A guide to teaching English in Vietnam without degree qualifications

Travelers of all stripes dream of waking up to visions of a Southeast Asian beachfront fringed by palm trees or misty rice paddies in the mountains. That’s one reason why Vietnam is so high on the agenda for graduate TEFL teachers. It’s got both, coastline and highlands, along with buzzing cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh, UNESCO World Heritage Sites like Ha Long Bay, and enthralling ancient history between the palaces of Hue and ruined settlements of Ninh Binh. To put it another way – this is one darn awesome place to start teaching!

One question we hear a lot from would-be EFL-ers tempted by Indochina’s snaking backbone is whether it’s possible to start teaching English in Vietnam without degree qualifications. Cue this guide. It runs through all the ins and outs of heading to the country without a BA or BSc under your belt. It’s also got a few pointers and how to go about the job search in Vietnam if college doesn’t feature on the CV. Hopefully, it’ll have you munching on pho noodles in no time…

So, can I work teaching English in Vietnam without degree qualifications?

Yes! Ignore the naysayers. You can teach English in Vietnam without a degree. That’s not to say it won’t be harder to get a job. It probably will. And it might even be the case that the very best positions of all are out of reach. But that’s really another issue: The competitiveness of the market and the people you’ll be interviewing against.

The core of the point is that simply not having a university qualification does not disqualify you from hitting the classroom in Vietnam on a legal basis. While Vietnamese working visas do require college-level education, there’s an extra clause that gets around that by asking for valid experience in the field. Officially, applicants need up to five years training on the job, but working documents are regularly awarded for much less than that.

The other point to remember here is what counts for ‘experience in the field’ is up for debate. Don’t go thinking this means you’ll have to arrive in Vietnam fresh off a five-year contract working as a teacher elsewhere. It just means you’re going to need to show that you’ve developed the skills and abilities needed to work well as a TEFL teacher, despite not having been to college. Surely anyone thinking of applying to any school anywhere should be in a position to do that, right?

The first step to teaching English in Vietnam without degree? Get TEFL qualified

Because Vietnam is so spectacular and enticing for TEFL teachers, and because you’re going to be competing for jobs with graduates who often have university degrees to flaunt, it’s always a good idea to give yourself every possible advantage. That’s why a TEFL certificate is a real must. Oodles of Vietnamese schools make it a central pillar to their recruitment that all teachers must have done one. What’s more, this is a sure way to start convincing the folk at the Department for Labour that you’ve got the work-permit requirements covered on the experience front.

As this will be one of the strongest selling points on your CV, a TEFL cert that carries weight should be priority. That means sticking to courses of at least 120 hours (the ones with modules on all aspects of teaching, so you can really wax lyrical about them in your application). It also means choosing an internationally recognised provider that’s both accredited and known in the industry (*cough* myTEFL *cough*). It may also help to do on-location courses, which promise to give you live-action teaching experience in addition to the academic side of EFL.

Make sure you have a tiptop application…

Your application and cover letter are more important than ever when you come teaching English in Vietnam without degree qualifications. You’re going to need to really sell yourself, push your pros, and talk about all those strong points. Touch on the experience you’ve gained in your TEFL course and in other teaching positions. Accentuate the skills you think are relevant to the position. If you can get an interview, even better. Consider it your personal chance to help the employer forget that you might not have done your three years in the library!

What jobs can I get teaching English in Vietnam without degree?

So long as you can satisfy the loophole clause that asks for experience in place of a degree to get a Vietnamese working permit, there’s no job that’s out of bounds. That’s in theory. In practice, not having college done and dusted will put you in a less-powerful position than the international native speakers that come here after graduating.

In addition, you’re likely to have more of a chance with applications to private learning institutions. State schools tend to prefer to stick to the official line of no degree, no work. Smaller establishments are more likely to consider teachers on a person to person basis.

The overall effect of all that? Those teaching English in Vietnam without degree qualifications simply get paid less, or work in less affluent or less well-equipped schools. Still, you’re looking at a potential salary of about $1,500/month in these sorts of jobs, which is actually a great place to begin in a country with such low living costs.

Where can I teach English in Vietnam without a degree?

As with jobs, so long as you have the experience, there’s really nowhere that’s off the map. Still, you might be better seeking out parts of the country where there’s less competition for work in the TEFL sector. That means straying further from the buzzing cities of HCMC and Hanoi, or the beautiful bays of Ha Long. It means finding more rustic and rural areas, or focussing on second-tier towns like Hue, Da Nang, and Vinh. Don’t worry, you can still escape to the wild trekking routes of Sapa or the beaches of Phu Quoc on your holidays!

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If you think we’ve missed anything in this guide to teaching English in Vietnam without degree qualifications, we’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. Alternatively, head over to our courses page to get started on your own TEFL journey today…