Teaching English in Greece - Jobs in Greece
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Teaching English In Greece
There is a considerable demand for teaching English as a foreign language in Greece and there are a number of opportunities for jobs teaching English, both regular full time and part-time employment. Learn about teacher training, pay and conditions for jobs teaching English in Greece in this guide.
- In Greece there are literally hundreds of "frontistiria" (private language schools. Singular ‘frontistirio') and the majority of Greek school children attend one after school hours. Many native English speakers work teaching English either in frontistiria or by giving private English lessons to pupils. Frontistiria are open during the school year, September to June, and usually close for 2/3 months in the summer.
- A Presidential Decree signed in 1997 made it possible for European Union Nationals to be generally employed in and also open Foreign Language Frontistiria. Officially EU citizens need a university degree to open or teach in a 'frontistiro' language school. Another, more recently enforced, requirement for all non-Greek nationals teaching English in Greece is to demonstrate fluency in the Greek language in order to obtain a teaching licence (the EU Commission is currently threatening to take Greece to court over this. See Athens News 07/2009) , however some language schools will employ you without a degree or teaching licence (particularly in the islands).
- A TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign language) or TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) certificate is also very useful and can improve your chances of getting a job teaching English but, perhaps more importantly, you will learn how to teach English as a foreign language... which will include brushing up on your English grammar (can you distinguish the present perfect simple tense from the present perfect continuous?).
- TEFL / TESOL courses can be taken online as well as at many centres throughout the world, including the UK and Greece. There are both full courses and the shorter introduction courses, some of which include classroom teaching experience. You can even take an online course and then gain experience with practice teaching in Greece if you wish, before taking on a job teaching English.
- More information on teaching in English in Greece, as well as a list of private language schools in Greece, can be obtained from the Panhellenic Association of Language School Owners (PALSO) : P.A.L.S.O (Panhellenic Federation of Language School Owners). Likavitou 2 Athens 10671 Tel.: 0030 210 3640792 Website: http://www.palso.gr/
- PALSO have local offices in all the major towns across Greece and the Greek Islands. Although PALSO is not an employer, their offices hold lists of vacancies in local language schools so if you have a preference to teach in a certain area or island you can contact the local PALSO in that area for details. You can also email your CV to the local PALSO office, or visit their office and post your CV on their notice boards, so that Language School Owners looking for English teachers can find your details.
- Teaching jobs in Greece are widely advertised on the internet and in local Greek newspapers, usually in May/June and then again August/September, before the start of the school year for positions which have not been filled. There are very few vacancies at other times of the year, but occasionally teachers leave mid year or mid term and vacancies may arise.
- Non EU Citizens require a work permit to teach, which must be obtained in advance. Many language schools prefer to employ EU citizens as there is less red tape involved.
Teaching Hours
Students in Greece attend private language school frontistiria after school hours so the majority of teaching English jobs are in the afternoon and evening hours. It is normal for students to take English classes up to 10.30 pm at night. Usual frontistiro hours are from around 3.00 p.m. until 10.30 p.m. so you are most likely to be working in the evenings.
Pay & Conditions for Teaching English in Greece
Pay is generally around 9 to 12 euros per hour plus IKA Greek national insurance in the language schools for an experienced teacher, or approximately 800 to 1000 euros per month, teaching approximately 25 to 30 hours per week. Check out the working conditions/ hours before accepting a position. Some may expect 40 hours of teaching per week for as little as 600 euros per month.
Many English teachers supplement their income with private lessons which are much more lucrative - experienced teachers can easily charge 20 to 25 euros an hour. Once you are established in a language school you may find that some students require extra lessons at home so make it known that you are available. Word of mouth amongst parents then often leads to more private students.
Copyright © 2008 Carol Palioudaki
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Articles, teachers reports, jobs, forum. Great resource links for teaching English abroad. - British Council in Athens
Information and links for teaching English in Greece. - Teaching English Org
Lesson plans, ideas on teaching, activities teaching problems and more from the British Council and the BBC. - Living and Working in Greece & Crete
Information on teaching, working and living in Crete. - Summer Jobs in the Greek Islands
Working in Greece
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Comments
Very good Hub with definite direction and good advice!
