majority using language schools to learn English, or learning with tutors. Bilingual schools do exist, but these tend to be fee-paying, independent schools.

Tegucigalpa, Honduras’ capital, is comfortably the biggest city, with nearly 1.3 million residents. As such, it’s where the majority of English teaching jobs are, though cities like San Pedro Sula and Choloma are also bursting with life.

Requirements

So, what do you need to teach English in Honduras? It’s important to note here that the English teaching requirements are not uniform - your entry to Honduras, on a working visa, is dependent on you having a job offer. Each job will have its own requirements, so read them carefully!

While native English teachers are usually preferred, there still are opportunities to be had for those who want to teach English abroad as a non-native speaker. Language schools, for example, could offer a good route to employment to those with IELTS or TOEFL qualifications. Alternatively, a degree from an English-speaking institution is an ideal way to prove fluency.

It’s also worth mentioning that many educational institutions in Honduras are Christian, or espouse “Christian values” as a school. You’ll see this mentioned in a lot of job adverts for Honduran schools. This doesn’t mean that non-Christians are at a disadvantage, but it’s useful to know, and it may come up during the job application process.

What else might international teachers need to teach English in Honduras? Let’s take a look.

TEFL certificate

Not all jobs in Honduras require TEFL certification. That said, you’re certainly better prepared for English teaching abroad if you do hold a high-quality TEFL certificate. The industry standard is 120 hours of training, which will give any prospective TEFL teacher the grounding they need in the methodologies and best practices. When choosing a TEFL certification course, remember to pick a reputable provider, with multiple sources of legitimate accreditation.

In Honduras especially, advanced TEFL certification might help. English is taught widely at an early stage, so a certificate in Teaching Young Learners will help. Given Honduras’ busy port cities and the importance of exports, there’s plenty of interest in Business English. Finally, English for Academic Purposes ought to secure you some work with young adults who want to learn at English-speaking universities. In short, you might not need TEFL certification for every job, but it certainly will help you find teaching jobs.

Degree/no-degree

You can teach English abroad without a degree in Honduras. Again, your visa entry is incumbent on a job offer - more on that soon - and not every job will ask for a bachelor’s degree on your CV.

That said, better-paid jobs almost certainly will. While institutions like private language schools will be less discerning about degrees, state schools, private schools and universities will almost certainly ask for one.

Experience

Previous teaching experience is always desirable. For some English teaching jobs in Honduras, it’ll be a prerequisite, with job listings often asking for at least a year of classroom experience. However, there are entry-level teaching opportunities in Honduras for teachers who do not have any prior teaching experience.

Visa

So, what about getting a work visa to teach English in Honduras?

As previously mentioned, your visa is incumbent on you receiving a job offer from a Honduran educational institution. The usual work permit given to TEFL teachers is the Special Residence Permit, which is valid for 1-5 years. This is required for full employment in Honduras, from a Honduran institution. If you find yourself between Special Residence Permits during your time in Honduras, you can switch to a Temporary Residence Permit once your original visa is close to expiration.

For a Special Residence Permit, you’ll need:

Valid passport
Copies of your qualifications (TEFL certificate, degree (if applicable)
Copy of contract offer from Honduran institution
Proof of income
Criminal background checks (from every country you’ve lived in)
Birth certificate
Marriage information (if applicable)

After 3 years teaching English and living in Honduras, you can apply for citizenship. Honduras accepts dual citizenship.

Download our teaching English in Latin America guide

Salary and cost of living

Now we know what’s needed to teach English in Honduras, how financially rewarding can it be for English teachers? What’s the average salary like for ESL educators, and how does it contrast against the cost of living?

Let’s take a look.

Salary

Like anywhere else, teaching salaries in Honduras can vary depending on the level of qualifications you hold, your previous teaching experience, and where you’re based. Wages for teaching jobs in Honduras - online, at least - are usually listed in US dollars, though the Honduran lempira (HNL) is the national currency.

Typically, an entry-level salary in Honduras normally ranges between 12,382 HNL - 24,764 HNL ($500-$1,000/£395-£790) a month. Teaching salaries can rise to around the equivalent of $1,600-$2,000/£1,263-£1,580 per month at more prestigious institutions.

Benefits

Often, you’ll see a few benefits added to job offers from Honduran institutions. Furnished accommodation is relatively common for those teaching English in Honduras, which definitely helps to alleviate any initial financial concerns. Visa support is usually provided, either in terms of financial support or practical support, including paperwork. Airfares are sometimes included, and it’s also not uncommon to see housekeeping services offered as part of a teaching contract.

Cost of living

What’s the cost of living like when you're teaching English in Honduras? Looking specifically at the capital city, Tegucigalpa, we can get a decent overview of living costs around the country.

