EFL Recruiters vs. Independent Job Hunting - Which One Is Better?
There’s a huge demand for certified and skilled EFL teachers all around the world. According to preply.com, 138 countries listed the English language as a part of the core curriculum.
As there is huge demand, many people want to take advantage of becoming an EFL teacher and teaching English across the world.
However, most of the aspirants or those who have completed their TEFL courses have this generic idea that once the course is finished 95% of the work is done. Now they just need to pick their favourite destination to teach English as a second language, showcase their English speaking or English skills to EFL Recruiters, then that’s it they have secured their job.
We wish we could tell you that it’s that simple to land an EFL job, but we have to burst your bubble that it’s not.
There are two approaches that you can choose during EFL Job Hunting:
- Through EFL Recruiters
- Independent Job hunt
Each way has its own pros and cons. During your TEFL job search experience, you will find many EFL recruiters who make too much of promises like you will get the highest paying EFL job, you will get a place of accommodation, and airfare is covered by them.
Everything sounds good to be true, isn’t it?
However, before considering them make sure you have done your research because most of the time it’s been found that those EFL Recruiters are concerned more about their big fat commission than you getting the best job.
Let’s deep dive into knowing in your EFL Job Hunting journey which way is suitable to land an EFL job for you and what are their pros and cons.
EFL Recruiters
If you were just starting your EFL teaching career then we would recommend you to go via the EFL recruiters’ route. EFL recruitment organizations will give you assistance till you land a job. From documentation to getting accommodation, they will assist you till the end. All you need to do is just choose the right and trusted recruitment organization.
Now let’s get to know the pros and cons of EFL recruitment organizations:
Pros
i. No effect on your salary:
During your EFL job hunting phase, you might have heard that if you choose any recruitment organizations to land any job then they will not get the full salary and recruitment agencies might cut their commission from their salary. Well, we have good news for you; you will get the full salary that any school has quoted to you during the hiring process.
EFL recruiters do get their commission but they get that from the school for every successful hiring, not from the candidate.
ii. Ease in the hiring process:
As the recruitment agencies have already done your full screening then expect that your employer has already gotten most of the details of you and they will not ask many questions during the hiring process.
You can also expect that you will get most of the opportunities for long-term rather than short-term semesters because it's beneficial for the recruitment agencies themselves if they found candidates who are reliable and talented for a long time.
iii. Access to a variety of job opportunities
If you’re doing EFL job hunting on your own, searching for jobs according to your preference can take too much time and you may find yourself surfing the internet haplessly for days to even find your desired job.
Rather than doing it on your own, tell your preference of what kind of teaching job you want to a recruitment agency, they will present you with multiple job opportunities in different locations, after that all you need to do is to choose which option suits your requirement.
iv. Get inside details of teaching English abroad
Finding any EFL job and moving to a different country to do that job all by yourself is no easy task. You won’t be having any idea at the beginning of your EFL career if the source of information is trustable or not.
It’s better to take help from reliable EFL Recruiters. There are many reliable recruitment agencies like Teach English Global, International School Services (ISS), Reach to Teach, and many others. They will guide you with all the job opportunities, what to expect during your teaching tenure, and how to make a proper living in that new country. From bringing job opportunities to the initial date of your working as an EFL teacher, they will be there to assist you.
Cons:
While recruitment agencies are a big help in the TEFL job search experience for upcoming EFL teachers. There are plenty of recruitment agencies who promise you the world but, in the end, you will get disappointed.
To avoid this kind of situation, it’s better to research every agency before you trust them, go through the internet, search for reviews about that agency and then put your trust in it.
Independent Job Hunt
We only recommend independent EFL job hunting to experienced EFL teachers. Because after spending a few months or a year, you know in and out of the process of hiring, now you can without any assistance can do your job hunting and can get an even better job with your experiences.
Final Thoughts
After completing a TEFL course, doing everything on your own can be little daunting, so it’s better to take reliable and trusted EFL recruiters to land a job with a good salary. Once you’ve gathered enough TEFL job search experience and lived abroad for almost more than 6 months or for a year then you can opt for the independent job hunt approach.
Please note we are not a placement agency. Looking for earning a TEFL certification? If yes then call us at 1800 212 6400 or +916292137532. Chat with our TEFL expert if you have any questions, send us an email to find out more.
