All You Need to Know about the VIPKid Application Process
Hello Teachers! I’m Teacher Stephanie a friend and co-worker of Nancy. I am so excited to get to write a few blog posts about teaching and working with VIPKid. I have a passion for teaching and I have loved being able to hang with these smart kids and still have the flexibility to stay at home with my three young children. Without further ado, let’s get to today’s post.
All You Need to Know about the VIPKid Application Process
Nancy works with a lot of referrals as a coach (helping applicants get hired) and as a mock class mentor (the interviewer you will see when you send in your videos) so she really knows her stuff with the application process. She has a great video on the whole process I will be talking about today but if you prefer to read, all of the information in this post contains the same information in the video (admittedly without the Nancy Taylor enthusiasm and flare). Sorry! Different teachers, different styles! That's how we roll here. ;)
Step 1: Apply (Application Screening)
Three requirements
- Bachelors Degree in any field
- One Year of Teaching Experience
- Eligibility to work in US or Canada
The beauty of this job is that our fellow teachers work from all over the world and had a wide variety of educational backgrounds and experience with children. As a mom, I love that they have strict standards for their teachers because it means the kids are safe online and gaining a great education with a professional educator. If you have any questions about this please refer to the last post or email Nancy to see if you qualify. A computer will pass you through to the next step if you meet the requirements.
Step 2: Interview/ Demo
There are two options with this step.
Option 1 SMART INTERVIEW
- You will download the VIPKid Teacher App
- Review the quick videos to go over the ESL Teaching Strategies
- Take the 5 question quiz
- Film yourself teaching 1 slide with your phone! Detail in the video linked above if you have any questions!
Option 2 10 Minute Demo Live
- scheduled online for a set time
- nice to have another person interacting with you as the student
Option 3 10 Minute Demo Recorded
- scheduled online for a set time
- you will pretend there is a student on the other end
Both allow unlimited time to complete this step (VIPKid will email and call a lot of you take awhile, so just be aware of that). You get to practice in the actual classroom and get a feel for how that will be. Pick the option that is the best fit for you. One is not going to give you a better score than another. I would do the SMART interview because it is the easiest:
After this, the base pay is set through an algorithm that takes into account your education, licenses, experience, and the number of points from your interview. The base pay ranges from $7-9 but most people get $8. Truth be told, that's what I got after my interview. To see more about the pay rate: take a look at this video. Remember that it’s not going to be $8 per hour so don’t panic! It is closer to $20 an hour. Because the interview affects your pay, be sure to thoughtfully prepare for your interview and be familiar with all of the material and technology. More posts on passing your interview to come!
VIDEO HOW MUCH DO YOU MAKE WITH VIPKID (goes over base pay and how much you can make an hour)
Step 3: Certification(s)
After your interview is accepted you will have 3 days to complete a certification, VIPKID will email you with the due date for completing this step. Don’t feel rushed because of the time limit because you will get unlimited attempts to try to gain a certification.
We will talk more about the certification step in detail and tips to pass on another post. Here are a few quick tips to help you out on this step.
- Make sure you have your classroom set up with backdrop, lighting, headset, good internet (VIPKID will give you instructions on how fast it needs to be), a webcam and some basic props.
- This is a 10 minute lesson; practice pacing your slides to stick to the time limit.
- There are two lessons for each level certification. You will only teach ONE with the Mock class mentor.Come prepared to teach either, but the mock class mentor gets to choose which one you will be teaching.
Here is a quick overview of each of the certifications you can add to your profile.
Option 1: Levels 2 & 3
You will prepare both option A & B, and then when you show up to your Mock your interviewer will choose which one, but most let you choose just FYI. Option A & Option B . Click on the links for some great video demonstrations of these lessons to give you ideas of how to teach these slides. Typically Level 2 and 3 students are at the beginning stages of learning English which can mean they are a bit younger. I personally love teaching these kids the most, although the lessons are very simple.
Option 2: Level 4 & 5
The lessons provided will be about either “My Country, My Culture” or “Earth, Our Home”. Nancy has great video demonstrations for these lessons as well and awesome tips for teaching ESL students. These kiddos are at the intermediate level of English learning. They can read and speak very well and these lessons tend to have more complex ideas and conversation.
Remember that you will just have to teach ONE 10 minute lesson from the two choices. Prepare both, make sure that you know them really well and you are familiar with all of the material. Be sure to have your classroom set up and props ready for each mock class. The class mentor (person observing you during the lesson) will decide what lesson you teach and he/she might let you pick.
You will get unlimited attempts to gain a certification so don’t stress if you don't get it the first time. It’s all part of the process! And it will be a great way to familiarize yourself with the platform, the lessons' format and your own teaching style.
Important Info:
You can choose to get just one certification and jump right into teaching or you can put off teaching to get more certifications. The benefit of starting to teach right away is that you will be getting paid sooner with each booked class. The benefit of getting more certifications is that it makes you available to a broader range of students and thus equaling potential for more booked classes. Pros and cons to each choice but one size does not fit all here. Don’t worry if you decide to jump into teaching right away, you can always get more certifications later. Although the process will be a bit different (take a quiz, record a different lesson).
Sign Your Contract with VIPKid
WOOT WOOT! YOU MADE IT! WELCOME TO THE VIPKID TEACHER CLUB! After getting certified in different levels you will get your contract, upload documents, and start on your TESOL certificate (and maybe do a happy dance too).
Coaching Days: An Alternate Route
Does this whole process sound like a lot? Don’t worry, it’s not the only way. Introducing “Coaching Days.”
Coaching Days can be found
HERE for in person (https://nvite.com/community/vipkid)
Or
HERE for 2 hours online
With in person coaching days you get to skip the interview/demo and train directly in the lower levels. You will get to go straight to the Certification step, closer to meeting those cute kiddos and getting paid y’all! You also get help with current VIPKID teachers and mentors in person with other applicants.
With online (2 hours) via video-chat. You will need to RSVP to these events with the link above. They are great for busy schedules & help to train on the specific certification that you choose to do after you finish your demo.
VIPKID APPLICATION PROCESS YOUTUBE PLAYLIST
I hope you found this information helpful. Let me tell you that although this process has a lot of options and steps to get through, it is not difficult and it is so worth it! I have LOVED this little side hustle and I know you will too. To start the application process you can click here and enter the referral code: NANCY0002
Best of luck!
