How To Teach English Abroad Without a Degree

If you want to teach English without a degree, you should pay close attention to South America, Central America and Southeast Asia. Also, don’t forget that degree requirements are changing all the time so make sure to confirm before you head over to your destination country.

Visa requirements are constantly changing. Below is a general guideline to which locations allow you to teach without a degree. But just in case, make sure to double-check as they are all not 100% confirmed.

Teach Online

As the world shifts to virtual learning, anyone can teach online without a degree. But the qualifications completely depend on the online teaching company. While some require a degree or teaching experience, other platforms don’t need any type of degree at all.

Even though this market is a bit saturated at the moment, online learning is here to stay. It’s one of the best ways for teachers and students to practice speaking in live conversation.

Central/South America

You are allowed to teach English in most countries in Central/South America without a Bachelor’s degree. But schools often don’t cover flights and housing so you’ll likely have to be on-site to apply.

In general, your wage is much higher than the national average. But it’s still low compared to Asia and hard to save money in countries like Colombia, Peru, and Chile.

It’s also more difficult to land a job in South America because of the lack of online job advertisements. It’s easier to be already there and knock at the doors of some institutions to find a job.

Europe

If you are part of the EU, then there are a lot of options to teach English in Europe even without a degree. If you are from Canada, Australia, or New Zealand, there are options for working holiday visas.

Students can apply for long-term student visas, which allow them to teach up to 20 hours per week. If you want to go to Germany, Portugal, or Poland, you can obtain a freelance visa for teaching English.

Unlike most countries in Asia which pay for your flights and accommodation, this does not exist in Europe. Even though it’s possible to teach without a degree, employers still prefer it if you have a Bachelor’s degree.

Asia

If you want to teach in Asia, most countries require a Bachelor’s degree. All of the major countries that hire English speakers like China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, and Taiwan all require a Bachelor’s degree for employment.

At the moment, some of the exceptions are Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos. But even though it’s not a requirement, these countries still prefer a Bachelor’s degree.

Asia hires the most English teachers than any other continent so you’ll likely have complete a university degree before you can obtain a visa.

Africa

English teaching positions in most of Africa are mostly on a volunteer basis. For example, the Peace Corps is one of the largest volunteering organizations for teaching in Africa.

If you don’t want to go with the Peace Corps, then international schools are another option. But many countries already speak English in urban areas so there is less of a demand for English teachers.

Some of the most popular TEFL destinations include Tanzania, South Africa, Namibia, Rwanda, and Mali. There are paid positions available in northern Africa in countries like Egypt and Morocco but they require a Bachelor’s degree.