How NOT to get a job as English Teacher

Recruiters and Teacher Agencies receive many resumes from English teachers looking for a job in Thailand. Some of them make one wonder if they were sent in earnest, or if they were sent as a joke.

Here is an example of an e-mail cover letter that most likely won’t get the candidate to an interview:

Dear sir/madam/Director,
Goodday.I am <name deleted>,a 32yrs of age British /French Cameroonian with a Masters Degree in Business Law and diplomas in Education and Child Psychology.
Dear sir/madam/director,I humbly wish to inform you that ,I’m verymuch interested to teach in your favourable, well recognised institution.I wish to inform you that, I’m very fluent in English,french and Thai languages.I have taught in many schools in Thailand,e.g samsennok ,Anuban Rayong e.t.c an in many Government administrative offices.
I am very smart,intelligent and dynamic same as Mr Obama(U.S.A).I am also a lover of sports.My contact numbers are <telephone numbers deleted>.
While waiting for a favourable response from you, I remain yours faithful applicant,
<name deleted>
NB.DEAR SIR/MADAM,’THE INTELLIGENCE OF A MAN IS NOT DETERMINED BY THE COLOUR,NATIONALITY OF HIS BODY BUT BY WHAT HE DOES’.

A possible response to such an application letter may be:

Dear Sir,

Comparing yourself to the President of the United States of America is quite a stretch. President Obama certainly knows how to spell and how to apply the rules of grammar. Perhaps you should leave that part out.

Here are some tips which may increase your chance of getting an interview. If you are not a fan of unsolicited advice, please stop reading now.

• “Goodday” is not a word. You should write “Good day.”
• “32yrs” should be “32 years”. Leaving out the space and shortening such a short word makes you look lazy.
• Repeating “Dear sir/madam/director” in the second paragraph is totally unnecessary and looks very much like artificial politeness.
• “verymuch” should be “very much”
• “I wish to inform you that, I’m very fluent…” There is no comma needed here – in fact, it is wrong to place a comma in that place.
• “french” should be “French”
• “e.t.c” should be “etc.”
• “an” should be “and”
• “Government” should be “government”
• “I’m very smart,intelligent and dynamic same as Mr Obama.” should be “I’m as smart, intelligent, and dynamic as Mr. Obama.” (It is really recommended, however, to remove that part all together — for obvious reasons.)
• “I remain yours faithful applicant” should either be “I remain your faithful applicant” or “I remain yours faithfully”
• Your punctuation seems very odd for an English teacher. The general rule is to place a space after the punctuation mark (comma, period, etc.) You sometimes leave out the space and sometimes put it in front of the punctuation.

Viewing the above as constructive criticism and taking the necessary steps to correct your cover letter will most likely increase your chances in the job market.

Best Regards,