Teaching english in China

[Ervinux]

I am a guy from EU,so is it enough to have a  TEFL certificate and a bachelors dergree from non english university in order to work as 

an English teacher in China legally?

[ZhangKaiRong]

It varies city by city, as far as I know. As a rule of thumb, you need a bachelor's degree, an ESL teaching certificate and two years of teaching experience. And most language schools will still insist on employing you on tourist/business, because it's cheaper for them.

[ChTTay]

What kind of 'TEFL'? A CELTA or accredited TESOL or some online course? A proper certificate will give you more of a chance. Also, can you prove your English fluency? Do you have IELTS or TOEFL?

 

Both of these things will help. However, you may still find it difficult to get fully legal work. It's not impossible and, as above, it will depend where you are looking. It will just be harder for you.

 

Where exactly are you from? I've been hearing that Russians are finding it easier to get English teaching jobs with legit visas recently. Not sure why exactly.

[Tianjin42]

You will want to get a legal position and it will be possible but you may well have to compromise. Also, sadly it will depend on how you look as well. Not so long ago you would have been fine getting a role but it is more difficult and now depends a lot more on demand (a region with a shortage of English teachers is more willing to hire a European national). We still have clients that can accept and obtain a visa for a European national so it does happen. 
Naturally it will depend on your English ability and typically on your accent. If a client is willing to interview then they will be listening for accent.

[Ervinux]

I am studying English philology and I have a TEFL(Teach English as Foreign Language)certificate,so I don't have to prove my fluency and most schools do not require it.I am citizen of European Union,Lithuania.

[ChTTay]

Philology huh? Nice :-)

 

I would say 'most schools' is a bit of a stretch. As the above advice notes, it mostly depends on which part of China you want to work in. Any major city that has it's pick of native speakers probably isn't going to try and hire a non-native. Not because of anything to do with teaching ability but simply because it's harder (or impossible) for them to get them the right visa/residence permit. Actually, If a school is going to hire someone who doesn't meet the requirements (not just native speakers), then either they have ways around it OR don't have the permission to hire foreigners legally.

 

I'm sure you don't NEED to prove your language fluency, however, it would probably help the OP. When you apply for a job, the only thing they see is your application, they don't have a conversation with you - usually. If you have some kind of proof on your CV, it can only help.