If you want to become a French teacher, the first thing you need to do is decide which age group you would like to teach. The basic breakdown is as follows:
- Early childhood
- Kindergarten - 6th grade
- 7th - 12th grade
- College and university
- Adult and continuing education
The requirements for adults tend to be the simplest. You usually don't need a degree and for some adult education centers you don't even need a credential. I spent more than a year teaching French and Spanish at an adult education center in California. While the school did not require a credential, it paid higher wages to teachers with credentials and higher still to those with credentials plus a college degree (in any subject). Just to give you an idea (although again, please be aware that different countries, states, provinces, cities, and even schools will offer different wages), my California adult education credential cost something like $200 (including the basic skills test and application fees). Valid for two years, and combined with my BA + 30 hours of graduate studies, the credential increased my pay from $18/hour to about $24.
Another option is to become an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher and work in a French-speaking country. While you probably won't have much opportunity to speak French at work, you will at least be living somewhere where you can speak French every day.
Additional resources
- French teaching tips and tools
- Francophone countries
- Becoming an elementary school teacher
- US certification for secondary school teachers
- Teaching adults
- ESL/EFL career guide - getting qualified
Jobs using French
Introduction
Teaching
Translation / Interpretation
Editing / Proofreading
Travel, Tourism, Hospitality
Foreign Service
International Organizations
Other International Careers