Hi AuraGem and Patty -thanks for your comments... glad to have provided enlightenment! Teaching in Greece is not the best paid opportunity (in fact any work in Greece is generally low paid by UK standards .. and Australian too I would guess) but it is a great way to spend time in a beautiful country.
Over the last few months, there has been a lot of debate about the proposed requirement for English Teachers working in private schools frontistiria) to take exams in Greek language.
This proposal still seems to be in limbo, as it hasn't formally been withdrawn, but the Greek government has been informed by the European Commission that the proposal contravenes European law.
That aside, the requirements for a foreign teacher to be hired at a frontistirio are relatively straightforward. The employer applies for a permit (adeia proslipsis allodapou) and the only documentation required in support of that application is a certified copy of your college diploma and a certificate from the public health committee issued after a medical including a blood test and chest X-ray.
To get a teaching licence to work privately or establish your own school is rather more complex, and certification in Greek language is required for that.
Regional Directorates of Secondary Education are not always fully informed about procedures, so it's often useful to contact the Ministry of Education in Athens. Anyone interested in teaching in Greece is also welcome to contact us at jobs@anglo-hellenic.com
Peter,
I understand that a teaching permit is not required for EU nationals, and the 'adeia proslipsis allodapou' is for NON EU nationals. Can you clarify if this is so?
This teaching permit thing in Greece has been driving me mad. I currently live in Corfu, although elsewhere (Italy and Australia) I have been an EFL teacher for a few years (I'm EU/British). I have excellent qualifications and experience to teach yet am up against this teaching permit barrier for which I must have proficiency in Greek (I do not). I understand this works to push jobs in favour of Greek nationals, but from my standpoint I find this ruling frustrating, archaic and against modern principles of language teaching. Is there anyway around this? Will some schools accept me and would it be legal? How long do we wait for the EU to make the Greek government withdraw this law?
This is very informative Carolina - teaching English abroad was something I've thought about many times - at the moment I'm still dreaming!
I lived and worked in Greece for several years and the paperwork was, well, hell. I loved Greece and all she has to offer except the paperwork. I had the misfortune to open an office in one town and then move it to another. As far as my clients were concerned a good move but it tied me up in knots with paper work. This English teaching thing seems to land in the same basket. It is such an open profession in so many other countries. I hope they find a way to make it so in Greece. Teaching English is a great career.
My heart goes out to all those embattled with Greek paperwork.
Mon.
Mon, I've been battling with Greek paperwork for 20-odd years,.. yes it's a bit of a nightmare but you kind of get used to it. Have been through the setting up and running of a business or two here as well. Eh, ti na kanoume? :)
Carolina you have a very informative hub it widens onces prospective to share there knowledge in English, and may I share a site that could help you guys in your teaching profession in ESL mingoville.com is a site dedicated for learning English in a fun way especially for kids who really finds it interesting to study through colorful games this site is alos good for adults too for there listening ability.I hope this could help you guys.
I have been working in Athens for a year now having worked in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. The Greek mentality towards EU and it's own modern development within it is at best a complete sham. The default mentality is one of conservatism and even zenophobia like I've never experienced anywhere else. As a long serving Greek national at my school tells me, if you think me, me, me you'll get on fine here. As for me Greek bearocracy has left me utterly disappointed and longing for a more modern, wordly-aware country to offer my services in. My advice as my Greek neighbour told me recently is 'come here on holiday but DON'T work here!' Please all you wonderful teachers out there take your skills elsewhere to be appreciated. GET A LIFE GREECE!!
Duncan, sorry you sound so disappointed in Greece. Yes the bureacracy can be nightmarish as many (myself included) have already testified, and EU rules seem to be there to be flaunted - but once you start digging deeper into other EU countries' laws you'll find that that applies to the majority of the EU countries. In fact the (so PC) UK is one of the few EU countries that abides by the majority of EU rulings. Just take a look on the Europa.eu website to see how many countries are being hauled through the European court every month over various transgressions.
Greece and its people have many many good points - its a shame you haven't dicovered them.
