ESL private lessons in Vietnam
Most people do not initially consider private lessons as a mainstay when thinking of teaching English overseas. Schools! Language Centers! Hours! Classes! These are the opportunities that seemed most apparent when I realized I wanted to teach English in Vietnam.
And yet there is a whole other world of ESL teaching that explodes in a delightful rash of options once you set foot over its threshold. There are several ways to get into this semi-secret, super satisfying (And grossly lucrative) club:
- Some people advertise in online forums or facebook groups.
- Some people make posters or flyers.
- And some simply slip into it, entirely unaware of what is about to happen to their careers, while at the friendly neighborhood corner store!
The latter is how I found myself sidling up to this awesome overseas business.
How I got into private tutoring:
A very friendly man and woman in their early 30s saw my husband at the corner store. They were buying ice cream for their three year old son. I imagine that their thought process went something like this: “HEY! A foreigner! Let’s ask if he wants to teach our son.”
Next thing you know:
“Where are you from? America? Do you want to teach our son private lessons?!“.
He told them that he was too busy, but that I would love to. And that was it.
I was suddenly teaching our neighbors’ adorable little boy English for two hours a week. We played games with flashcards, threw balls, drew pictures, did magic tricks, counted things, played hide and seek. We simply had a lot of fun together describing things and asking questions in English.
After a month, the couple had an idea: Let’s start a mini-school of private lessons in our house for our friends’ children! Rebecca can be the teacher!
And so suddenly there was a mini-school in my neighbor’s house, and I was the teacher 7-10 hours a week. The classes have a maximum of 6 students, so everyone receives a lot of one-on-one attention, and it is very easy to manage the groups. I can actually get to know my students, and develop personal relationships with them and their parents. The setting is light-hearted, friendly, and casual. The kids personalities really shine!
We blow bubbles, look at real-life insects and sea creatures, play broken telephone, make lemonade, dance, pretend we’re animals, and generally have a super fun time! And yes, the children actually learn! I have seen remarkable improvements in each and every one of their English levels and confidence over a very short span of time. The rewards for me as a teacher are unbeatable.
Keeping up with the demand:
Once you’re in the world of private teachers, the offers will never cease! Oh, and i forgot to mention that the pay is insane!
The parents loved the results from their kids and began requesting more classes. Now my neighbors have a blossoming business that is mutually beneficial for all parties involved, and are actually unable to keep up with the demand for classes!
The solution? Hire another teacher! So they did. Still more demand! They are currently looking for one to two more (female) teachers, in case you might be in Hanoi and considering this option 🙂
The pay is so good that I could earn enough to pay all of my bills and still save money while teaching privates only 4 hours a week. If I were to teach 12 private hours a week, I would be earning nearly as much as I do at my now full-time salary job.
Private tutoring vs Teaching classes:
I love both of my jobs. They are very different. Many ESL teachers teach at schools during the day, and then at Language centres or private lessons in the evenings or on weekends. If you love to teach and want to optimize your savings, why not have the best of both worlds?
Answer these questions for yourself to see if teaching privates might be for you:
- Do you prefer to teach smaller groups, or one-on-one?
- Do you genuinely care about the learning experiences of your students?
- Do you value interpersonal relationships?
- Do you like not having to work many hours, but still get paid as though you do?
- Do you/will you have your TEFL certificate?
If you answered yes to most of these questions, I strongly recommend getting on that private horse! The teaching opportunities in this specific market are dynamite!
4 Comments
Bradley
What exactly is the hourly rate for these classes? If I teach for a few months in Thailand (as I am) and gain some more experience, would you say I can set myself up in Hanoi within a month in June and quickly build up a tutoring schedule to fill most of my week? My alternative is contracting in S. Korea, which is dandy, but that fantasy above sounds like a more adventurous and lucrative alternative. Am I mad to think it’s possible? Cheers.
myTEFL
Employers in Vietnam typically pay between $15 and 23 USD per hour for qualified natives. This depends on location, how many hours in the schedule and your experience.
I’d say it’s really easy. The cost of living in Hanoi is uber cheap, and the demand is high! It is more of an adventure compared to Korea. You’ve made the leap already. Keep following what you want to do.
Oprah out.
Bradley Stone
Thanks, Oprah. It’s an honour to receive a billionaire life coach’s advice. I’ll keep following the dream. It’s a bit of a toss-up, whether to stay in Thailand as I am or to dive again into unknown waters with the intent to put a dent in my debts. There’s always this conflict in me between my finances and my skills, and how to build on both without doing anything I’d regret.
Cheers,
myTEFL
In my free time I like to help the common folk out ;).
Seriously, check out Taiwan. It’s the perfect balance between fun and freedom and keeping those finances in good shape. A hidden gem in the EFL world.