Teaching English and Traveling in Vietnam
Hanoi — Da Nang — Ho Chi Minh City
In the past, Thailand and Indonesia were the countries in S.E Asia where backpackers and teachers flocked for the tropical lifestyle.
Thailand is still the most popular, from Bangkok — Chiang Mai and its beautiful islands where you can enjoy water sports, hiking, and an easy-going lifestyle.
However, recently Vietnam has become a desired destination for English teachers, digital nomads, and seasoned travelers.
The jobs are plentiful and the young people are enthusiastic about learning, which makes it an attractive place to live and work.
There are many beautiful cities all over Vietnam that you can find work in, but if you are not comfortable living in a city where they don’t speak English and there are no ex-pats, you’re better off sticking with the bigger cities as I did.
Here are some to begin with:
North:
- Hanoi
- Ha Long City
- Hai Phong City
Central:
- Da Nang
- Hoi An
- Nha Trang City
South:
- Ho Chi Minh City
- Can Tho City
- Rach Gia City
- Vung Tau
- Binh Duong Province
Facts about Vietnam
Vietnam is a country in South East Asia with a population of about 96.2 million inhabitants. Vietnam shares its land borders with China to the north, and Laos and Cambodia to the west. It shares its maritime borders with Thailand through the Gulf of Thailand, and the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia through the South China Sea. Its capital city is Hanoi, and its most populous city is Ho Chi Minh City, also known by its former name of Saigon.
Post-war Vietnam
Modern Vietnam was born upon the Proclamation of Independence from France in 1945. Following the Vietnamese victory against the French in the First Indochina War, which ended in 1954, the nation was divided into two rival states: communist North and anti-communist South. Conflicts intensified in the Vietnam War, which saw extensive US intervention in support of South Vietnam and ended with a North Vietnamese victory in 1975. (Wikipedia)
First stop — Hanoi
I arrived in Hanoi, North Vietnam in September 2017 with one suitcase, a backpack, and enough money to last a few months. I had never been to Vietnam before, but I had been to Thailand, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and Australia in 1996.
I’m a solo traveler. I hadn’t left my own country (Ireland) for many years, apart from short holidays. My first impression of Hanoi was one of excitement. The climate was hot, but not too hot that I couldn’t walk around.
Vietnam is a developing country and so not culturally diverse due to government restrictions, but also because there is not much employment there. The reason there are so many English teaching jobs is that they are eager to develop their economy.
Parents are investing a large portion of their income into English lessons for their children. The young people feel the separation from the rest of the world which makes them very ambitious and studious.
For this reason, it’s easy to make friends with young people as they want to learn English, but they also want to learn about our culture.
If you are in your 20’s or 30’s looking for a nice, cultural experience in a safe country, I would recommend Vietnam.
Transportation
Transportation is not good in comparison to other countries. They don’t have a good infrastructure yet. Trains and buses for long distances are quite good, but for getting around in the cities, the buses are not great. This is why everyone has a motorbike. They don’t have a subway, but they are building one in Saigon, which is currently behind schedule.
When I landed my first job in Hanoi, all the teachers encouraged me to get a motorbike as soon as possible. I didn’t want to as I felt nervous, but after trying to get to work on a Grab motorbike, I soon discovered that getting my own bike was a safer bet.
So, I surrendered and got a motorbike. In the end, I loved my little red Honda. This is one of the joys of traveling — you find yourself doing things that you never even imagined.
Where I stayed in Hanoi
I stayed at a 3-star hotel for the first 10 days just for comfort and security. After that, I planned to immerse myself in the culture and look for a job. I booked the hotel from Ireland on www.bookings.com and got a bus from the airport and then a taxi to my hotel.
The food
Fruit markets are everywhere, displaying colorful tropical fruits and a wide range of vegetables and herbs.
I didn’t know what to eat on my first day in Hanoi. The lady at the hotel recommended a Banh My, so I set off in search of one. After a ramble through the dusty, hot streets dodging motorbikes I finally found a little cafe on the side of the street where I ordered something that resembled a Banh My. It was so tasty, something I grew to love later.
Vietnamese cuisine is great — lovely seafood, noodles, and rice. Chicken, pork, and beef are popular too. You can taste many interesting dishes that vary from city to city.
