United Kingdom - TEFL in the UK

London, and the UK in general, is a highly competitive market for ESL teachers. You will need to be extremely well qualified and, more often than not, have relevant teaching experience. Just being a native English speaker won't cut it!

You will need to hold at least a University degree plus a CELTA or Trinity Cert. TESOL or, if working with juniors, a post-graduate teaching qualification like the PGCE. In some cases, substantial teaching experience can be exchanged in lieu of one of more of these qualifications.

Of course, requirements vary from school to school so it might be worth making a list of the schools in the area where you'd like to work and contact them to see exactly what their hiring criteria are.

Pay also varies. Qualifications and experience will play a role in what you can be offered but just to give you an idea, the current going rate for an EFL summer teaching position is between GBP 250/280 per week.

Preference is usually given to applicants with an EU passport as this guarantees entry into the country with the least hassle. If you are not from an EU country, you'll need to contact your nearest British embassy about getting a work permit before you go. That will probably mean finding a job beforehand in order to get a work visa. As that is not the easiest thing to do, an interesting option might be to go as a student, as students are allowed to work 20 hours a week on top of studying.

For more on visas and entry clearance see BritainUSA. The site is intended primarily for readers in the United States and some services described will not be available, or relevant, to readers outside the USA. If you are outside the US, link to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website for information about the UK's representation in your country.

English language schools abound in the UK and, in addition to their regular year-round courses, many offer summer-only courses for adults, children and teenagers.

Unlike in other countries, online application for ESL teaching posts is standard practice in the UK and job postings are common on the net. Just do a search by key word or start by looking at the TEFL job section in the Guardian to start with.