- What is up everybody and welcome to another ITA video.
My name is Kenny Nguyen and I am your ITA video ambassador
comin' out from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Today's video, we will be talkin' about
the pros and cons about working at a small English center.
A little bit about the school,
this school is also known as a hagwon,
basically a private afterschool academy.
There are several reasons why students go to hagwons
first reason is that some students might have trouble
in school with testing
and so they would come here so we can assist them
to improve their test scores.
Other reasons is maybe they are behind in school
and so they attend one on one classes
or classes with other peers
to just catch up on their work in school.
So basically, we specialize in just many areas
and we try our best to help students
meet their educational needs.
Those are just a few facts about hagwons
and yeah, let's get into the pros and cons
of working at this school.
So the thing I love about working at hagwons
is that my boss here is so flexible.
In the beginning, they asked me if I wanted
to have some classes on Monday
and you know, I said no.
I wanted to have my Mondays just off.
Would it be possible to move someone's class
that you suggested to other days
such as Tuesday or Wednesday and Thursday
and it was no biggie.
I have basically all of Saturday off,
Sunday off, and Monday.
What can I do with that time off?
Well, I can basically pack my bag
and go to Cambodia for a weekend
which I am actually planning to do in upcoming weeks.
Only for $10.
Pro number two, is that the salary at an English center
tends to be a little bit higher
than your traditional public school
at the moment my salary is 20 US dollars an hour
if I'm teaching a one on one class.
But if there are more than two students
in my class my salary is actually a 22 dollars per hour.
Now, during the eight months that I've been here in Vietnam
I have paid more than $10,000 US dollars
off my student loan so I'm inching my way closer
to being debt free.
Definitely prefer academic centers
cus they pay a few more dollars
more than your traditional public school.
Hey guys, my third pro about working
in a small English center is the class sizes.
Typically, I teach about three to at most six students
in my English classes.
And you know, that is awesome
because that gives me a chance
to know them on a more deeper level,
understand their problems in school,
and basically create lesson plans that cater
to each individual's needs.
In addition to that, I do have classroom rules
and I find it easier to discipline three to six kids
compared to 30 to 40 kids at a public school.
So another pro about working at a small English center
is that you teach multiple subjects.
At the moment, I am teaching TOEFL, literature,
and I'm also teaching the most important thing
in Vietnam, the IELTS.
These are basically the tests you take
to enter into university.
But I know how to teach various subjects
which would prove beneficial to you
if you want to move up the educational ladder
or if you want a higher pay raise.
I know some teachers who know how to teach the IELTS
and some of their salaries went up from 22 dollars
to as high as 26 US dollars.
So, if you're coming to Vietnam
be open to teaching various subjects.
It will help you out in the long run.
First con, and let me pull up a schedule
from September and compare it to the schedule in January.
The schedule here, what I dislike is that
it tends to fluctuate.
I taught 106 hours and I made over two thousand US dollars.
Now, let's take a look at my January schedule
and you can see the dramatic difference.
Now, this can be extremely frustrating
as some months you may be overworking
but some months you may not have enough classes
to get by the month.
At the academic center
it's not likely that you're gonna be teaching
one subject or two subjects.
At the moment I am extremely stressed out
because I am teaching 12 different classes at the moment
and take time to prepare your lessons
it takes such a long time.
For example, if I had an eight hour day at school
the night prior to that I would be spending
about eight hours preparing my lessons.
So yeah, it can be pretty hectic at times
and sometimes on my day off, I find myself
spending my free time preparing for my lessons
so it will definitely drive you crazy.
Another con I have
about working at a small English center is, money.
You know, sometimes you make two grand a months,
sometimes you make as little as 800 dollars a month
and that is because English centers
don't really have fixed salaries.
You are paid by the amount of classes you teach
and every month will be different, you know?
And for me that's not a problem
cus I actually don't have a family,
I don't have to worry about rent,
paying for gas or food or any of those expenses
and if money is a big concern to you
then I suggest you look for a place that has fixed hours.
Cus nobody wants to worry about
when their next meal will come
or how they will pay for rent.
All right and lastly, another con I want to talk about it
is moving up the ladder in the educational field.
Now, some foreigners that I meet who actually work with me
they say that they want to make teaching
and they want to work in the educational field
for the rest of their life
and of course they want to move up like the corporate ladder
some people I meet they say they want to become managers
or even academic coordinators and if you're working
in a small center and you want to go up
into positions like that
it would be difficult to, sometimes nearly impossible
because small centers don't have those positions available.
I know some teachers who worked at Apollo
and they told me they were teachers before
but after working there for like two years
they are working in like the human resources office.
So, if you're looking to advance in the educational field
then I highly suggest you go into these bigger centers
as they offer more opportunities.
Those are the pros and cons
of working at a small academic center.
I can go on and on and on with the pros and cons
but unfortunately I am only create
three to five minute videos.
But, if you guys have more questions
about working at small centers
or even working in public schools
please shoot me a message on my Instagram handle
I will provide the links right down below.
If you guys enjoyed the video we'll see you back here
in another ITA video from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
See you later guys.