Vietnamese coffee is also wonderful, but very addictive, so watch out!
The culture and the language
I struggled in Hanoi because they don’t speak much English. I had expected there to be a lot more English spoken in the capital city of Vietnam. It was easy at the hotel as they were used to foreigners, but once I stepped out of the hotel I was on my own.
I didn’t have a phrasebook, and using translation on my phone took me a while to get comfortable with.
Setting up — accommodation and work
Before leaving Ireland I did the usual research. I followed a teacher, Ninja Teacher on YouTube which I found very helpful. His name is Alex and he’s very relaxed and approachable.
Facebook groups, such as Hanoi Massive are very good too for asking questions and learning about the ex-pat life. They all said Tay Ho Lake was a really nice place where most teachers found accommodation, so, I found a nice studio near the lake which was perfect!
After about 10 days, I started to look for work as I figured it would take a while. I sent my C.V. off to about 10 schools and I had an interview within a week in a good school.
It surprised me how easy it was, but I did have all the right qualifications. I have a TEFL and CELT certificate. You need at least one of these and most schools will require you to have a degree, although some people have got jobs without a degree.
If you decided to go, I’d recommend you do one of these courses before you leave home, but I’ve met many young people who did the TEFL course in Thailand.
Meeting new people
Gradually over time, the Vietnamese culture started to make a little more sense to me and I found people who could speak more English, but they were all young adults.
I made my way through the usual setup of job interviews, working, making new friends, and before I knew it time was flying by — with so much to do and so many changes, there wasn’t much time to miss home.
Discovering online teaching
Sharing a taxi with another English language teacher from the US, I asked her, did she know of any other ways to earn money while living abroad as I wanted more flexibility. She said, ‘try Cambly.’ ‘What’s Cambly?’ I asked. She proceeded to tell me that it was an online teaching platform that was very relaxed and informal.
The next morning I applied to Cambly as an online tutor. I had never done it before, but as everything else was new in my life at the time, I thought, why not give it a go?
Not long after, maybe a couple of weeks I got accepted and I started to teach online. Cambly turned out to be a lifesaver which I’ll talk about later.
Second stop — Da Nang
I left Hanoi after 4 months as the commute was difficult and it got really cold, so I moved to Da Nang in search of work. This is where Cambly rescued me as it provided an income for me as I looked for work in a school.
Many people told me I wouldn’t find work in Da Nang as it’s one of the most popular places for teachers to live because of its beautiful beach and easy-going lifestyle.
Finding work
After about 6 weeks, I got a job in ILA, one of the larger, most popular language centers in Vietnam. They have over 44 centers in the country, so a good center to work for. I was delighted with this job and my manager, from the US, was one of the nicest managers you could ever work for.
Pros and cons of teaching English in a school like ILA
I liked working in ILA because they are a well-established center and very organized. It’s an excellent center if you are new to teaching or even new to the work scene. There were a lot of teachers in their 20’s and 30’s. They have good training and support too.
They have all the resources needed and because they focus on delivering an up-to-date 21centry learning experience, teachers have their own laptops to use each day, and i-pads are also provided to enhance the students learning experience.
The cons are not too many. The pay starts off lower than some schools, maybe $16 — $18 per hour for new teachers, but if you choose to work there for a few years, your salary would go up each year.
Another con, depending on how much time you like to spend at work. You are expected to attend a lot of workshops and meetings outside of your working hours. They are flexible and do accommodate your schedule, so as I said, it’s not a con if you are on a career path and planning to stay for the long term.
Volunteering in an English club
As I chose to work part-time, I tried to give back to the young people a few evenings a week. I volunteered at an English club called, Vision Cafe. This community was a very significant part of my time in Vietnam as I got the opportunity to get to know and befriend some amazing young Vietnamese people.
The cost of living
The cost of living is low, especially compared to Western countries. If you work 20–21 hours a week, you can live a comfortable life with a nice apartment and enough money for your expenses, plus money to travel or save.
Here’s a link to a breakdown of living expenses in Ho Chi Minh City.
Visa runs
Visa runs forced me to travel, but I didn’t mind as it kept me on my travel toes. You have to do a visa run every 3 months if you don’t have a work permit. I went to Thailand, Malaysia, and over the Laos border on my visa runs.
