How to hire a language instructor

How to hire a language instructor, step by step

Here's a step-by-step language instructor hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a language instructor job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new language instructor
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a language instructor do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a language instructor, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a language instructor to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a language instructor that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of language instructor salaries for various roles:

   Type of Language Instructor	Description	Hourly rate
   Language Instructor	Postsecondary teachers instruct students in a wide variety of academic and career and technical subjects beyond the high school level. They also conduct research and publish scholarly papers and books.	$19-39
   Summer School Teacher	A Summer School Teacher is a teacher who works during the summer period. They develop and implement schemes of work and lesson plans in line with curriculum objectives... Show more	$17-36
   Adjunct Faculty	Adjunct faculty is the collective term for adjunct professors or lecturers. The adjunct faculty teaches students based on the limited-term of their contract... Show more	$21-73

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Kids
   • Classroom Management
   • Grammar
   • Course Content
   • Group Classes
   • Foreign Language
   • Language Training
   • Constructive Feedback
   • English Language
   • Curriculum Development
   • Teaching Methodologies
   • ILR
   • Student Performance
   • Literature

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Supervise and manage class; facilitate and teach conversational Tagalog including cultural aspects.
   • Distribute marketing materials to community organizations and businesses and lead community outreach strategy on behalf of ESOL department regarding various programs/schedules/opportunities.
   • Develop and implement communicative, task-base, learner-centered Tagalog language learning activities.
   • Design and teach ESOL classes to Hispanic senior citizens of mix language ability.
   • Identify and utilize effective methods to teach grammar, conversation skills and vocabulary to non-native speakers.
   • Design quizzes and exams including listening comprehension, grammar and vocabulary manipulation, and composition/ dialogue creation.

   More language instructor duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your language instructor job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A language instructor can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, language instructors' average salary in oklahoma is 52% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level language instructors 51% less than senior-level language instructors.
   • Certifications. A language instructor with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a language instructor's salary.

   Average language instructor salary

   $57,946yearly

   $27.86 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level language instructor salary

   $40,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average language instructor salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$92,491	$44
   2	New York	$85,056	$41
   3	District of Columbia	$67,333	$32
   4	Washington	$65,281	$31
   5	Illinois	$64,546	$31
   6	Massachusetts	$62,390	$30
   7	Michigan	$59,609	$29
   8	Maryland	$59,545	$29
   9	Montana	$57,323	$28
   10	Oregon	$56,417	$27
   11	Virginia	$56,355	$27
   12	Colorado	$55,048	$26
   13	Ohio	$53,023	$25
   14	Georgia	$52,899	$25
   15	Wisconsin	$51,485	$25
   16	Tennessee	$50,407	$24
   17	Minnesota	$49,997	$24
   18	Texas	$48,869	$23

   Average language instructor salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Kern Community College District	$121,912	$58.61	13
   2	City University of Seattle	$87,851	$42.24
   3	The Bay School of San Francisco	$85,472	$41.09
   4	New York University	$80,898	$38.89	4
   5	Chapman University	$80,002	$38.46	4
   6	Middlebury College	$78,175	$37.58	5
   7	Edmonds Community College, Lynnwood	$76,135	$36.60	2
   8	Swarthmore College	$75,049	$36.08
   9	Chicago State University	$73,990	$35.57	1
   10	San Jose State University	$73,012	$35.10	4
   11	Careerstaff Unlimited - A Genesis Healthcare Company	$72,935	$35.06
   12	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	$72,826	$35.01
   13	East Stroudsburg University	$72,603	$34.91	4
   14	Harvard University	$70,293	$33.79
   15	Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania	$69,239	$33.29	8
   16	PSEA	$68,959	$33.15	11
   17	Horace Mann	$68,544	$32.95
   18	Wittenberg University	$66,243	$31.85
   19	Culver Academies	$65,769	$31.62	8
   20	DePauw University	$64,622	$31.07

4. Writing a language instructor job description

   A good language instructor job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a language instructor job description:

   Language instructor job description example

   Ste. Michelle Wine Estates is a premium wine company that is proud to call the greater Seattle area our home. We are a collection of distinctive wine estates and maker of some of the finest wines in the world. As a result, our wines are a force for gatherings and conversations to serve the well-being of our consumers, our communities and our land. This approach has resulted in our ability to offer our consumers outstanding and distinctive wines from some of the best regions in the world.
   
   We are currently seeking highly qualified candidates for a Vocational Language Instructor to join our team in Paterson, Washington. This role is anticipated to be four (4) to five (5) months in duration. The position is on-site and in-person at our beautiful winery.
   What you will do:
   
   * Teach students how to interpret, read, write, and understand foreign (both Spanish and English) languages.
   * Translate foreign (both Spanish and English) languages into the students' natural language to help them understand.
   * Create lesson plans and instructional resources for use in the classroom; with flexibility to use various curriculum resources.
   * Develop student understanding and appreciation of culture of countries where foreign language is spoken.
   * Plan, prepare and deliver instructional activities
   * Create positive educational climate for students to learn in.
   * Meet course and student performance goals.
   * Integrate company competencies, goals, and objectives into lesson plans.
   * Work with program coordinators to ensure initiatives are being met.
   * Prepare and distribute required reports.
   * Observe and evaluate student's performance.
   * Models Our Ways of Working and supports a respectful and inclusive work environment enabling all team members to contribute to their full potential
   * Acts with integrity and accountability, takes ownership for actions and results, both positive and those not meeting standard.
   * Engages in conversation by sharing feedback and generously listens to other points of view.
   * Seeks to learn more about the business; looks for efficiencies, improvements, and new ways of operations to improve overall results.
   
   What you will bring:
   
   * 1+ years' experience of prior language teaching experience
   * Bachelor's Degree is required.
   * Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.
   * Ability to recognize when clarification/verification of instructions and expectations for completion of projects is required.
   * A cooperative spirit, teamwork and a positive attitude for all interpersonal communications
   * History of responsible use of alcohol and other appropriate conduct, as well as fitness to be licensed, permitted, and/or certified by state and/or local regulatory bodies.
   
   Who you are:
   
   * You are curious and continuously learn and grow your capabilities.
   * You respect and value the power of conversation to bring people together, learn and solve problems.
   * You value inclusion and work to create an environment where everyone feels welcomed and every voice is heard.
   * You are innovative and have the courage to pursue new ideas.
   * You make an impact by being bold and taking action.
   
   We believe in developing the leadership potential of our employees by providing opportunities for training, development and advancement.
   
   Ste. Michelle Wine Estates is an equal opportunity employer. We consider qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, protected veteran status, or other protected class. For more information, see the EEOC's "Equal Employment Opportunity is The Law" poster.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right language instructor for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with language instructors they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit language instructors who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   To find language instructor candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as k12jobspot, learn4good, serious teachers, teachingjobs.com.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit language instructors, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new language instructor

   Once you've selected the best language instructor candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new language instructor. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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