Esl instructor skills for your resume and career

Writing, Editing, Teaching, Reading.

It is also important that you speak well -- that you are a good conversationalist. People in education want to hire people who will be collegial co-workers and have a dynamic classroom presence.

I am taking this from the perspective of an agribusiness major.

If a student isn't able to land a position within their field of study, I would suggest they work on their people skills and stay up to date with what is happening in the markets, ag policy, and agriculture. Staying up to date means following the popular press in the areas you have a career interest in. That could mean following the news from places like Drovers, local and national producer associations, or congressional or senate ag committees. This will help keep you up to date on what's happening in the areas you have an interest in or are looking for a career.

I seem to be harping on the people skills piece. Get experience in working with customers, customer service, customer complaints. These experiences will help you develop critical thinking skills, problem-solving skills, and communication skills sought after by employers.

For the past several years, it has been clear that employers are seeking graduates with 21st Century Learning Skills (critical thinking, creativity, communication, and collaboration). The four Cs of 21st Century Learning frequently come up during reference calls on my end and interviews for our recent graduates.

I would add that graduates need a strong work ethic, an understanding of professionalism and respect in the workplace, and self-awareness and an understanding of personal needs and limitations both at work and in their personal lives. In these current living conditions during a global pandemic (COVID-19), graduates also need resilience, perseverance, adaptability, and flexibility. These are all skills I would want for our Music Education majors to cultivate, as the climate in K-12 Education is ever-changing. However, I believe these are all skills that would be useful in any new career path.

In the past some employers appeared to be attracted to candidates who were familiar with online or distant education. Given the changing face of the academia, especially over the last year, I believe that skills to work remotely will be especially taken into consideration when hiring instructors of English language, education and literature. As I see it, an ability to develop online courses through platforms such as Canvas, Moodle or Blackboard stand out to employers of the educational sector. Along these lines, experience with video communications technologies such as Zoom will be a plus when deciding to hire an online or distance English teacher.

Additionally, specializations in English literature appear to have dropped, yet positions in rhetoric and composition are still in demand. Therefore, those English majors interested in literature might want to diversify their curriculum and receive training in areas such as technical and professional writing. They might also be interested in expanding their knowledge in second language acquisition or pedagogy to teach English to foreign speakers.