If you are looking to work the typical 9 – 5 or 40 hour work week, then Taiwan isn’t for you. The majority of jobs for teachers in Taiwan require them to teach or work 20 to 30 hours a week. Part of this reason is because there is a law that states the maximum number of teaching hours is 32 and also in part that most schools can only hold classes during hours that students are able to attend. Teaching English in Taiwan for most people means working nights and having your mornings and afternoons free to do what you want.
This doesn’t mean there are no 9 – 5 teaching jobs. If you are a certified teacher, then the best job for you would be one in a public school. Public schools only hire teachers who are certified and hold a current teachers license. They also require you to be at work from about 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. These kinds of jobs in Taiwan are not easy to find but if you are a certified teacher then you won’t face much competition because the majority of “teachers” in Taiwan are ones who did not study education and aren’t certified teachers.
The remainder of teachers work in private schools, typically called cram schools. These schools usually run from 5pm to 9pm, Monday to Friday with some offering classes on Saturday. Expect to work 20 – 30 hours a week at one of these schools. If you are looking for a job with minimal hours so you can make use of time outside of work for other purposes, then cram schools would be the best choice.
Easy requirements make teaching English in Taiwan a popular destination for those who want to work in Asia. Taiwan offers the best of both worlds with a decent standard of living and a reasonable rate of pay for the work and effort you put in. What some new wannabe teachers learn is that even though it is fairly easy to get a job in Taiwan, this doesn’t mean there are no regulations or rules regarding what degree qualifications can be used to satisfy the requirements for those looking to teach English. Taiwan has its own Ministry of Education which sets the rules and regulations regarding who and what needs to be provided to apply for teaching jobs.
The biggest requirement is that teachers have a recognized degree. This is usually in the form of a Bachelor’s degree, but for some teaching positions you will also need a Master’s degree. However, if you look a little harder you will discover that online degrees are recognized in Taiwan. This means that any degree you obtained through online studies cannot be used to apply for work as a teacher in Taiwan. No matter how prestigious or famous the university is that issued the degree, it will be of no use whatsoever when you go and try to apply for teaching positions. This news can cause a lot of stress for people who are currently studying online or just received an online degree and had plans to use it to find work in Taiwan.
The only kind of degree that will get you in any doors regarding work is the kind that you get from actually attending a physical university campus and studying the old fashioned way, in class with a lecturer in front of you. If you have one of these degrees then you can rest assured that you shouldn’t have any problems at all when it comes to finding work. However, if you are thinking of getting an online degree because you currently are working and don’t have the time to attend class, you should only continue with it if you have a genuine interest in the field and didn’t have any plans to use it find work in Taiwan.
Save yourself some time and find out in advance if your degree will satisfy the requirements for finding and applying for work as an English teacher in Taiwan. Online degrees will prove useless if you try to use them to find work in Taiwan as the Ministry of Education simply does not recognize them. Go the safer path of attending class at a university somewhere to make sure that any extra qualifications you receive will be able to be used in Taiwan when looking for work.
The reasons people make the move to Taiwan to teach English vary. Some come for fun, some come just to experience something completely different and others come to make money. The reason you want to teach in Taiwan will be affected greatly by the number of hours you’ll be working. What hours do English teachers in Taiwan typically work? If you are coming for fun then knowing in advance the number of hours you’ll be working allows you to plan your daily activities outside of work with much greater ease. Luckily there is a standard workload that English teachers in Taiwan have and it is easy to get more or less if that is what you want.
You’ll probably be teaching about 20 hours a week if you apply at many of the most commonly found English cram schools. These schools hold English classes in the afternoons from around 4pm to 9pm. Since most are not open on Sunday, it is possible for one teacher to teach only 20 – 24 hours a week. As such this is the common number of hours many teachers work and it would be a good figure for you to use as an estimate to the hours you’ll also be working. Some schools may be able to offer you classes just after lunch and some, like kindergartens, will have classes scheduled in the mornings. Just keep in mind that teaching at kindergartens is illegal and while it does mean you’ll get more hours and make more money, it does come with the risk of being deported if you are caught working there.