I loved Greece as a place to live. I was working on a fairly remote island - which meant I HAD to learn basic Greek to survive, which was great! However, I worked for a very difficult woman who had a "nursery" class, and it turned out that some of the kids were 3 years old and needed help going to the loo... I didn't study my RSA TEFLA to wipe bottoms!!! Not only that, but the school owner I was working for had a penchent for following the book to the page and doing vocab tests for the kids - which they duly cheated in. When I started swapping the order of words in the vocab tests around, the kids got 2/10 or so, and the parents complained. I found this the most awful teaching method and found it amazing that the kids had been used to cheating with previous teachers who were too scared to challenge the owner. It has left a bit of a scar on my TEFL past, as rote learning / cheating is not for me. I wonder if Greek Frontisterio are the same all over or whether this was an isolated incident?
In addition, being a small island, the inhabitants were totally unaware of life beyond Greece. Apparently Greece is the best country in the world and the rest of the world apparently eats snakes according to the kids :-)
Oh, the other problem was that she "offered" to not declare some of my IKA so that we would both be quids in, to which I refused.
I just think I was unlucky with all this - if the woman hadn't been such a nightmare to work for, I'd probably still be in Greece as it was wonderful, despite the snake comments!!
Are there private schools that will employ during daytime hours? Also, what about kindergartens? Do they pay teachers better? Does anyone know the rate of pay for 1. kindergarten
2. παιδοτοποι (day/nursery schools)
Any information is highly appreciated.
Irene,
These private schools teach only extra curricula classes for children outside of normal school hours so there are very limited daytime teaching hours.
Kindergarten and nursery schools don't normally employ English teachers.
Very informative hub. I have been teaching abroad myself, so I have written the hub on "How To Obtain a Teaching Job Abroad"
I agree that Greeks can be very self-centered and ignorant of different teaching methods. At first, I was so surprised that nobody wants conversation classes. Now I understand why so few Greeks speak English.
Greeks are mostly ill-mannered, inconsiderate and intollerent - until they want your money! Although there are a few notable exceptions, but they are well educated already and wouldn't need a teacher!
If you want to teach, go somewhere else.
I taught English in Greece for 5 years at various Frontistirias (private schools). I worked for 4 different Greek employers and in every case was disappointed.
From not paying me, to not getting insurance, to the boss beating children (I quit!),to being given a flat that was worse than anything I had lived in as a student. I even faced sexual advances from one school owner and when I complained he totally turned the story and I was branded a putana (whore)-of course in a small town nobody believed the foreign women's word against the Greek.
The only thing that kept me sane was my love of teaching,the children who were great, beautiful Greece and my kind neighbours.
If you do decide to work in Greece be careful-check paperwork, contracts,be firm, check with other teachers or with IKA (insurance) what your entitlements are.
In the end I stopped school work and just did private lessons -i was finacially better off and could use more 'modern' teaching methods-generally greek schools are old fashioned and anything 'new' is frowned upon!
Carolina
I was wondering if you could help me. I wish to teach English in Thessalonika, which is where my Greek boyfriend lives. I do not have a university degree, however I completed 2.5 years of a medical degree, and have 4 A grades in Biology, Chemistry, Maths and Physics in A Level. I was the top student in my school at A Level, but will this make absolutely no difference as I don't have a degree? Will I most likely be rejected outright for most positions? Is a degree required if I wished to teach privately, or would a TEFL qualification suffice? Are there any other courses I could take to improve my chances? Is there a basic Greek proficiency test I could take? I know objects, weather, numbers, colours, basic conversation, but not great at stringing whole sentences together. Please advise
Ciara, The TEFL certificate can be obtained by anyone with a High School Education, so in practice a degree is not absolutely necessary.
Information on the government's Certificates of Attainment in Greek Language can be found here http://www.greeklanguage.gr/eng/exams.html
Good Luck.
Hi, I am a graduate, planning to head out to teach English abroad. Before I go I would like to get some basic teacher training. I have looked around at some online TEFL courses, and the most serus and best put together one seems to be from this school : http://www.onlineteflcourse.net I would like to hear from anyone who has any expereince with this school. Thanks for your help.
