China is a fascinating country to visit. Spending even a little amount of time there will provide you with memories that will last a lifetime and that just cannot be replicated anyplace else. It should come as no surprise that China is a top destination for English instructors from all around the globe. China is home to a diverse range of cities, some of which have been designated as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including Beijing and Shanghai.
Understanding Can You Teach in China without a Degree?
You have done a lot of research on living and traveling in China, and you believe that teaching English would be a terrific way to do it. However, when you look up job ads, you find that the majority of them need applicants to have a degree. Therefore, is it possible to teach English in China without having one?
Not only is possessing a Bachelor of Arts degree necessary for most employment, but it is also required by the Chinese government in order to legally work as a teacher there. Therefore, if you do not have one, you will not be able to get a work visa. There are some instructors in the classroom who do not have degrees since there are numerous schools that recruit teachers even without degrees. They achieve this by either securing a student visa to remain in the nation and working on it while conducting frequent border runs or working on a tourist visa while performing regular border runs. Some even acquire bogus degrees.
The straightforward reality is that if you want to teach in China, you will need to get a degree first. Because of the hazards involved, we do not advise using any of the solutions listed above. If you are detected, you are going to be into a lot of problems, and you are going to be penalized and deported without a doubt. In addition to this, working illegally exposes you to the possibility that your employer may take advantage of you. Because you were not intended to be working in the first place, you have little recourse if you are forced to put in longer hours, get a lower wage, or are not paid at all.
Completing your Bachelor of Arts degree is an absolute must if you wish to find work as a teacher in China. It’s likely that there were a lot of loopholes in the past, but those days are long gone. These days, the sector is very controlled, and it will be extremely difficult to teach. I am aware that attending college is a time- and money-intensive endeavor that not everyone is able to do, but sadly, earning a degree from an accredited institution will be necessary for you.
There are other methods in which you may begin teaching while you are still in school or even before, but not on a full-time or permanent basis. You may learn about the business and obtain some useful experience by teaching English to Chinese students online. This is a growing trend in recent years.
You won’t be able to find any programs that enable individuals to travel and work in China, but if you’re interested in participating in a working holiday program, you may look into teaching English in Hong Kong or Taiwan. This will enable you to work legally in order to fund your travels, and hence, teaching English as a second language (ESL) at a language school in a nation that speaks Chinese is an excellent method to get experience in that profession.