# Applying for a teaching visa in the Philippines with a postgraduate certificate?



## TeacherBelgium (Apr 8, 2020)

Hi,
I'm a Belgian student. I'm 24 years old and I speak Dutch, English and French fluently.
I have a postgraduate certificate and an associate's degree. I do not hold a bachelor's degree however. My postgraduate certificate is in strategic management and leadership and my associate's degree is in paralegal studies. 

Could I be granted a visa in order to teach English in secondary schools in the Philippines?

If so, what pay wage can I expect as a teacher in a public school?


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

TeacherBelgium said:


> Hi,
> I'm a Belgian student. I'm 24 years old and I speak Dutch, English and French fluently.
> I have a postgraduate certificate and an associate's degree. I do not hold a bachelor's degree however. My postgraduate certificate is in strategic management and leadership and my associate's degree is in paralegal studies.
> 
> ...


At the moment during the Covid 19 crisis no visa are being issued so you can't come here anyway. As to teaching the salary is prbably in the region of 20,000 pesos per month, that's about 400 euros a month, hardly a living wage for a foreigner. As a retiree westerner 1000 euros a month is considered livable.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

TeacherBelgium said:


> Hi,
> I'm a Belgian student. I'm 24 years old and I speak Dutch, English and French fluently.
> I have a postgraduate certificate and an associate's degree. I do not hold a bachelor's degree however. My postgraduate certificate is in strategic management and leadership and my associate's degree is in paralegal studies.
> 
> ...


Hi Teacher and welcome to the forum, I'm sure you will get plenty of answers and opinions, enjoy and contribute.
Google is my best friend:

https://www.teacherph.com/public-school-teachers-salary/

Can I ask why the Philippines? Only an observation given your qualifications, other countries? There are also plenty of call centres here that may be interested in your qualifications and fluency in multiple languages and I'm sure you would adapt and the pay would/could be better than an English teacher in a country that predominately speaks the english language to greater and lesser degrees, Dutch and French could be the winner for you.

Visa? A difficult one given the Filipino first rule so best to hook up with an agency and get advice from them as well as other members from this site.
Good luck and keep us posted how you fare.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Manitoba (Jun 25, 2014)

Not sure about here but I have known people with incomplete undergraduate degrees getting jobs internationally as English teachers (Japan, Thailand and Indonesia specifically). The pay is better if you have a degree but they have been known to accept people with incomplete degrees.

I would guess that teh OP would not have too much trouble getting a job, it might not pay much and be in a rural area but if it is just experence that he is looking for then it may not be a bad option.


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

*Applying for a job*



TeacherBelgium said:


> Hi,
> I'm a Belgian student. I'm 24 years old and I speak Dutch, English and French fluently.
> I have a postgraduate certificate and an associate's degree. I do not hold a bachelor's degree however. My postgraduate certificate is in strategic management and leadership and my associate's degree is in paralegal studies.
> 
> ...



This is a very tough spot to make a living and most expats who live here have pensions. In order to get a job you'll have to go through many loop holes. There are a few that manage to live here on a tourist visa (expensive) and teach online but there are many Philippine teachers that also speak English and need jobs, what I've heard from an expat that works online is he teaches English to the Chinese, Japanese and Middle Eastern countries. 

If hired your employer will have to submit all your Visa Work requirements because we can't work here on a tourist Visa if caught working as a tourist you'll be fined, deported and black listed. And if you just go the online route it's tough to live here for an extended period off a tourist visa.

If you marry a citizen of the Philippines then you could work here but you'll have to go through he process of setting that up it's another Olympic style process where the citizen does get priority and don't forget this is a developing 3rd world so it's a process working your paper work through the municipality and then applying for SSS (social security) and BIR (Tax).

The bottom line is that you don't want to show up here without the proper Visa and then go to work. This is a frequent subject so here are some more links:

https://www.expatforum.com/expats/p...online-english-teaching-chinese-students.html

https://www.expatforum.com/expats/p...1488458-working-philippines.html#post14956986

https://www.expatforum.com/expats/p...-requirements-remote-working-philippines.html


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