For example, renting a one-bedroom city centre apartment costs about $216/£170 a month, which is only marginally more expensive than renting outside central Tegucigalpa. In contrast, the same size of apartment is about $202/£160 per month if you’re willing to commute to central Tegucigalpa.

Utilities cost about $61/£47 on a monthly basis. Honduran cuisine is famous, so you’ll probably want to experience some local cooking. The good news is that it’s pretty cheap. Dishes like baleadas and carne asada are absolute musts, and you can eat solo, at an inexpensive eatery, for about $6/£5. A three-course meal for two, at a mid-priced restaurant, costs about $20/£16.

Country	Avg. monthly salary	Degree required	Start of term	Teaching experience	Housing & flights included	Suitable for non-native English speakers	Age restrictions
Teach in Honduras	24,764 HNL (£395 - £790 GBP $500 - $1,000 USD)		February				None

Types of English teaching jobs in Honduras

Teaching jobs in Honduras, especially in schools, tend to start with six-month contracts, even during the academic year. The school year lasts between February and November, so you’re best looking for jobs in November and December.

So where can teaching jobs in Honduras be found? Let’s take a look.

Public Schools
Private Language Schools
International Schools
Universities
Private Tutoring

Public schools

While English is not a compulsory subject, it’s certainly the most popular foreign language taught in Honduran schools, with French and German as runners-up. Schooling in Honduras is only mandatory between the ages of 7 and 13, and attendance is very much dictated by a student’s proximity to a school. Ultimately, Honduras - especially in more rural areas - lacks reliable infrastructure to send enough kids to school.

Still, English is taught in public schools, and these schools typically hire teachers with a TEFL certificate and a degree. Experience is also very useful.

English clubs, where after-hours lessons are given at schools, are relatively common. These do sit outside set curricula, and you will have to provide your own lesson plans, but they’re extremely useful for children who want to boost their vocabulary and their conversational skills in English.

Private language schools

If you’re looking to predominantly teach adults, private language schools are a good option. They’re not necessarily widespread across Honduras, but they do exist within bigger cities, particularly Tegucigalpa.

International schools

International and bilingual schools exist within the Honduran educational system, but again, they aren’t widespread. The majority can be found in Tegucigalpa, though Sandy Bay and San Pedro Sula also have a couple of options.

These institutions are more particular about qualifications and experience, so you’ll usually need a TEFL certificate, a teaching license and a bachelor’s - as well as some experience - to land a job at an international school in Honduras.

Universities

With only 10 million or so inhabitants, Honduras isn’t exactly littered with universities. There are 21 recognised universities, very few of which offer course options in English. That said, there are English courses, both in terms of literature and linguistics, so TEFL teachers might want to look out for classroom assistance roles.

Private tutoring

Private tutoring is an option for TEFL teachers in Honduras, although it’s only worth doing once you’ve established yourself as a teacher. Lessons in Business English and English for Academic Purposes will be particularly useful, as the bulk of your students are likely to be adults looking for career momentum, or young adults hoping to gain entry to English language universities or colleges.

Teach English in Tegucigalpa

Home to about one-tenth of the entire Honduran population, there are plenty of teaching opportunities, eager students and things to see and do in Tegucigalpa. When you first arrive to teach there, it’s impossible not to be won over by Parque Central, home to a stunning cathedral and the Presidential Palace.

There are two great ways to find out what Honduran culture is all about. You can find out for yourself, by visiting the colourful markets, trying out the gorgeous local cuisine (check out our cost of living guide for prices!) and listening to local music in the city centre’s numerous bars and clubs. Or, for a bit more history, you can try the Museo Para La Identidad Nacional, where Honduras’ past and present come to life.

Tegucigalpa is where you’ll find the majority of Honduras’ universities, international schools and private language schools, as well as the best-resourced state schools in the country. Though there’s a lot to explore in this fascinating country, the capital city is a great place to choose as a new home.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How much do English teachers make in Honduras?

Usually, English teachers in Honduras make around 12,382 HNL - 24,764 HNL per month, which is equivalent to US$500-$1,000/£395-£790.

Q. Do they teach English in Honduras?

Yes, English is taught in Honduras. It’s the most popular foreign language in the country, and high-quality English teachers are greatly appreciated in any school, language learning centre, university or other educational institution.

Q. What country is easiest to teach English in?

Though this is subjective, some nations in Central America, including Honduras, can be seen as “easier” to teach in, as it’s more common for teachers without degrees or previous experience to work there.

Q. What country pays the most to teach English abroad?

The biggest starting English teaching salaries are usually in countries like the United Arab Emirates, Singapore and Hong Kong. However, with the right qualifications and level of experience, you can make an excellent wage teaching English around the world.