Hi Jeryy, I'm in a smilar boat to you at the moment and have been looking around too for the past few weeks.
I've looked at the course you mention but there is no mention of course accreditation which I understand for a lot of International Schools world-wide is essential, and so you would be unlikley to get a reasonable job in a decent school with decent pay. There is also no actual teaching practice offered which I think is worth considering especially as you are not only going to live in a foreign country but embarking on a new career. For me, it would be worth the hands-on expereince and cost to arrive with some confidence in what you are about to undertake.
The course I personally liked the look of is this one: http://www.intesolinternational.com/accreditation. It is a lot more expensive but I think will deliver a good education, and ultimatley you get what you pay for.
Whatever you decide I wish you luck.
Regards, Mike
hello to all the teachers of english. i am now working at a language school and its awesome because the woman i work for goes by the book. she is very helpful and understanding for the rights of her employees. but i would like to know if anyone could answer is what about teaching at an elementary or highschool what paperwork does it involve? do you need a university degree?
Hi,
I'm just wondering what teaching young children is like in Greece? Is there a demand for English speaking teachers for young children, and what is the pay? I have a masters from NYU for early childhood educations, but I would love to teach for a while abroad, preferably in Greece, if it's possible.
From the above comment, please e-mail me at Amanda.King260@gmail.com if you have info, thank you!
I am hiring university graduates to teach English in Korea at www.eslteacherrecruiter.com
I work in the TEFL industry now for a training organisation but I cut my first TEFLing teeth in Greece and I recognise it in many of the comments made here. It is frustrating, annoying, backward looking and all the other negative things mentioned here, people must remember that it is not the Uk or Australia or wherever else they are comparing Greece too. It is a different country with different ideals, beliefs and ways of working. You go abroad (hopefully) to experince hese differences. Although we may think some things are wrong we need to accept that this is how things are done there. Yes, maybe some things should change but others may be as perfectly correct/ok as anything we do in our own countries.
If you go to Greece to teach, be prepared to accept it is different, that to most Greeks it is the greatest country in the world and that everything is much much slower. Enjoy the sun, the celebrations, the mountains (I lived in the Peloponese!) and the people. It is a wonderful country (regardless of some of the devious school owners!)
Thanks a lot for this really interesting hub. My wife and I teach English in Japan at the moment and have been considering Greece - probably Crete - as the next step. Japanese students are generally quite shy and self-conscious, particularly about the grammar. I wonder how Greek students compare? Anyway, good stuff!
This is one of the most informative pages I've read so far, so thank Carolina for a great hub! My problem is that I can't seem to get a job in any frontesteria (I live in Athens) - I have applied to several. I moved to Greece in 2007 with a background in graphic design. I wanted a change of career so decided to do a TEFL here in Greece. I passed with top marks and references, but I cannot get a teaching permit because I do not have a university degree, and without a teaching permit (they don't seem to care about lack of experience!) I cannot get my foot in the door. A lot of Greek teachers have told me to do a Michigan Proficiency Certificate, because they can get a permit just with that, but I don't think this is an option for native English speakers. Unless you know differently. To your knowledge, is there any way to obtain a permit without a university degree?
The English Proficiency Certificate (both Michigan and Cambridge) can only be taken by ESL students to the best of my knowledge .. i.e.not by native speakers of English. However if you should have dual nationality, e.g. British & Greek it is possible to take the exam using your Greek credentials.
Again, as far as I know, a university degree is required to obtain a teaching permit. A number of language schools where I live in Crete will hire teachers without permits. Perhaps there are now more applicants than there are jobs in Athens and so the language school owners can insist on the permit.
Hello
Excellent Hub first of all Carolina.
I am currently living in Athens but considering Crete (Chania) as a place of residency with my wife.
We are both looking at teaching English. It sounds as though TEFL gets you part of the way and a Proficiency in English should cover the permit side of things for the frontistirio. We both have dual citizenship (i.e. Australian and Greek) so that should allow us to sit the Proficiency exam. Does that sound correct?
