TEFL CV and Interview Guide for Irish Applicants

A TEFL CV should show your degree, your teaching qualification with hours and practice, any experience with learners and two or three clear references. Schools and schemes then test you with an interview, and often a short demonstration lesson. Prepare both, and be ready for the paperwork questions.

What to put on the CV

• Profile. Two lines: your qualification, the age group you teach and where you want to work.
• Education. Degree, institution and year. Many sponsored visas require a degree, so make it easy to find.
• Teaching qualification. Name of the certificate, awarding body, total hours and hours of assessed teaching practice.
• Teaching and related experience. Tutoring, coaching, volunteering, camps, training colleagues. Give group size, age and what you delivered.
• Languages and skills. Another language is valuable because it shows you know how learning feels. Add relevant software for online teaching.
• References. Two, ideally one from a recent employer and one from a tutor or supervisor who saw you teach.

Keep it to one or two pages in plain format. Some countries expect a photo, personal details or a specific format, so follow the advert. Check spelling carefully; a CV for an English teaching job with errors is hard to forgive.

Specifics lift a TEFL CV above the pile. Instead of 'helped with English classes', write 'taught weekly conversation classes of 8 adults, designed all materials, collected learner feedback'. Instead of 'good communicator', point to a result: a project completed, a group retained, a learner who passed an exam. If your experience is limited, include a short teaching portfolio link with two lesson plans and feedback from an observer. Keep a one-line explanation for any gap and be ready to talk about it.

Scheme application materials

The Japanese Embassy lists a certificate of expected graduation or your degree for the JET Programme and sets a written screening followed by interviews in Dublin between January and February 2027. Spain's language assistant programme asks new applicants for a statement of purpose, a signed declaration, a health statement and a recommendation letter dated on or after 1 September 2025. Keep these letters and statements specific: describe actual experience with learners and what you want to do in a classroom, not general enthusiasm for travel. Details for each country are in the JET and Spain sections.

The interview

Common questions are why you want to teach, what experience you have with learners, how you would handle a quiet or disruptive class and how you would explain a grammar point to a beginner. Prepare short real examples. Ask your own questions too: class size, hours per week, how the school supports new teachers, what materials exist and how permits and housing are handled.

The demo lesson

1. Ask the level and age of the class and any topic.
2. Pick one clear aim that can be achieved in the time.
3. Plan a warm-up, a short presentation, a practice activity and a closing check.
4. Prepare simple materials you can carry: flashcards, a handout, a board plan.
5. Practise timing aloud and plan what to cut.
6. Smile, give short instructions and check understanding.

A template is in how to write an ESL lesson plan. Bring a copy of your plan for the interviewer.

References and paperwork

Ask your referees before naming them. Have scans of your passport, degree, TEFL certificate and Garda Police Certificate ready, and know your timing for apostilles (paperwork checklist). If a school asks for payment before an interview or offer, stop and read the red flags page.

After the interview

Send a short thank-you email within a day, restating one point from the conversation. If you are offered the job, ask for the written contract, check the hours and pay against what was said, and ask for time to read it. If you are not offered it, ask politely for feedback on the demo lesson. Many schools hire in waves, so a good impression can lead to a later offer.