5 Interview Tips to land your first teaching job
No matter what path you take in your teaching career at some point you are going to have to partake in at least one interview and this blog post was designed to help you in that process.
These 5 tips are essential in acing your interview.
1. First and foremost do not forget that they called you.
It is your job to loose. Be confident. They liked what they saw in your CV and your cover letter so why be nervous? Most of you just moved to a new city on your own to follow your dreams and a director at a language academy should not scare you. Walk into the room, make firm eye contact and smile and everything will be just fine.
2. Prepare a "Must Say" list.
Everyone has walked out of an interview wishing they had said something different or had forgotten to say something important. A simple remedy to this is to make a list of the 4 or 5 things you "MUST SAY" and make sure you hit those points in the interview so when you leave you are confident that you left the impression you were hoping for.
3. Research and prepare questions.
Most schools will have a website or a blog and this can help you to identify the style and approach of the school. Create a few questions based off of what you learned about them and if they covered all the points you were concerned about, instead of asking an unwarranted question, thank them for being so detailed in their description and that they covered all of your concerns.
4. Make sure you are prepared for the basic questions like, "Tell me about yourself?"
Tell me about yourself is your chance to make a great impression and gain some confidence. It can easily make or break an interview. It is alarming how many people do not have this answer planned prior to the interview as it is sure to come up. A simple formula for NEW English teachers is to tell why you moved to Barcelona, how your past experience relates to the job you are applying for and what personal characteristics will make you an asset to their organization.
5. Write a "Thank You" email to all parties involved in the interview.
Normally decisions are made very quickly in this industry and we recommend sending the email the evening after your interview. If on the rare occasion they will not be making a decision for two weeks, it is advised to wait about a week and then send the "Thanks You" letter as a way to keep in their heads.
Upon making your deposit and appling directly for our course you will receive a free eBook, "Teach English in Barcelona" and there is a chapter solely dedicated to answering the 20 most common interview questions.
We hope this helps and let us know how your interviews are going.
Michael Thompson
Job Guidance
TEFL International Barcelona