My first question is, is there a demand for native speakers of English generally by frontistiria? Secondly, which TEFL course should I take (I have heard Corinth and Chania are the 2 main areas in Greece which run TEFL courses)? Which TEFL course should I choose to give me the right credentials to apply for and hopefully successfully find work in this field in Greece?
Thanks for your help and good luck to everyone that has posted.
Neo_Gnosis
Hi Neo_Gnosis,
Yes, in my experience, you should be able to take the Proficiency in English exam using your Greek nationality (you'll need a Greek ID card).
In Chania there are dozens of frontistiria and they do employ many native English speakers so generally the prospects of finding a job here are pretty good.
As regarding which TEFL course to take,I would say that this is mostly down to the individual : how good is your English grammar? would you be comfortable walking into a classroom and starting to teach blind, or would you prefer to have a little experience of a classroom setting? Some TEFL courses offer practice teaching as part of the course. But perhaps a short online course would be sufficient for you, depending on confidence etc.
Most of the language schools will not differentiate between different types of TEFL, it is an added string to your bow as it is were; it's not a requirement to teach but an addition to your credentials.
Good luck
i am so confused. I am a U.S. citizen and a college graduate. I would like to teach english in Greece, but it seems nearly impossible. Every cite tells me something different. Some say you need to know Greek, while others claim that it is better to not know Greek. Also, some claim I would not need a permit while others are adamant that I would. This is so confusing and I feel extremely discouraged. Should I just give up on Greece and look into a different country?
Hi Ashten,
There is the 'official' version and the non official version - as I mention in the article, some language schools will employ any native English speakers without a teaching licence.
Overall it is much harder for U.S. Citizens to legally find work teaching in Greece than for EU citizens. Why should a language school go through the hassle of sponsoring a work permit for a non-EU citizen when there are plenty of EU citizens to employ, who they are not required to sponsor? It's really down to supply and demand, and the reality is there appears to be a large supply of EU citizens doing the job at present so non-EU citizens will find it harder to get their foot in the door.
Hi , I have been teaching English in a Greek private school for the last 7 Years and was wondering how I could get a degree in teaching English. For eg:( Bachelor in English literature) as maybe a distance learner.This would be the easiest for me as I am a parent (who works in the afternoons) I know that this is all I need in order to teach English in a public Greek primary schools. How do I go about starting somehting like this?
I am currently in Greece, after having done the TEFL Anglo Hellenic Training Course with Peter Beech. This course guranteess you a job placement after spending alot of money for a 120 hour course. What they do not tell you is that if you do not speak Greek it is hightly unlikely for you to get a job and if you do get a job the pay will be very bad. I did this course with Peter Beech who also has comment on this hub. I would not recommend this course to anyone who is looking for a job in Greece. Of course it is a bad time of year to find a teaching job, however if you are not an EU citizen, from my experience employers treat you as second class. Peter told all eight of us in the training course that employers did not care, but from what I have learned that is not the case. I came to Greece to do the TEFL course and learn about a different culture, I had no idea I would love it so much. Now I want to stay, although it seems to be impossible to get a teaching job in Corinth or surrounding areas on the mainland. I think there is a demand for English teachers here in Greece for sure but one should not deny that it is almost required to speak Greek or at least be an EU citizen. And anyone who wants to do the Anglo Hellenic TEFL course here in Greece, don't expect to be helped in anyway to find a job. Out of eight students this month only a couple were offered a job by Peter's wife who is Greek and does recruitment, not based on academia, but your social life, which is judged because you live in an apartment beneath the instructer Peter and his wife. I have never encountered such unprofessionalism in my whole life. If anyone has any further inquires on the TEFL course in Greece feel free to email me. I can give you plenty of other addresses that will agree with my feelings on the matter.
My email address regarding the above commentary is: jeanniemcfarlane@msn.com
My email address regarding the above commentary is: jeanniemcfarlane@msn.com
AuraGem says:
2 years ago
As an English teacher, this hub is most enlightening! In Australia, we hear of overseas work in the UK, China, Japan and Korea mainly, but I have never heard of teaching on offer in Greece!
Thank you! More food for thought!
Smiles and Light