When you work for one of the bigger schools, they will provide a work permit for you and pay most of the costs. You will need a full medical and a police clearance check, but this is much easier than it sounds.
COVID-19
The coronavirus pandemic interrupted my travel plans. I had planned to go to Malaysia in April 2020, but due to the virus, I could not go. Later I tried to go to Singapore which wasn’t allowed either.
As I had finished up in Da Nang, I decided to go to HCMC to complete my trip.
The coronavirus in Vietnam
It was great how the Vietnamese government responded to the Coronavirus. They acted so quickly that the virus hadn’t a chance of spreading. I must say, I felt very safe in Vietnam and well cared for throughout the months I was there.
On 10th March 2021, Vietnam recorded 2529 cases of the coronavirus, 35 deaths, and 2004 recovered cases.
Final stop — Ho Chi Minh City
I had some wonderful times in Da Nang where I met really nice, interesting people, but I was ready to move on just before we heard of the coronavirus. I was very disappointed as I was ready to leave Vietnam. I had done what I came to do, had enjoyed it, but I had other plans.
I waited in Ho Chi Minh City for another 6 months — visa extension after visa extension. This was the part I didn’t like as they charged a high price for visa extensions, so eventually, I just had to leave. It was $130 per month for a visa extension.
I could go home to Ireland but that wasn’t my plan and I didn’t want to do that as I had no job there. Luckily, I still had my online work to keep me going.
It was good to see Saigon. It’s a bustling city, full of life. With a population of 12 million people, you can just imagine how busy it gets in rush hour.
I made plans to return to Europe so I could be closer to my home country. I made it to Portugal where I am now and still waiting like the rest of the world for the coronavirus to pass.
For anyone who wants to live and work in Vietnam, I’d recommend it. But, I would also say that it’s not as easy as some other countries in South East Asia, like Thailand or Malaysia as it’s not a county that is very open to foreigners, and the level of English is low.
It is predominantly a monoculture, but that is starting to change, gradually.
There are so many jobs for English teachers and as the coronavirus didn’t really disrupt Vietnam, schools are hiring. The only problem is getting there!
Resources
For TEFL Courses and Jobs — The International TEFL Academy, Vietnam
What schools will hire you?
ILA — Teaching jobs
Apollo — Teaching Jobs
There are many good English centers to teach at in Vietnam, but I think the 2 above are some of the better ones. Below is a list of the 10 best schools in Vietnam:
https://fancydistrict.com/list/10-best-english-centres-of-vietnam
Another go-to website for English teaching Jobs in Vietnam & around the world is — Dave’s ESL CAFE
International schools:
There are also many opportunities for employment in these schools, but they require you to have a degree in Education.
The pay is higher than language centers and the hours are Monday — Friday as they are regular schools, whereas the centers are open in the evening and weekends.
- St Nicholas School, Da Nang
- APU, American International School
Salaries in Vietnam:
Generally, salaries currently vary between $1000-$2000 a month doing up to 21 hours of teaching a week. The more hours you work, the higher the pay, of course. Keep in mind, the cost of living is a lot lower than in the West.
Volunteering: As English is in high demand, that is the biggest need and everyone between the age of 20 and 30 want to practice their English.
It is possible to help in orphanages too, but you need to know someone who can organize that for you. The best place to go for that would be the Christian churches.
Apps — Download Grab for travel. It’s very cheap, especially if you travel by motorbike. Taxi cars are inexpensive, but if you use them frequently, it does add up.
Currency Converter:
XE.com — I used this all the time and found it very good.
Tipping: Vietnam is not a tipping culture, so they don’t expect it especially in the north and central Vietnam, but I noticed in Saigon, they do expect a tip.
Facebook: the Vietnamese love Facebook. Everyone uses it.
Biography
I am an English language teacher, writer, and life coach. I started English teaching four years ago.
I would highly recommend Vietnam as it changed me so much. I gained strength, confidence, and a broader vision.
I am currently in Portugal where I plan to work and live for the unforeseeable future. I look forward to discovering what’s ahead as an expatriate in Portugal.
I divide my time between teaching English and growing as a writer.