Besides working illegally in a kindergarten, do teachers have any other possibly solutions to boosting the number of hours they work? The most common solution is to just get a second job. Many schools have only a few hours available a week and they would love to hire someone who was just looking to teach 2 to 4 hours per week. Obviously you can’t live on this but when you take the hours from your first job and add in the hours from your second job, it can add up to be a decent amount of money every month. Some schools may be able to offer you much more than the usual 20 to 24 hours but this is the exception to the rule and isn’t very common.
Working in Taiwan as a teacher is easy when most schools will schedule around 20 to 24 hours per week. If you want more then you may need to ask the school first what the maximum number of hours are that they can possibly give teachers. If it isn’t enough then consider either finding another school or just applying for a second job. Getting a second English teaching job is a great way to earn some extra income from teaching in Taiwan.
Before you jump on the plane and head over to Taiwan, are you 100% sure that you are qualified to teach? By this, I mean, are you legally qualified to teach? English schools won’t be able to help you apply for the work permit and other papers you need to work in Taiwan if you aren’t qualified. What qualifications are needed? Well, if you just want to teach English in the majority of child cram schools, then you might be pleasantly surprised to know that as long as you come from the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa and have either a Bachelor’s or an Associate’s degree, you are more than qualified to work in Taiwan.
The biggest problem or qualification some people have is that of a Bachelor’s degree or an Associate’s with TEFL certification. If you don’t have a Bachelor’s degree (it doesn’t matter what field or area your Bachelor’s degree is), you will then need an Associate’s degree with TEFL certification. Getting yourself TEFL certified is very easy to do and courses usually take a month or so to complete. Getting one might also be an option if you have a Bachelor’s as it will only help you to be a better teacher.
Beyond just having a Bachelor’s or Associate’s degree, you will also need to be native English speaker from either the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa. If you meet all these requirements, then cram schools which make up the bulk of English schools in Taiwan will be more than happy to hire you. If you had your hopes set on working in a University or public school, you will need some extra qualifications beyond just these basic requirements.
What time do you usually wake up? It’s probably not something you ask yourself very often or even think about, but for most English teachers in Taiwan they start their days VERY late. Are they lazy? NO, well no more than we’d like to think we are 
How many hours a day do you or the average person work? Probably around 7 to 8 hours a day, right? If you really want to experience something different, then teaching English in Taiwan could just do the trick. Most teachers in Taiwan work afternoons and evenings, so they get up a bit later than what you and many people typically do and usually only work about 4 to 6 hours a day. Teaching isn’t for everyone, but if it is what you want to do then it can be very enjoyable.
Most English teachers in Taiwan work up to six days a week. I know, work on weekends? It is something more westerners don’t do, or if they do they at least get another day off during the week. This is Taiwan, it isn’t the USA or Canada so you will have to adapt to how things are done by the locals. You will be working about four hours on average, and usually only two hours on Saturday if you have a class on the weekend. Most of the English schools in Taiwan are called cram schools. The classes are designed for children. Most parents send their children to English cram schools to give them an English education at a very young age. This means you’ll probably have children in your class learning English anywhere from as young as six years of age. Sometimes, you’ll even see children that are just four or five in English class. Most schools have their own books and material and you’ll just have to follow or join the jots, so to speak. As long as you keep the children entertained and their grades at a reasonable level, your boss and school should be happy with your performance.
Since most classes are for children, they run usually for two hours and you’ll be finishing work usually no later than 9pm. This is great if you are a night person. Teaching English in Taiwan means you normally start work in the afternoons (after children have finished their day at public school and then get driven to their English cram school) and you’ll finish work at night. This is great if you would like the mornings and afternoons free to do whatever you want. You could learn some Chinese or even just explore Taiwan. One of the most attractive things about teaching English is that the work load is usually light enough to allow you go and do things in your spare time. This can be a great way to pursue interests outside of work and enjoy your life more.
Many people make the move to teaching English in Taiwan, and honestly, it’s no wonder why. Being an English teacher provides a level of freedom that you won’t find with most other jobs. You still have your daily classes that allow you to earn more than enough money to survive, but you get extra time to do and explore things outside of work. There really is nothing like teaching in Taiwan.
